Poem and Image By Khadija Dewan, YPIE Scholar 2028
I look at models and I look in the mirror,
I look at models and I wish I was thinner.
I look at models and I see perfection,
I look at myself and wish they were my reflection.
I wish my thighs would, like them, have a gap,
And I wish my pores, like theirs, weren’t trapped.
I wish my hair, like theirs, would flow,
Like luscious rivers with a beautiful glow.
I wish the media would accept imperfection too,
For these standards have left me broken and askew.
I wish all the girls on my feed weren’t slender,
As people of different bodies deserve to feel better.
All bodies deserve love, as do all faces,
No matter their cultures, ethnicities, or races.
But the media shadowbans those who aren’t thin,
And those who are colored surely won’t win.
Maybe one day the media will be better,
And won’t title people ugly or “Heathers.”
Maybe one day we will all be equals,
But until then there will be insecure people.