“If you’ve been following Twitter, academic and clinical psychologist Jordan B. Peterson thought his 2.5 million followers and the entire world needed to know what he thought about model Yumi Nu who was featured on the cover of the most recent cover of Sports Illustrated Magazine.
His words were posted on Twitter:
‘Sorry. Not beautiful. And no amount of authoritarian tolerance is going to change that.’
Where to start?
A white man with privilege once again tells a woman of a minority group that she doesn’t fit the standard of beauty?
Man still tells woman her body shape isn’t what beautiful looks like?
Man deliberately informs the woman that no matter her achievements, that her achievement really isn’t one?
The man insists his beliefs are worthy of being heard because he’s someone with a title and clout?
I think what most struck me about this is that he’s a clinical psychologist. A designated trusted authority to actually help others with mental health and well-being.
He’s followed by 2.5 MILLION people on Twitter alone.
Yes, this one is too time-consuming to deconstruct.
But I’ll leave this with a couple of thoughts.
Immediately, he needs his clinical designation stripped away.
And anyone following him gets the right to change their mind.
Because narcissists do this.
They hide behind titles and positions of power and gain the admiration of others.
They are smart and charming.
And they have the undeniable ability to lure and seduce.
They mask many of their real intentions and thoughts.
But you see, the narcissist can’t always hide.
At some point, they believe that what they see as truth is acceptable.
And that others should listen and accept the same truth.
They begin to believe that no matter what they say or do they will come out on top and that they will be supported.
I regret to report that some men actually agreed with this tweet and found this cover to be distasteful for a myriad of reasons including blaming the model for putting herself out there to be critiqued, for her being overweight.
See a pattern here?
A very similar rhetoric heard over and over? One that caters to the thought of ‘she deserves this treatment because of….?’
If it hasn’t been made clear yet, here’s a daily reminder:
To any man that thinks his opinion matters about what a woman does with her body or how she expresses it, your opinion doesn’t matter.
The fall from grace will hurt, Dr. Peterson.
To all the little girls, the women young or wise…
The woman you see here on this cover is beautiful.
She is one of the many forms of beauty and if you see yourself in her, you see your own strength and courage reflected back to you.
Be bold in your pursuits.
Do not let the opinions of men or others define you, degrade you, or tear you down regardless of how you choose to express yourself.
You are beautiful at any weight, size, height, or any physical appearance you choose to identify with.
And should you see another woman be the target of injustice or misogyny, fight like hell to uproot it and dismantle it.
Because when we support girls and women, we are supporting a better world.
And finally to Sports Illustrated for featuring different types of beauty, thank you.
It sure is about time.”
This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Maria Garito. Be sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter for our best stories.
Read more stories from Maria here:
10 Things Special Needs Parents Wish They Had
Provide beauty and strength for others. SHARE this story on Facebook with your friends and family.