Dove has encouraged us to love our hair — curly and otherwise — change the way we talk and tweet about our bodies and now, in its latest #MyBeautyMySay campaign, the beauty brand wants women to rise above the stereotypes and criticism we attract solely based on our appearance.
The campaign sticks to Dove Self-Esteem Project’s tried and true formula: gather a group of diverse women who’ve overcome the barrier in question and share their success stories. In this case, the antagonist is the focus on women’s looks. The case studies include Heather Hardy, who was dismissed as “too pretty to fight” and is now one of the top female professional boxers in New York, Jessica Torres, a curvy fashion blogger who was told she was “too fat to dress well” and genderqueer model Rain Dove, who was called “boyish and ugly.”
“I hope this campaign encourages all humans (not just ones who are societally deemed “boyish”/ “girlish” comparatively to their sex) to realize that beauty is more than the way your looks are perceived by others,” Rain Dove shared in an interview.
Jennifer Bremner, Dove’s director of marketing, echoed Rain Dove’s sentiments: “Somewhere along the way, it has become the norm to judge women based on their appearance. Dove created #MyBeautyMySay because we believe a woman’s beauty should not be used to belittle her achievements — instead, her beauty should be celebrated on her terms,” she told WWD. “We want women to challenge this behavior that has unfortunately become commonplace in our society. We are giving all women a platform to speak out and join us to change the conversation.”
While the line between body positive, feminist campaigns and clever marketing strategies is often blurred, Rain Dove attests that #MyBeautyMySay is simply a call to action. “When Dove approached me about working on this, they never once asked me to sell their products or promote their wares,” she said. “They just wanted to share my story so that no matter if you are a Dove product lover or not — you can at least have these anecdotes which will help you love yourself. I really respect that and I’m proud to stand with the other eight amazing people featured in this film.”
No matter the label on your lather and suds, check out the full video above and, if so inclined, share your story on social media using the hashtag #MyBeautyMySay.
[ via WWD ]
