CELEBRITY

Model Contestant on America’s Next Top Model Fat Shames Brawny Male Models

(VH1)

America’s Next Top Model is back and it’s turning out to be a season of many firsts.

For the first time, the contestants modeled with brawny male models and they got to choose whom to do the photoshoot with. Male models that don’t fit the traditional model mold are often forgotten but Tyra made it a point to put them front and center but one of the contestants, Rio, was not here for the body diversity.

In her confessional she stated, “To be honest with you, overweight guys like that are not cute, let’s work out let’s get healthy. But hey do you boo boo.” This was an overt jab at bigger men and it just further normalizes the stigma against men that don’t fit into the athletic body ideal. Rio’s comments were uncalled for and insensitive. She had no reason to belittle these men for their weight.

Just because a man or person, in general, is overweight doesn’t automatically mean that they’re unhealthy. There are an array of different male body types and the fact that Tyra wanted to show that in one episode shows that she wants to make a change in the fashion industry on how we view normal male bodies. You can check out the video below: