Emily Ratajkowski has nevershied away from showing skinin the name of feminism. And her latest editorial is no exception.
“If I decide to shave my armpits or grow them out, that’s up to me,” she writes. “For me, body hair is another opportunity for women to exercise their ability to choose — a choice based on how they want to feel and their associations with having or not having body hair.”
Growing out her body hair makes her feel sexy, Ratajkowski continues, adding that it’s all about her right to choose.
“There is no right answer, no choice that makes me more or less of a feminist, or even a ‘bad feminist,'” Ratajkowski notes, quoting author Roxane Gay. “Ultimately, the identity and sexuality of an individual is up to them and no one else.”
Michael Avedon
Ratajkowski maintains that she has learned from the social media criticism she’s received from showing skin and expressing her feminist ideals — mainly the importance of knowing her audience and prefacing her controversial statements.
“Let’s state the obvious: I’m a cis white woman,” Ratajkowski says in the beginning of the essay. “I’m well aware of the privilege I receive as someone who is heteronormative, and I don’t pretend to act like my identity hasn’t made some things easier for me. That being said, I want to take this opportunity to speak up about what my experience as a woman has been.”
She then drew from her experience as a student at UCLA, where she studied for a year before modeling full-time, and a gender studies class she “became obsessed with.”
But Ratajkowski also notes the way culture influenced her as a young girl compared to now.
source: people.com
