Anyone who knows me in real life knows that I'm a Beyonce STAN. Like, if The Beygency was a real thing, I would quit blogging tomorrow and become a full-time staff member. When her visual album dropped in December without any promotion, I was one of the people who stayed up overnight, watching each video on repeat, crying in my room at how perfect it was. As a stan, I know that no one touches Beyonce, and I know what I'm about to say might sound sort of crazy...but I kind of...relate to her? On a tiny, tiny, microscopic scale, of course. I'm no celebrity, but it can be hard being in the public eye, even as a blogger. I am aware I get a lot of opportunities, and I'm grateful for each and every one. But what I don't talk about publicly is what goes on behind the scenes.

As a fat woman of color, I'm often treated differently than my thin, white peers. By brands, by fellow bloggers, by the media... I get passed over for things I'm more than qualified for. I get stares and cold shoulders at fashion events. I hear whispers. I get hate mail and trolling comments from people who call me disgusting and say I shouldn't be allowed in public. Like Bey, I usually just brush these people off, and I never give them power by addressing them here or anywhere else. But it gets tiring, and sometimes I'm really tempted to drop the lady-like thing and just kind of...go off. So when I heard Beyonce telling her haters to Bow Down in the song ***Flawless, I immediately fell in love.

I knew I wanted to do something with it, so I called up two other major players in the plus size fashion world who I know also deal with their fair share of shitty people, the gorgeous Nadia Aboulhosn and game-changer Tess Munster, and asked if they'd be interested in collaborating on a video. I wanted to show that 1) we are not competing to be the Top Dog in our niche--we are supportive of each other and are all working toward the same goal: body positivity and inclusivity. And 2) you don't have to be a certain size to claim your flawlessness. Fat is not a flaw. This video is dedicated to the mainstream media, to the fashion industry, to internet bullies, and to anyone else who thinks it's their right to try to make us feel less than because of their insecurities. #everyBODYisflawless
We had a ton of fun shooting! Hope you guys enjoy!

#everyBODYisflawless from gabifresh on Vimeo.
Thanks so much to the director, Helton "Brazil" Siqueira, and the brands who lent us clothing for the video (I will be doing a separate post on our outfits soon!) - Rent the Runway, Bauble Bar, Hips and Curves, QVC, SimplyBe, Carmakoma, ASOS and Eclectic Eccentricity.