Plus-sized model gets fat-shamed after recreating Aaliyah's iconic look in viral photos

Alicia Mitchell, a plus-sized model and designer from Newark, New Jersey, took to social media to share photos of her dressed as Aaliyah for a costume party that attracted a lot of attention online.

In the images, Mitchel appeared wearing a shiny silver bra, black pants that had a similar silver strap in front of it, and a thick choker with the same design. She gave the final fierce touch to her outfit with a black leather jacket.

Even though she looked great, several people took to Twitter to body-shame her saying that she shouldn’t have worn such a costume and that she should have covered herself.

DEFENDING HERSELF

However, soon after her photos became viral, Mitchell defended herself from all that negativity. First of all, she pointed out that she was the “big girl” that everybody was talking about and that if she were size two, nobody would be talking about her.

Later, Mitchell set clear that she was just paying homage to “Queen Aliyah” as she loved the singer’s look.

She added that women came in “all shapes and sizes” and that there was no need to “fat-shame” her. “Yes I’m big but I work with what I got [sic].”

“As a plus size / Fat / Big women who loves Fashion I use it as a form of expression. I’ve been doing this a long time. All women should be free to dress the way they want and feel Good about it. Fashion is for Everyone why should it be limited because of size [sic],” wrote Mitchell in another tweet addressing the issue.

MAKING PEOPLE CHANGE THEIR MENTALITY

According to BuzzFeed, Mitchell is trying that people understand that they have to be happy with who they are and that even though everybody has flaws with their bodies, there is only one life, so they should enjoy it as much as possible.

Thankfully, after she defended herself, several people praised her confidence and natural beauty and even urged her to keep “doing her thing.”

ANOTHER PLUS-SIZE MODEL

It is not the first time that a plus-size model makes headlines. The women’s bikini brand ASOS recently hired a black plus-sized model to promote one of their bikinis, and people reacted in the best possible way.

The model appeared wearing a bright two-piece swimsuit proving that she didn’t need to be white and skinny to be beautiful. People praised ASOS decision saying that it was another step into a positive direction and that the model looked both natural and happy.

THAT PROBLEM IN HOLLYWOOD

Even Gabby Sidibe, the actress known for her role in “Precious,” has talked about size discrimination. She admitted that while the society was moving towards more visibility for plus-size people, there was a lot of “pushback.”

“So, it’s important to keep fighting [and] to keep being visible until the conversation changes and [it] is no longer about our bodies because I'm not my body. I'm a whole person,” added Sidibe.