Tess Holliday schreef vorig jaar geschiedenis door als eerste plus-size model te worden aangenomen door een groot modellenagentschap. Maar, ondanks haar succes, krijgt ze nog steeds met veel haters te maken die klagen over haar kledingmaat (Amerikaanse maat 22/Europese maat 50). Volgens een grote groep is het slecht dat Holliday zegt dat haar maat gezond is.
In een nieuw interview met Paper Magazine reageert Tess Holliday op de haatreacties over haar gewicht met een lang en duidelijk relaas:
'I think that some of the biggest surprises I've had early on, actually to this day, are all the misconceptions about my body and my health. There are so many people who think that being a plus-size model, that there's something wrong with it, or that I must be unhealthy or that I'm promoting an unhealthy lifestyle. And at first it was very hard, and I blamed it on myself, and then I thought ... my health is none of their business, I'm modeling for this clothing company, so why are people dissecting my body and telling me that I can't wear some things? That I can't look a certain way because of my body? And I did combat that for awhile, and argue with people about that, but ultimately it's kind of like banging your head into a brick wall. If people are committed to that theory, I'm not going to change their mind. But there people who look like me, and feel like me, who feel like they don't have a voice, and that encouraged me to keep going.'
Ook vertelt ze, in tegenstelling tot veel andere modellen met een grotere maat, dat ze juist heel erg houdt van de term plus-size:
'I do think it's very important, especially for young women who are kind of coming into their bodies, and older women who are becoming more OK with their bodies, to have terms for being bigger. When they look online, or look in magazines, they see that label, or see that term, they feel like they're not alone.'
