We Can’t Afford To Let Body Positivity Die
When summer arrives in the Philippines, it’s to be expected that bodies will become a topic of discussion. “Your current physique is already summer-ready,” one article reassures. “How to get the summer bod of your dreams on a deadline,” another column chimes in. Naturally, the talk inevitably circles back to the Body Positivity Movement.
And immediately, the eyes roll.
Mentioning body positivity nowadays feels a bit like inviting that one overly passionate relative (like the writer of this piece) to a family dinner. People know the stories are rooted in something important, but they’re also bracing for a lecture that goes on too long and leaves everyone uncomfortable.
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In 2026, the movement has taken quite a beating in the court of public opinion. There’s a clash within the community. You’re either complicit for “promoting unhealthiness” or a traitor for losing weight. And between the Ozempic chatter and the looksmaxxing edits on everyone’s For You Page, the very concept of loving your body feels like it’s being shoved toward the door.
But before bidding farewell entirely, maybe just glance back at where it all started.
Resistance & Neutrality
Back in the 1800s, during the very first wave of feminism, women decided they were done with two things: suffocating in corsets just to achieve a socially acceptable waistline and being told they couldn’t wear pants. Acceptance of all body types, regardless of waist measurements, was a major theme, and it was the first of its kind.
The ‘60s arrived, and an engineer named Bill Fabrey was appalled that his wife, Joyce, was being treated poorly for her size. He found an essay by a man named Lew Louderback, and they started a group that became the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA). By 1972, Californian feminists grabbed the baton, ensuring women led their own fight. The cause kept growing until it became global.
This brings us to the present and the rise of Body Neutrality. It’s easy to see the appeal. Body Neutrality says, “You don’t have to love your rolls, yet your vessel deserves respect because it carries you through your life.” It’s the chill cousin who doesn’t demand. It prioritizes function over form. And after years of being told to “love yourself” until blue in the face, it’s nice to just take a deep breath and exhale.
The Catch
Neutrality sounds more catered to the individual than the collective. While body positivity stems from fat acceptance, it has grown beyond that. If the discourse feels exhausting, consider that most of the world still cultivates this discriminatory environment while also profiting from it. It’s a conversation that has yet to stop for pregnant and postpartum women, differently-abled folks, the aging population, or anyone who deviates from the “ideal” standard.
Are you the enemy for being conventionally attractive? Of course not. Is it bad to wish to improve yourself? If your reasoning comes from a mentally grounded place, then not at all. That being said, we cannot let the Body Positivity Movement die. Beyond the noise, the reminder that you deserve fair treatment as you are—unapologetic and unmodified—is worth keeping.
Photos: CHRISTIAN SIRIANO (via Instagram) and NAAFA (via Website)
The post We Can’t Afford To Let Body Positivity Die first appeared on MEGA.
We Can’t Afford To Let Body Positivity Die
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