MarkTiarra

Maybe it's just me but I was happy to read this:

Skinny models wearing thin in fashion shocker

By Andrew Hay

MADRID (Reuters) - The world's first ban on overly thin models at a top-level fashion show in Madrid has caused outrage among modeling agencies and raised the prospect of restrictions at other venues.

Madrid's fashion week has turned away underweight models after protests that girls and young women were trying to copy their rail-thin looks and developing eating disorders.

Organizers say they want to project an image of beauty and health, rather than a waif-like, or heroin chic look.

But Cathy Gould, of New York's Elite modeling agency, said the fashion industry was being used as a scapegoat for illnesses like anorexia and bulimia.

"I think its outrageous, I understand they want to set this tone of healthy beautiful women, but what about discrimination against the model and what about the freedom of the designer," said Gould, Elite's North America director, adding that the move could harm careers of naturally "gazelle-like" models.

Madrid's regional government, which sponsors the show and imposed restrictions, said it did not blame designers and models for anorexia. It said the fashion industry had a responsibility to portray healthy body images.

"Fashion is a mirror and many teenagers imitate what they see on the catwalk," said regional official Concha Guerra.

The mayor of Milan, Italy, Letizia Moratti, told an Italian newspaper this week she would seek a similar ban for her city's show unless it could find a solution to "sick" looking models.

The Madrid show is using the body mass index or BMI -- based on weight and height -- to measure models. It has turned away 30 percent of women who took part in the previous event. Medics will be on hand at the September 18-22 show to check models.

"The restrictions could be quite a shock to the fashion world at the beginning, but I'm sure it's important as far as health is concerned," said Leonor Perez Pita, director of Madrid's show, also known as the Pasarela Cibeles.

A spokeswoman for the Association of Fashion Designers of Spain, which represents those at Madrid fashion week, said the group supported restrictions and its concern was the quality of collections, not the size of models.

Eating disorder activists said many Spanish model agencies and designers oppose the ban and they had doubts whether the new rules would be followed.

"If they don't go along with it the next step is to seek legislation, just like with tobacco," said Carmen Gonzalez of Spain's Association in Defense of Attention for Anorexia and Bulimia, which has campaigned for restrictions since the 1990s.

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MetaMan

Thank fucking God it is about time,

i love natural women, no fake tits either, no skinny twigs, they do look like coke heads.

this will help alot of women also, i have had so many beautiful girlfriends that were obsessed with trying to get thin when they were just perfect and had perfect tits.

skinny girls look like teenage boys and are not hot.

CyberHustler

i like cushion for the pushin'

1200mics

this is good and i hope women these days will not be so much obsessed to get as thin as they can

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Pleasurepays

everytime i'm in europe and see that fashion.fr (or whatever its called with 24/7 of runway models) show on... i always immediately think that they look like a parade of heroin addicts.

MarkTiarra

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notabook

I don?t really agree with this? it?s their bodies and they should be free to do with them whatever they want to, even if the consequences are dire (in some cases death). This only applies to consenting adults mind you; if they want to do their BMI tests in teen pageants, feel free.

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MarkTiarra

The thing I equate it too is fighting in professional sports. You get consenting adults getting into fist fights at basketball games and you bring up a generation of kid atheletes who act like trash and it goes downhill more each generation.

Now you have the people young girls look up to causing them to have a self image that is harmfl and I'm not saying you make it illegal but if you run a show then I think it's your right to say you don't want to promote that. it's just like you run a sports league and you can fine people heavily for their actions or if it's like hockey it's just part of it and you make that decision about your sport.

It's all about what influence you want to have. You aren't taking away someone's rights, you are excersizing yours to have a good influence.

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reynold

I hope Hollywood will ban all their skinny actresses on movies as well.

rodney25

I don't enjoy watching skinny models walking down the catwalks.

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