I am tired of the negative attention women get regarding their bodies.

A recent trending filter on TikTok that made thinner creators appear “chubby” was removed because of scrutiny. The article above states that it contributed to the instigation of body shaming.

After reading it, I have to say I strongly agree.

Unfortunately, it’s inevitable that a filter like this would exist. What disappoints me the most, though, is the harmful attraction the filter got before its removal. In this day and age, where body positivity and boy-conscious conversation flood TikTok, one would think that creators would make it a point not to give into arbitrary filters like these.

Of course, we are all guilty of occasionally wallowing in our own self-pity. But to post content with this filter for any impressionable young person to see sets us back years. It also reminded me that society cannot leave plus-sized women alone.

Yes, the filter is damaging, but it also spreads a false narrative.

I agree with Dr. Emma Beckett when she stated that “It’s just the same old false stereotypes and tropes about people in larger bodies being lazy and flawed.”

You don’t have to be a doctor to know that someone’s weight will fluctuate throughout their life span. Conditions women have, like PCOS and other genetic factors that can affect anyone, can contribute to this.

Even if you do obtain a body type like the filter’s representation, it’s okay. Just because we see something unrepresented in the media doesn’t mean it’s not normal. That’s what filters like these are trying to erase.

Videos like these are harmful, but so are the language and engagement surrounding them.
It’s difficult to avoid negative connotations in comments and reposts, but to willingly make a video, use that filter and have the nerve to still post it is hypocritical.

Luckily, some creators spoke out immediately against the filter circulating on TikTok. Sadie, a TikToker with a very large following, said eliminating the filter was “definitely a step in the right direction.”

To be frank, the Internet sucks. It’s a place I used to escape to and connect with cool people online, but it has since become gross and recycled.

I, too, indulge in a doom scroll and a half every night before falling asleep. It’s so convenient that we have entertainment at our fingertips. But it’s also frightening that we have the power to hurt so many people.

I have a niece and younger girl cousins who will soon become old enough to have that same access, and it’s horrifying. Currently, the only media they consume is children’s television. But even now, they can already acknowledge the differences between their brown skin and the other Disney princesses.

I get emotional just thinking about experiences I went through as a young girl that ultimately altered the way I viewed my body, and TikTok wasn’t even a thing then. The outside pressures are more than enough to make anyone harbor their differences from others.

I hope that, moving forward, people will have the privilege of ignoring certain inconveniences, like these “trends” on social platforms.

Blair Bernard is a 21-year-old theater performance major from Lafayette, La.