Photo: twitter.com/EscapologistGl
'Are you beach body ready?' Campaign causes trouble
The perfect body for the beach? Is slim and trained, that is at least one protein manufacturer from the UK. The accompanying poster campaign is currently facing a storm of indignation.
The temperatures are rising, the summer is coming - juchuuuuu! But wait - just in time for cracking the 20-degree mark, the anticipation should be thoroughly spoiled. Because right now the women's magazines are waiting with title stories such as the "Bikini Bootcamp" or the extra booklet "Slim into the summer" on TV, one diet pot after another and the outside world is placarded with the "latest", "most effective", "revolutionary" remedies for those who want to lose as many kilos as possible as fast as possible. Keyword: Bikini Panic! And then the look in the mirror: Has the winter bacon perhaps more persistent than previously thought? And with that, should I go to the beach? We say: definitely! And are not alone.
In the London underground, a poster campaign is causing a lot of discontent: Black letters on a yellow background ask: "Are you beach body ready?" ("Is your body ready for the beach?"), Next to it a picture of a well-trained bikini model. The motif is an advertisement for a weight loss mix from the company "Protein World" - and at the same time sexist and discriminating at the same time. That this can not stay that way, more and more people find and show their criticism as a statement on the posters themselves or as a protest in the network.
NEW CAMPAIGN! Beach Body Shutdown - http://t.co/fBw9ODItg1 pic.twitter.com/YH2cnpN5KA
- Do Something UK (@DoSomethingUK) April 24, 2015
The bloggers Fiona Longmuir and Tara Costello are against this kind of body-shaming and posing in bikini in front of the poster. They tweeted the photo saying, "How to get a beach body: Take your body to the beach." ("How to get a beach body: Bring your body to the beach."). The reaction of "Protein World" on Twitter: "Why make your insecurities our problem ;-)" ("Why do you make your uncertainties to our problem ;-)") - a joke! The hashtag #Eachbodysready is now found in every social network.
You're god damn right @Catstello and I are beach body ready. No help needed, we're #alreadyperfect. #bodypositive pic.twitter.com/UysgHFkvpa
- Fiona Longmuir (@EscapologistGl) April 22, 2015
"The beach is a place to have fun and relax, this should not be condemned and compared, " Vaults singer Blythe Pepino told the BBC, who wants to make the hashtag even more popular with a video (s.unten). "I was pretty annoyed with the poster, it's not unusual to see women in underwear on billboards, but how much the term 'beach body' was turned into a commodity and sexualized - that was just too much, I had to do something about it."
There is now a petition on Change.org, which demands that all posters be removed immediately. It has almost 45, 000 signatures today. "Protein World" reacts with incomprehension to the whole vortex and denies any sexism. "It's a shame that in 2015 you still belong to the minority if you want a healthier and fitter lifestyle, " a spokesman told the London Evening Standard. No, it's not about banning anyone from going to the gym for the summer - it's about the free choice everyone should make for themselves. And that is exactly what should be advertised on posters!
