Jamelia was on the panel of Loose Women this Tuesday and made comments that pertained to her wanting high street shops to stop stocking clothing for people under and over a certain weight, because it promotes an unhealthy lifestyle.
On the show she said: "I don't believe stores should stock clothes below or above a certain weight. They should be made to feel uncomfortable when they go in and can't find a size."
This comes on the same week in which a young girl was found dead after her consumption of diet and weight loss pills. 21-year-old Eloise Aimee Parry from Shrewsbury died on April 12 after taking more than the recommended dose of online-bought pills, and police have since revealed those pills contained industrial chemical dinitrophenol, known as DNP.
And so we're back onto the topic of just why the media and celebrities as well as those in the spotlight choose to push sometimes incredibly difficult and impossible ideals upon the nation. Living an unhealthy lifestyle isn't good for anybody, but those who may be over or under the reccommended weight don't need to be told that - they already know.
Using such a huge platform to push her argument and then defending that argument on social media and again on television today with an appearance on Good Morning Britain, Jamelia has found herself backed into a corner, and slowly appears to be back-tracking, claiming her comments were misunderstood.
Here's what she added whilst on Loose Women: "I don't believe they should be providing clothes for below that range or above that range. I'm not saying that nowhere should, I believe that yes, have specialist shops but I do feel that you should feel uncomfortable if you are unhealthy."
So, not only does Jamelia want everybody under or over a certain size to feel uncomfortable, she would also like them to be secluded and sent to specialist shops. Such comments from a woman who just a day earlier was promoting the Good Morning Britain #SelfieEsteem campaign, inspiring those taking part to "celebrate yourself" is laughable and a little sad. Jamelia may want to present herself as a woman who thinks we should all be happy and comfortable within our own skin, but that's clearly far from the truth.
Following the obvious outpour of rage from viewers, Jamelia has clarified her comments and put out a statement on Instagram.
"It feels necessary for me to clear a few things up…between Papers, Twitter and Instagram a bandwagon has been set in motion, and many people are blindly jumping on without any real thought or rationale.
"First of all…contrary to today's headlines, At NO POINT during yesterday's episode of Loose Women did I say that I did not want plus size clothing available on the high street…at NO POINT did I say I wanted overweight people to feel uncomfortable about shopping for clothes…at NO POINT did I suggest anyone needs to slim down or change their appearance to fit what is available on the high street. All of the above has been reported as if it came out of my mouth…which it did not.
"What I did say, which was in reference to extremes, I stand by. It is also important you understand that I know there are exceptions to every rule, and of course I don't believe anyone should be walking around naked 🙈 But I do believe we need to be healthier as a society, I believe we work together to make this happen. My opinion is in regard to the health and wellbeing of our teens as a whole. The NHS is in crisis, and I believe we should do all we can to regain control of the situation.
"As a mother of two daughters, I want to contribute to a healthy and prosperous society. I am not some pantomime villain. I am a parent and I am a woman, and I want the best for us all. I also believe no matter what your size, you should be celebrated and above all be comfortable celebrating yourself…if you watched the show, you would know that x"
Sorry Jamelia, but we're not buying it, mainly for the reason that you yourself seem to have forgotten exactly what came out of your mouth. Seclusion for the unhealthy, making those of an unhealthy size feel uncomfortable and ensuring that more is done to drive a wedge inbetween people of different weights is not something we can get behind.
This is the sort of thing that leads to tragic situations such as the one with Eloise Aimee Parry. Do you think diet and weight loss pills would even be on the market if the 'ideal figure' wasn't something forced down the throats of the general public every time they switch on the television, go to the magazine aisle or give the Mail Online another hit? We're all constantly striving to achieve something that is 9 times out of 10 impossible. Let's all be a little happier with ourselves and let one another live the way in which we choose to live our lives. There are bigger issues in the world than a size zero or size 20 picking up a dress on a high street store clothes rack.
Tagged in Jamelia