Stacy Nadeau, one of the six models featured in the recent Dove Real Beauty Campaign, visited campus with an important message for the BSU students who crowded into Horace Mann Auditorium for her talk.
The mission of the Dove Real Beauty Campaign is to raise awareness among women and girls about the true meaning of “real women and real beauty.” The campaign included a billboard in Times Square, featuring women of every shape and size.
Ms. Nadeau also spoke about breaking through stereotypes and media perceptions in an effort to redefine beauty, the importance of personal empowerment, and the need to focus on being healthy and happy.
She told stories about individuals who were deeply and positively impacted by the campaign and how their lives have been affected by poor body image and misguided perceptions. Seeing real women on a billboard in New York City, a space usually reserved for supermodels and celebrities, featuring “real” women, allowed people to realize they were perfect exactly the way they were, Ms. Nadeau said.
“In the one of the busiest places in the world, how often does a billboard in Times Square cause people to stop and feel impacted by its message?” she asked. She said that people were talking, interested in the campaign and wanting to know what was coming next.
Ms. Nadeau grew up an ordinary Chicago college student before becoming a model. She told the audience she never would have believed she would one day be on a Times Square billboard. She left students with the message that they have the power to change the conversation about body image and the ways in which it affects the relationships we have, the decisions we make and the way we take care of ourselves.
“Focusing on what makes you healthy and happy is all about the journey that we can all take together as individuals and as a society,” she said. (Story by student Heidi Belanger, University News)