Lena Dunham Has Hit Back At People Body-Shaming Her In Her Wedding Photos
Lena Dunham has hit back at people body-shaming her in wedding photos that she posted last month.
Dunham married musician Luis Felber in London in a whimsical ceremony in September, with a few celebrity guests including Taylor Swift as her bridesmaid. After the wedding, Dunham posted a candid snap on her Instagram.
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A week after the above picture was posted, Dunham has written a long caption to address people who have made comments about her body. “I got a little break from work, which reminded me how much I love what I do and how excited I am to share what I’ve been making with you in 2022. I say this because over the years, I’ve shared many challenges with you and these moments of joy had me thinking that we should admit when we’re happy too — it’s not a crime,” she began.
“But all of this safety made me forget, for a moment, why I’ve created such intense boundaries with the internet over the past few years. It’s a little too easy to feel the glow of support and forget about the cesspool lurking behind it — so I took a peek, and saw some gnarly shit, most not worth responding to or even sharing with you.”
Dunham went on to address people who have posted that the writer/actress’ body has changed since she filmed Girls — which umm, ended four years ago. She pointed to the irony of her body being critiqued for looking different to how she appeared in Girls, despite already being judged harshly when she first appeared in the HBO series.
“But one narrative I take issue with, largely because it’s a story I don’t want other women, other people, to get lodged in their heads is that I should somehow be ashamed because my body has changed since I was last on television. Firstly ‘did Lena eat the cast of Girls‘ just isn’t a very good joke,” Dunham wrote.
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“Secondly, it’s ironic to have my body compared to a body that was also the subject of public scorn — an echo chamber of body shaming.”
Lena finished her post by noting that her trolls don’t know what her mental state was when she filmed Girls. “When will we learn to stop equating thinness with health/happiness? Of course weight loss can be the result of positive change in habits, but guess what? So can weight gain. The pics I’m being compared to [in Girls] are from when I was in active addiction with an undiagnosed illness.
“In the four years since I’ve gotten sober and begun my life as someone who aspires toward health and not just achievement. These changes have allowed me to be the kind of sister/friend/daughter that I want to be and yes — meet my husband (who, by the way, doesn’t recognize me in those old photos because he sees how dimmed my light was.)”
She finished her post by saying something that a lot of women need to hear. “I say this for any other person whose appearance has been changed with time, illness or circumstance — it’s okay to live in your present body without treating it as transitional.”
Amen, sis.
Dunham’s post has been praised. Lily Collins wrote, “This is just so beautifully said. And I thank you for putting it out there. Sending so much love and so many hugs to you both.”
Amy Schumer replied, “Yes to all this. Here’s to health, bitch!! Thanks for holding my hand toward my own as well.” Australian feminist writer Clementine Ford added, “This is wonderful.”