'If I saw a body like mine when I was young, it would have changed my life' - Tess Holliday on her Cosmo cover
Tess Holliday attends the SimplyBe 'Curve Catwalk' photocall on September 14, 2017 in Soho, London, England. (Photo by Neil P. Mockford/Getty Images,)
Model & Speaker Tess Holliday attends Girlboss Rally Hosted By Sophia Amoruso's Girlboss on November 11, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Girlboss Media)
Piers Morgan has criticised a magazine for featuring a plus-size model on the cover (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
Model Tess Holliday attends the Kate Spade presentation during New York Fashion Week: The Shows on February 9, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images for New York Fashion Week: The Shows)
Plus-size model Tess Holliday has issued a powerful statement encouraging self acceptance after landing a history making Cosmopolitan cover.
The size 26 activist features on the UK edition of the magazine in a green swimsuit, tattoos on display, as she confidently blows a kiss to the camera, in a shot which has been widely lauded around the world for its inclusivity.
She said she hopes her appearance in the magazine inspires other women, in particular younger girls, who are struggling with their body image.
"If I saw a body like mine on this magazine when I was a young girl, it would have changed my life & hope this does that for some of y’all," she wrote on Instagram.
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Holliday previously featured on the cover of People magazine in 2015 when she burst onto the scene, but this marks her first starring appearance in a glossy magazine.
Holliday is the creator of the #effyourbeautystandards Instagram campaign, which she says aims to challenge the belief that overweight people cannot be attractive.
Speaking to Cosmopolitan, she said: “I created (the campaign) out of frustration. I was angry and sad that people kept commenting on my pictures saying ‘You’re too fat to wear that!’ or ‘Cover up! No-one wants to see that!’
“And then one night I was lying in bed and thought’F*** that!’ So I posted an image with four photographs of myself wearing things that fat women are often told we ‘can’t wear’, and encouraged others to do the same.”
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Meanwhile, Piers Morgan has lambasted the cover as "dangerous and misguided" and accused the publication of promoting obesity.
"As Britain battles an ever-worsening obesity crisis, this is the new cover of Cosmo," he said.
“Apparently we’re supposed to view it as a ‘huge step forward for body positivity’. What a load of old baloney.
“This cover is just as dangerous and misguided as celebrating size zero models.”
Piers Morgan has criticised a magazine for featuring a plus-size model on the cover (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
Holliday was quick to hit back at the criticism, saying: "To everyone saying I’m a burden to the British health care system, I’m american so you don’t have to worry about my fat ass.
“Worry about what horrible people you are by whining about how me being on the cover of a glossy magazine impacts your small minded life."
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