The bachelor star Matt James is defending contestant Victoria Larson after one of her friends was caught in a video embarrassing her while making jokes on the golf course. Although James says he does not tolerate this type of behavior, the incident is illuminating a bigger problem within the franchise: the lack of size inclusion.
The video that captures the comment made by James’ friend was shared on Bachelornation.Scoop’s Instagram account where it caught the attention of fans of the show and Larson herself. “Now, how was Victoria’s body? You know, because when I look at her, it doesn’t look good … and you’re dating this woman, ”the man is heard saying.
“Cute … I love my body,” commented the 28-year-old Florida native. She also opened her own page to share a photo of herself in a bikini.
On Thursday, James appeared in The real to condemn what was said about Larson in his company.
“This is never something I tolerate or advocate and it is just a constant reminder that you have to be smart with the people around you,” he said of the comments. “I said something to him off camera, something like ‘Victoria wouldn’t have given you a second look.’ It is always the pot calling the kettle black. Who is he to comment on someone’s body and it is a ‘low blow’ for any man to attempt to excavate something like that. “
James continued to say, “This is not my character and that is not what I do, and it is a shame that this is associated with what was happening. I apologize on your behalf. I don’t know if you’re going to get that from him, but it’s not something I’m going to support or defend. “
While ABC declined to comment with Yahoo Life, Kate Stayman-London, author of One to watch – a novel that explores what it might be like for a fat woman to star in a show like The maiden – suggests that James had already tolerated such behavior when signing up for a program full of issues related to body image.
“It’s good that Matt James said that shaming the body is never acceptable, but actions speak louder than words,” she told Yahoo Life. “The truth is that he participated in a franchise that still prides itself on being a bastion of antiquated and harmful beauty standards. The bachelor sends a clear message to women that the only way to be considered desirable is to be thin – just one aspect of the program’s continuing and disturbing struggles with a lack of diversity. ”
While the women and men appearing on the show continue to maintain a specific standard of beauty and body type, Stayman-London explains that she frequently receives daily messages from women looking for more representation of the franchise. Many people have even shared these thoughts on social media.
Stayman-London says there is “no excuse” that the changes have not yet been made with regard to the cast.
“I hope that former cast members and members of the public also talk about it. There is absolutely no excuse for the show not to launch a more comprehensive range of body types, ”she says. “Until they do, they are participating in an implicit body shame that is just as damaging as what Matt’s friend said in that video.”
This is not the first time that the ABC franchise has been called for lack of representation, after the show’s first black protagonist, Rachel Lindsay, spoke about the need for racial diversity on the show.
“I knew I wanted to be a pioneer in this franchise to diversify the lead role, diversify the competitors who try and cast for the show and diversify the audience that watches this show,” Lindsay wrote in a June 2020 blog post. “Well , I’m sad to say that after almost four years in this franchise, we still don’t have the diversity that this program needs and that our audience deserves. ”
Lindsay’s feelings were echoed by the Bachelor Diversity campaign, which was created in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. On June 12, ABC announced that James was cast as the first Black Bachelor in the show’s history.
While some may view the lack of racial diversity and size inclusion as different problems, Kelly Augustine, creator of oversized content for blacks and celebrity stylist, says they are both rooted in misogyny – the show’s biggest problem.
“The general picture here is that this franchise does not do a good job with diversity”, Augustine, a regular Bachelor viewer who shares comments about the show with his followers, tells Yahoo Life. “And it proves it. Boys will be boys’ conversations, women all alike. The show is chosen for the masculine look, although the vast majority of its viewers are women who look nothing like these competitors. “
Larson did not immediately respond to Yahoo Life’s request for comment. However, she shared another bikini photo on Instagram on Wednesday, writing: “the only validation I need is to park.”
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Originally published