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Yumi Nu’s Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover, Jordan Peterson comments spark body acceptance conversation

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TORONTO -

While many celebrated the diverse range of models featured on Sports Illustrated’s recent swimsuit issue, online criticism of the plus-sized model Yumi Nu’s appearance sparked a conversation around body acceptance.

In a now-deleted tweet, Canadian psychology professor Jordan Peterson commented on Nu’s cover photo saying, “Sorry. Not beautiful. And no amount of authoritarian tolerance is going to change that.”

Peterson faced instant backlash over his comments from fans supporting the model, particularly body acceptance advocates.

Roxy Earle, reality television star and founder of the women’s health app Ana, is calling out Peterson’s comment and said it’s dangerous to spread these comments to his mass following.

“There's a lot of men who follow him, a lot of vulnerable young men. What are we saying to those men, and what dangers are we putting to a woman's life when we are empowering a whole group of men to hate on a woman because of her body?” Earle told CTVNews.ca in an interview on Tuesday.

Earle posted on her own Instagram to address the controversial professor directly and to praise the cover for being “powerful.”

“I think seeing a beautiful, curvaceous woman on the cover of Sports Illustrated, illustrates where we are at when it comes to beauty,” Earle said.

While the cover has been praised for its inclusivity, there is still much work to be done to break down beauty standards, said Aisha Fairclough, co-founder of the body advocacy group, Body Confidence Canada.

“We are getting better, but there needs to be more diverse images, like people with disabilities and different genders and different skin tones,” she told CTVNews.ca in a phone interview on Tuesday.

Fairclough says “body positivity” is often associated with the idea of constantly being happy about one’s appearance and only focuses on size. However, body acceptance advocates for all physical appearances in all aspects of life including feeling safe, comfortable and represented.

“In order for somebody to feel safe and comfortable in their body, they have to be able to have rights like access to housing and food,” she said.

The magazine’s issue also featured Elon Musk’s 74-year old mother Maye Musk, who became the oldest person to grace the cover.

Fairclough said having this diverse representation is an integral part of the body acceptance movement.

“There has been a change for the Sports Illustrated model you might have seen 10,15 years ago, so to have someone that is visibly plus, to have someone that is Asian or to have someone that is older is very important.” 

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