Can we still talk about body positivity in 2025?

We've all felt uncomfortable in our own bodies at least once in our lives. Especially if we have what society deems "extra weight" (extra compared to societal norms, of course), which we are taught to hate since childhood. This is particularly true if you're a woman, because society wants women to be presentable, "beautiful" and thin. If you're not, you're stigmatized explicitly (like insults and teasing, often now amplified by social media) or implicitly (like when a doctor tells a patient to lose weight before receiving treatment, regardless of their condition).

The body and society: the obnoxious burden of “extra pounds”

How can someone with a non-conforming body feel at ease in a world that tries to silence them and push them into a corner unless they decide to conform? This is where body positivity, once a firm ideology, comes into play. Whereas perfection used to be the norm, today influencers and public figures compete to show off their "imperfections," from Chiara Ferragni post-childbirth, bending forward to show off a belly roll, to Nelly Furtado taking a mirror selfie declaring her love for her body (yes, aged, but still conforming) and her cellulite, receiving praise in the comments for her "courage" in showing her imperfections.

The evolution of body positivity: from ideology to marketing

According to the dictionary, body positivity is a social movement that aims to promote acceptance of one's body "regardless of prevailing aesthetic standards and in contrast to discrimination based on unreflective submission to those standards" (Treccani). It all began in the late '60s with the Fat Rights Movement, but took on its specific meaning in the '90s. It focuses on the image of one’s body and how the individual reacts to it, and often (though not always) involves women. It emerged from the perception of fat bodies, which should be free to exist without discrimination of any kind. But if the movement has become "enslaved" by marketing and social media, how much truth remains in the slogans and hashtags? We asked some experts in the field.

Does body positivity still exist in 2025? Dalila Bagnuli's opinion

Dalila Bagnuli is an activist and intersectional feminist, social media strategist, and content creator. Her videos on body positivity and how it has become mainstream circulate widely on the web, and she has written two books (Anti-Manual of Beauty and Non-Conforming Diary, both from 2023). She would love to have her own platform to present her ideas, perhaps on the radio, but for now, she "only" has a podcast, Sono PIENA!, where she talks about bodies with guests and always-current topics.

The discovery of body positivity and the path to feminism

"I realized I wanted to talk about my experience when I moved to Milan to live on my own. I was 19 and had to manage a house, my life, and myself, and also deal with my body hatred. I also had a hormonal issue in Milan (which I only discovered years later) that made me gain a lot of weight very quickly. This threw me into the body I had always thought I had but actually didn't. I felt fat but wasn't fat, and when I actually became fat, I paradoxically felt like I was finally being myself." She continues, "I researched, discovered mainstream body positivity, and got into this beautiful loop of pink slogans. I started talking about it online, but then I realized something wasn't right. I kept studying and eventually got into feminism, and that's when I had my feminist awakening. I connected what I'd been through to a huge discrimination, and everything clicked. That's when I started writing posts on Instagram because I was convinced, and still am, that no one else should have to go through that. It's a gender injustice, and that drives me crazy."

Body positivity, gender discrimination, and how brands have exploited the movement

On body positivity, she says: "Regardless of beauty standards, you are a person and as a person you must be respected, and that still hasn't been achieved. It wasn't guaranteed when the movement started, and it’s still not guaranteed today, especially when considering gender intersections: if you're fat, you're more discriminated against, if you're black and fat, you're even more discriminated against, and if you're black, fat, and lesbian… it's an endless cycle." She explains: "Body positivity evolves over time. It reached its peak of popularity around 2010, but it was already co-opted by brands. Body positivity thus loses its political and social roots, the messages and progress it stood for, and becomes entirely commodified by brands. It's no longer about body acceptance; it’s about selling products, with slogans like 'You’re beautiful just the way you are,' but you’ll be even more beautiful if you buy my cream."

The body positivity effect: self love or new insecurities?

Dalila continues: "The body positivity effect replaces the aggressive sales tactics of the '80s and '90s, where brands convinced people to buy a product by insulting them and telling them their only hope for social acceptance was through the product. Today, 'mainstream body positivity' sells self-love at all costs because deep down, you can't really love yourself as you are in a society that constantly reminds you your body is wrong according to societal standards. And when you get closer to the ideal, new insecurities are created, which makes it an endless cycle of despair."

Does body positivity still exist in 2025? Lara Lago's opinion

Lara Lago is a journalist, writer, and activist. With a published book, Il peso in avanti (2023), she talks about how the media portrays fat bodies and how they approach them (and, needless to say, the most common sentiment is "fat-shaming").

From bullying to acceptance: Lara's path to freedom

"I lived in Amsterdam from 2016 to 2018. I've always had body image issues since I was a kid. My first diet was at 15, and I was constantly bullied at school because I was the 'chubby' one. I also loved dressing eccentrically, and people would comment on that, especially about my thick legs. They would tell me I couldn’t wear a mini skirt because of my knees, but it took me years to realize this is my body, and if I want to wear a mini skirt, I will. That happened in the Netherlands, and my passion for writing was already there, so I started sharing about my daily life. But when I touched on body issues and posted a photo of me in high-waisted jeans and a crop top, saying, 'My belly looks like I'm four months pregnant, but who cares, this is my belly and I feel good wearing these jeans and this crop top,' the internet went wild! I got a ton of comments from women, even strangers, some supportive and others saying, 'I can't do that.' That’s when I realized there was a need to discuss these issues openly."

The Culona project: aggregation and safe spaces for non-compliant bodies

Lara and Giulia Capodieci, "my other half" as Lara calls her, created Culona, a project that isn’t just on social media but also about local community engagement. "We want to do things that are provocative but also provide a safe space for fat people, for those with big bottoms. Events like Yoga Culona or a vintage market exclusively for plus-size clothing. Even launching our first t-shirt, which sold out in no time, was challenging, because we wanted it to be a crop top that could fit as many bodies as possible. It's a whole concept—embracing your non-conforming body and wanting to wear a crop top goes beyond what's 'normal.'"

Beyond toxic positivity: loving your body in a fat-phobic society

On body positivity, Lara believes: "What has changed is the value given to the term 'body positivity.' A lot of brands and the media have appropriated this term and turned it into a slogan. It’s no longer about 'every body is valuable' (which was the movement's original message), but 'love yourself.' The term needs to evolve, and I think we should stop using 'body positivity' and start talking about body neutrality." Body neutrality focuses on a person’s other qualities rather than their physical appearance. "In a fat-phobic society, it’s impossible to love yourself every day. Body positivity in this toxic sense doesn't help, because it’s not always realistic, and it doesn't address the root issues."

Does body positivity still exist in 2025? Laura Brioschi's opinion

Lara Brioschi, a former curvy model and now an entrepreneur with a size-inclusive clothing line, created the Body Positivity Catwalk in 2018 with her partner. This initiative held events where people of all genders and appearances walked the runway in lingerie to assert that every body matters, no matter what. She also wrote a book, Noi siamo luce, published in 2020.

From fashion to body positivity: the beginning of the blog

"It was around 2014 when I realized I wanted to try to share my experience. It was under the advice of someone I was dating, who told me I could start a blog about my life as a model. At first, I didn’t think I could do it because I didn’t feel like I had much to share. But now I realize that, actually, it’s a little incredible for people who don’t work in this field—having participated in six Milan Fashion Weeks, making a living as a model, traveling around Italy and to some European countries like Spain and Germany. For them, these are not everyday experiences, but to me, it didn’t feel like I had something useful to say. Even then, I had things inside me to share because I was curvy, yes, but just enough—that was the general sentiment surrounding me. Actually, I was already considered ‘too curvy,’ and I even thought about quitting my job as a curvy model because many companies were asking for smaller sizes than mine, and I wouldn’t have been able to work. But then I kept going for quite a while, thanks to other brands I got to know, all Italian.” And then, “from there, I gradually started writing things like, ‘Oh, do you like white? Wear white, too. Don’t be afraid of what people say about it making you look bigger—white is light, white is power.’ Or, ‘Do you like horizontal stripes? Wear those horizontal stripes! Enjoy them, have fun!’ Stuff like that.”

Inclusive fashion shows: the Body Positivity Catwalk project

The Body Positivity Catwalk events paused during the pandemic, but "this year, they’ll be back, if all goes well and we get the permits." The initiative was inspired by a project created by @krystyana in New York, which Laura decided to bring to Italy. "I thought about writing to her, saying I’d like to do it here as well, and that’s how it happened. We created the event—the first one was small, with just a few people. I had never organized a public event before, so I was quite scared. But little by little, it grew into something much bigger! Now, though, the times have changed, and so has the political climate. I’m a bit nervous about the new event… but I’m sure it will be beautiful."

The right to be and change: redefining self-love

For her, body positivity was born on social media. “I discovered it through social media, and I thought it was just a hashtag to share something, like my own #curvyisnotacrime (which I first used in 2014). I didn’t think it was something more. When I saw the first photo with different people—tall and short, people who had undergone surgeries or not—I said to myself, ‘Wow, finally! This is what I want: not having to celebrate one type of body over another, but for everyone to feel good in their own skin.’” But “over time, I discovered it was a movement. Actually, I think it’s both, because it became an Instagram movement—very mainstream. And I admit that I used it in a mainstream way because I thought that’s what it was. ‘Love your body’ was the most precious advice I could give. But over time, thanks to people who helped me learn the history behind it—like the book Fat Shame (Lo stigma del corpo grasso, 2020)—and other information, I understood it has a much deeper, much more important history. This allowed me to broaden my mindset and communication, to see how some things could even be harmful, like saying, ‘Love yourself as you are.’ Because it’s also our right not to love ourselves, to want change, or even just not to think about things we don’t like—for example, our bodies—or to want to change them.”

"Call Us Fat, and We’ll Take Up All the Space"

So, body positivity doesn’t really exist anymore. Well, it does, but we must separate the original meaning from its mainstream version. If the world calls us fat, we’ll respond that we are, but stop using euphemisms like "chubby" or "a few pounds over," or "round." We’re people, not geometric shapes or pieces of meat—use the right words to describe us. And don’t ask us on live TV to lose weight, or say that only thin people can dress elegantly, because we’ll tell you to keep your diets and that a fat body can be just as elegant as any other. If you call us fat, we’ll take up all the space we want.