one of the main reasons i can’t bring myself to support kpop (as an industry) is the way most of these companies treat their idols. i’m glad people are starting to speak up about the brutal contracts that suck the life from these poor kids.
but another reason, a reason that isn’t talked about as much because it’s ‘not as serious’ is the culture of the netizens and even the western kpop fans, the culture that encourages and supports crash diets and BMIs of 18 and under.
this beautiful, healthy girl, who is in no way overweight (she has baby fat! that’s it! that doesn’t make her overweight at all!) has had to deal with so much hate in the past year that it makes me sick to my stomach.
she’s a minor! a minor who’s getting fame and recognition for the first time! she was probably so excited to debut, and the SHIT she’s gotten for it is despicable. this girl put herself out there, and all she was met with was unbridled hate.
just because her BMI is ‘average’. this teenager has received pretty much nothing but negativity since her debut, with people even refusing to clap for her because she’s ‘too fat to be pretty’.
this is a girl who would be considered normal were she anything but a kpop idol. this is a girl who is going to suffer because of all the things people have told her. this is a girl who may be pressured by her own company to diet unhealthily.
all while she’s still developing and growing.
my fucking heart goes out to kyla.
netizens commenting about her weight need to look first at reality, and then in the mirror. western kpop fans who think kpop idols are ‘body goals’ and run borderline pro-ana blogs need to look first at reality, and then in the mirror.
kpop bodies are not ‘goals’. a lot of those bodies are achieved by diets and exercise that aren’t healthy for anyone. let’s celebrate a girl who, against all odds, decided to show the industry a normal body for once, only to be showered with hate.
we love and support kyla. she’s a beautiful girl who i believe could slowly shape beauty standards if given the chance. let’s celebrate the healthy bodies in kpop!