In July, model Dani Mathers faced intense backlash after body shaming a woman while at the gym—and posting photos on Snapchat for everyone to see. Her caption, which read, “If I can’t unsee this then you can’t either,” offended not only the woman she snapped a photo of, but millions of women who constantly feel pressure to give into societal norms regarding which body shapes are acceptable and which aren’t. Aside from that, Dani violated the woman’s privacy by posting a photo from the LA Fitness locker room. Because of her actions, Dani can now be facing 6 months in jail for Dissemination of Private Images.Â
Following the incident, she apologized on Twitter and Snapchat, but her apology only made it clearer that she didn’t understand why her actions were wrong. Dani’s defense was that she was new to Snapchat, and the photos were meant to be sent only to a friend—not posted on her story. “I have chosen to do what I do for a living because I love the female body and I know that body shaming is wrong and that’s not what I’m about, that’s not the type of person that I am. That photo was taken to be a personal conversation with a girlfriend, and because I am new to Snapchat, I didn’t realize that I had posted it and that was a huge mistake,” she wrote.Â
So basically, Dani admitted that she’s aware that body shaming is wrong, but thinks it’s more acceptable if done privately. In addition to being banned from every LA Fitness gym, the police are getting involved in the incident and the woman who was body shamed (who is in her 70s) is determined to get the justice she deserves. She reportedly “wants Mathers to feel the full force of the law.” For Dani, this could mean 6 months of jail time for completely violating the woman’s privacy.Â
If Dani is prosecuted, perhaps this case will shed further light on the body shaming issue—and make more people realize that it’s unacceptable.     Â