Australian model Rosie Nelson has lent her name to a new campaign aiming to promote a healthier body image for women.
Rosie, 24, has launched #nosizefitsall with Britain’s Women’s Equality Party just ahead of the start of London Fashion Week.
The campaign aims to ban models with Body Mass Indexes of less than 18.5 from the catwalk and increase sample sizes to 12 or larger, reflecting average body sizes in the UK and Australia.
She says London Fashion Week is a reminder that “we need a law to protect young girls, and boys, who are put under pressure to be dangerously thin”, and that modelling agencies have a responsibility to the wellbeing of the girls on the catwalk.
Rosie made headlines in 2015 when she started a Change.org petition that urged politicians to create a policy protecting models from “getting dangerously skinny”.
The trail-blazing model was originally aiming for 75,000 signatures, but more than 124,000 people have signed on, and she’s even visited the British Prime Minister’s residence at 10 Downing Street to formally put the issue before a parliamentary inquiry.
Rosie was just 21 when she moved to the UK as a healthy size 10.
However, her hips were 37 inches, and the agency demanded she slim down to 35.
She embarked on a strict diet and exercise regimen, eating only fruits and vegetables, but when she got down to 35.5 inches four months later she was told it still wasn’t enough.
“When I returned to the same agency they told me to lose more weight, they wanted me “‘down to the bone’,” says Rosie.
“When I look in the mirror I see someone that is healthy and comfortable in their skin. That’s because I had the guts to carve out my own path and refuse to let people pressure me into losing more and more weight. But with London Fashion Week the reminders are everywhere that we need a law to protect young girls, and boys, who are put under pressure to be dangerously thin.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKIknsDjhj9/?taken-by=rosalienelson
Rosie says modelling can be a very lonely place, especially for girls working internationally who are away from the usual support network of friends and family.
“When models travel overseas they are often put into shared accommodation with other models, and being surrounded by girls who are all striving to stay thin can perpetuate bad eating habits and encourage eating disorders. I’ve been on shoots for up to 10 hours where no food is provided – the underlying message is always that you shouldn’t eat.
“The agencies managing and recruiting models have a responsibility to the wellbeing of girls on the catwalk at fashion week, and in the industry as a whole.”
Rosie adds that the Women’s Equality Party has been trying a “softly, softly” approach with the British Fashion Council for years, but “it’s clearly not working”.
“#NoSizeFitsAll is about taking the initiative,” the group’s website says.
“It is time for the fashion industry to recognise that it can and must effect change in this area.”
