DAISY O'NEILL 

Women’s bodies have been a topic of scrutiny for centuries. We are currently in a unique time period where we have more exposure than ever to perfect body ideals. With the rise of social media came an influx in body dissatisfaction. We were suddenly given 24/7 access to consume content which tells us that we need to change the bodies that we have. The Instagram platform in particular provided an online space centered around visual content where users can curate a picture perfect lifestyle. The most popular content includes images of white, cis-gendered, heterosexual women with extremely thin bodies. This wave of body-centered media brought body trends such as the “thigh gap”, the “thighbrow” and the “fitspiration” craze. All which are unattainable for most women without disordered eating and exercising habits. 

 

More recently however, women have began to take back the online sphere so determined to shame them, and are now using these platforms to build eachother up. One movement in particular has been the focus of this project: the “body positive” movement. Body positivity is the idea that every body is a good body. It means that regardless of size, colour, shape or ability, every body deserves the space to exist and every person the ability to go about their life without body guilt or shame.

 

It preaches the idea that people have more important and valuable things to

do with their lives other than dieting and endlessly striving for a different body. The

“bopo” movement (as it is often called) has flourished into a supportive and for many, life changing, online community. With this project, I have developed a platform and toolkit called “Bopo Club” which helps translate the online community into offline relationships for women all over the world. The tool kit consists of two parts, 1 for moderators and professionals (such as for high school teachers or those who lead fitness classes) and  1 for individuals or more casual groups looking to do the work together.  Please read more in the report!