Sarah Michelle Gellar under Fire over Instagram Comments
Rising to fame in the iconic role of Buffy from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, actor Sarah Michelle Gellar recently received a great deal of criticism for a picture she posted to her Instagram account this past Monday. The picture was of her from roughly a decade ago, sporting some black lingerie and shooting a sultry look at the camera. Thanksgiving is on the horizon and so she shared the picture with the intention of reminding herself to watch how much food she’ll be eating on Thursday, since the holiday is all about feasting on delicious food. Gellar’s caption read: “I’m just going to pin these up all over my house as a reminder not to overeat on Thursday #thanksgivingprep”
While the statement itself is harmless enough, many that saw it are irked and accusing Gellar of fat shaming and perpetuating an unhealthy mind-set about chubbier bodies. Many of these people responded in the comments to make their displeasure known. There those who were somewhat polite saying that while they admire her, she needs to be mindful of the fact that heavyset bodies deserve to be uplifted and that this sort of thinking on her part can be damaging to vulnerable young girls.
Others were more overtly hostile. Such as those who were in disbelief that someone like her, who is both a mother and a well-respected public figure would share such sentiments about body types. Some stated that women have enough insecurity to be concerned about without Gellar having to make such posts. There were also those that accused her of narcissism for being so concerned about her body.
However it wasn’t a complete dog pile. There were sympathetic parties in the comment section; in fact there were more sympathisers than there were attackers (the latter of who just seemed to be a vocal minority). Some of them praised her photo remarking that she looked great while others took to defending her directly. They argued that these things are a matter of choice and everyone’s individual choice needs to be respected. There were also those that discouraged Gellar from posting an apology, citing that the culture of nowadays is to attack people for any reason they can find.
Since the initial posting, Gellar has gone ahead and posted an apology. She made matters clear and eloquently expressed herself. She explained that she shared the picture first and foremost as a silly joke, and secondly was a reminder to her to be careful because she has a tendency to overeat to the point that she feels sick. Gellar then goes on to add that she would never intend to shame anyone for any reason, calling herself a ‘champion of all people’.