What does "body positivity" mean to you?

[Sam W]

We use talk about being body positive a lot here at Scarleteen, and you see the term come up in lots of other spaces as well. While body positivity is becoming more widely known as a concept, it's important to acknowledge that it looks and feels a little different for each person. For example, I feel like a lot of body positivity misses the experiences of disabled folks, trans folks, or people who still struggle to even like their body, let alone love it.

To me, being body positive means understanding that there is no one, best way to have a body, and that no body is inherently more valuable than another. And, it means understanding that not everyone will look at their body and go, "heck yes, I love all of this!" and just because they aren't doing that doesn't mean they're somehow failing at body positivity. I think these three pieces illustrate different ways of talking about bodies that are all part of the bigger conversation around body positivity:
http://www.scarleteen.com/article/bodie ... t_girldick
http://www.scarleteen.com/article/bodie ... d_disabled
http://www.scarleteen.com/article/advic ... bish_story

How about you all? How do you think about the concept of being body positive?

[Bessie F.]

I used to only associate body-positivity with weight-related issues. After moving to the U.S, I gained some weight. Whenever I would fly back to Honduras for summer or winter vacations, I would dread days in advance all the comments I might get from friends and family. I had not heard anyone (until very recently–– maybe a year ago) say there's nothing wrong with not being skinny. As an international student in an American college, I experience the similarities and differences in how the Latinx students generally talk-approach weight in comparison to American students. I've become aware that I feel way better/more comfortable about my body when I'm in the U.S, rather than in Honduras. But mostly, I've learned to deal and respond appropriately to the friends and family that after months of not seeing me, jump to comment on my weight gain. Body-positivity has definitely been a long process for me.

Loved the articles you linked that discuss it through several different lenses/angles.