Imogen Ker couldn't believe it when a so-called friend made a rude comment about her body — right to her face.
The 25-year-old Los Angeles native was at a male friend's housewarming party. As he was introducing Imogen to party guests, he described her appearance in a horrifying manner. Imogen tried to let the comment go, but she was heartbroken. She texted the man about it a few days later.
The man apologized, but Imogen wanted to share their exchange. She knows so many women have had heard similar comments and that, unfortunately, some of those women might even believe those kinds of comments.
Her story quickly went viral — perhaps because it is all too relatable to women around the globe.
"Sharing this experience has been incredibly therapeutic," Imogen said on Instagram. "My greatest hope is that women who have experienced the same kind of abuse can read my story, relate, and get angry. You deserve to be angry."
Imogen Ker is a plus-size model living in Los Angeles.
The 25-year-old was at a male friend’s housewarming party when he made a comment she couldn’t believe.
As the supposed friend was introducing Imogen to other guests, he blurted out a cruel judgment.
He said “Imogen would be perfect if it wasn’t for her body” when introducing her to a total stranger.
Imogen posts photos of herself online, so she is used to harsh comments about her body, but this was supposed to be her friend.
At first, she let the comment slide, but after a few days, she knew she had to say something.
“You don’t get to make comments about my body. Nobody does. It’s not OK. I’m saying this so I can get over it and move on. Women’s bodies are not fair game.”
“We still live in a world where women and their worth is almost entirely placed on our bodies. And by you saying what you said, you are just a moving wheel in that operation. I’m not expecting an apology. I just needed to let you know how it made me feel.”
The man responded, “I don’t have any recollection of saying that. I am flabbergasted by myself… really that’s not OK.”
Imogen thanked the man for his apology but decided to share her story to help other women who have dealt with similar situations.
“Most of the time, I want to love myself… Then other times the brainwashing of the media takes hold,” she said.
“My ‘friend’s’ comment was so harmful because he was saying out loud the words which I fight so hard to rid my mind of every day: ‘I would be perfect if it wasn’t for my big body.’”
“We must rid ourselves of shame. So what I did was take that shame and turn it around. Shame belongs on this man for saying what he said.”
Please SHARE Imogen's story if you think she was right to call out this so-called friend's humiliating comment.
