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Jennifer Aniston “I am not pregnant. What I am is fed up.”

Writing for Huffington Post, actress Jennifer Aniston shares some words of wisdom.

For the record, I am not pregnant. What I am is fed up. I’m fed up with the sport-like scrutiny and body shaming that occurs daily under the guise of “journalism,” the “First Amendment” and “celebrity news.”

“Every day my husband and I are harassed by dozens of aggressive photographers staked outside our home who will go to shocking lengths to obtain any kind of photo, even if it means endangering us or the unlucky pedestrians who happen to be nearby. But setting aside the public safety aspect, I want to focus on the bigger picture of what this insane tabloid ritual represents to all of us.”

“The objectification and scrutiny we put women through is absurd and disturbing. The way I am portrayed by the media is simply a reflection of how we see and portray women in general, measured against some warped standard of beauty.

The message that girls are not pretty unless they’re incredibly thin, that they’re not worthy of our attention unless they look like a supermodel or an actress on the cover of a magazine is something we’re all willingly buying into. This conditioning is something girls then carry into womanhood. We use celebrity “news” to perpetuate this dehumanizing view of females, focused solely on one’s physical appearance, which tabloids turn into a sporting event of speculation. Is she pregnant? Is she eating too much? Has she let herself go? Is her marriage on the rocks because the camera detects some physical “imperfection”?”

“The reality is the stalking and objectification I’ve experienced first-hand, going on decades now, reflects the warped way we calculate a woman’s worth.”

“The sheer amount of resources being spent right now by press trying to simply uncover whether or not I am pregnant (for the bajillionth time… but who’s counting) points to the perpetuation of this notion that women are somehow incomplete, unsuccessful, or unhappy if they’re not married with children.”

Here’s where I come out on this topic: we are complete with or without a mate, with or without a child. We get to decide for ourselves what is beautiful when it comes to our bodies. That decision is ours and ours alone. Let’s make that decision for ourselves and for the young women in this world who look to us as examples. Let’s make that decision consciously, outside of the tabloid noise. We don’t need to be married or mothers to be complete. We get to determine our own “happily ever after” for ourselves.

I have grown tired of being part of this narrative. Yes, I may become a mother some day, and since I’m laying it all out there, if I ever do, I will be the first to let you know. But I’m not in pursuit of motherhood because I feel incomplete in some way, as our celebrity news culture would lead us all to believe. I resent being made to feel “less than” because my body is changing and/or I had a burger for lunch and was photographed from a weird angle and therefore deemed one of two things: “pregnant” or “fat.”

Not to mention the painful awkwardness that comes with being congratulated by friends, coworkers and strangers alike on one’s fictional pregnancy (often a dozen times in a single day).”

I think the point is people, leave Jen alone! OR any other celeb or non celeb you might like to presume is pregnant just because they have a tiny bump for whatever reason.

Share your comments below.

Image via getty

 

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  • All the ‘body shaming’ & paparazzi comments aside – I wish Jen WAS pregnant. I think she’d be an awesome mum and deserves that happiness that we’ve all felt from holding our own creation.

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  • I understand her frustration. It’s really years that journalists are after her, implying that she is pregnant, asking her when she will become a mum… Jennifer made a wonderful statement. And I hope she will finally enjoy some rest in her life!

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  • glad she took a stand and called the media out for this. It is shameful just how far people go into the celebrities lives – I think just because they are a celebritiy doesn’t mean I need to know what they are doing every second of the day, every day of their life!

    I hope that reality settles back into journalism and we stop focusing on things that dont really matter that much in our everyday

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  • Every word that Jennifer has said is true. It\’s true for all women the world over. Some of the magazine stories over the years are quite disgraceful. I don\’t buy any of them, but it is quite funny to read the out of date one\’s when you are in the doctors waiting room and see where they have said Jen is expecting twins or Kate and William are having trouble with their in-laws or marriage. It is so ridiculous that I wonder how they are still allowed to be in business. We need more women to speak up too. Go Jen.

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  • Well said Jen. I hope they leave you alone

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  • This is probably one of the reasons so many personalities develop depression.
    This also includes sports people who the media never leaves alone. I am pretty sure if they take photos while she is on her property she could probably sue them.
    Most people wouldn’t know that the media hang around houses where murders have occured, including out the front of a couple of houses either side. If the neighbours venture outside to check their letterbox the media “pounces” on them. A friend of a relative of mine was so sick of being harrassed every time she stepped out her front door that she called my relative to do some shopping for her. The media even tried to interview her when she delivered the groceries. She couldn’t drive into her friend’s driveway either and she lived a very short distance away so she took the car home and walked. They tried to follow her when she left so she told them she was calling the Police on her mobile phone – which she would have done – so they decided against it.

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  • Good on her. I often feel sorry for celebrities.

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  • I have always been on Team Jen. I think she’s great and has made valid points. I wish her well.

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  • She must get harassed constantly,l don’t blame her for being fed up!

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  • Well said, & so many great points too!

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  • Go Jen! I am not a fan of hers, but she is really harrassed by paparazzi and pregnancy-stalkers.

    Reply

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