My Thoughts on Amy Schumer's Plus Size Comments

It's been all over the news, blogs and social media this week that Glamour Magazine recently published an all plus-size issue and included Amy Schumer's name on the cover under the heading: Women Who Inspire Us. 

She posted this response on Social Media:

"I think there's nothing wrong with being plus size. Beautiful healthy women. Plus Size is considered size 16 in America. I go between a size 6 and an 8. @Glamourmag put me in their plus size only issue without asking or letting me know and it doesn't feel right to me. Young girls seeing my body type thinking that is plus size? What are your thoughts? Mine are not look glamour not  glamorous."

Amy's comments have stirred up quite the debate. Glamour’s editor-in-chief Cindi Lieve responded on Twitter, saying the magazine never intended to say Schumer is plus-size.

In a series of tweets, she said:

We love Amy Schumer, & would never want to offend her. To be clear, @glamourmag special edition never called her plus-size...

Her 2015 cover story was included in the edition, aimed at sizes 12 and up, with the coverline “Women who Inspire Us” bc…

…her longtime message of body positivity—& talking back to body haters—IS inspiring. (To me, too!)

To be clear, size 6-8 is not plus. (Even size 12—frequent size of “plus” models—is smaller than average American woman!)...

But women of all sizes can be inspired by one another’s words. So sorry if implication was otherwise, Amy.

These comments and additional comments from other celebrities such as Lena Dunham and Melissa McCarthy have turned this into a debate on social media. 

As the owner of a plus-size fashion boutique, a few people have asked me what I think. I've been bouncing back and forth on my opinion, but here are a few thoughts I've had regarding the topic:

1. Amy Schumer's Instagram says that she was put in Glamours "plus size only issue". From what I understand, the title of this issue is "Chic At Any Size." Yes, the magazine is a partnership with Lane Bryant, who caters to plus size women; however I think one point this publication is trying to make is that women of all sizes (including Amy Schumer) can be fashionable, glamorous and have the right to feel beautiful. Being included in a publication that is obviously trying to be body positive, should be an honor. It's a step in the right direction for the fashion industry and body positive movement.
2. If "there is nothing wrong with being plus size", as Amy Schumer stated, why is this even an issue for her? I think the magazine included her in the "Chic at any size" issue because she could be a body positive role model for women. She has made public statements in the past about body positivity. She seems to portray the message that she is happy with who she is and what she looks like. She's not willing to diet to reach a size that is "socially acceptable." And even at a size 6 or 8, she can be an inspiration for women of all sizes to be healthy and happy at whatever size they are meant to be and to not cave to societal pressures to look like the majority of body's we see in the media.
3. I don't like that Glamour's editor-in-chief, Cindi Lieve tweeted that they would never want to offend Amy Schumer by calling her "plus size." I thought being plus-size wasn't a bad thing? If it's not a bad thing to be plus-size, then it shouldn't be offensive, right? I wish the conversation would head towards the topic of accepting the term "plus size" as nothing more than a descriptive word. Just like you might describe sometime as short, tall, thin, etc., referring to someone as plus-size shouldn't be offensive. It's not a bad word.

While Amy Schumer's comments ended up shedding a different light on Glamour's latest publication than what they originally intended, I hope that this is a step in the right direction for the fashion industry. I hope that we will start to see more diverse bodies in magazines and advertisements. I want to see women of all sizes looking fashionable.