05/30/2007
The Gossip's Beth Ditto: Gay Men to Blame for Skinny Women
Lesbian singer Beth Ditto, who appears naked on the cover of this week's New Music Express, says gay men are to blame for the preponderance of ultra-skinny female celebrities and models who put pressure on women to be thin.
Said Ditto: "If there's anyone to blame for size zero, it's not women. Blame gay men who work in the fashion industry and want these women as dolls. Men don't know what it feels like to be a woman and be expected to look a particular way. The Beckhams are part of the machine, Paris Hilton is part of the machine. There's that thing Paris Hilton said about Lindsay Lohan, 'You're poor, ugly and fat.' It's always women who are victims...I spent one night talking to Kate Moss and she said the most amazing things about bodies. I didn't think I was going to like her, but she said, 'Do you know what I hate, Beth? When people tell my big girlfriends, 'You have a beautiful face…' That's a really radical concept."
Posted 9:25 AM EST by Andy in Beth Ditto, Fashion Men, News | Permalink
Like it?
Subscribe to FREE Towleroad daily headlines with our RSS feed!
RECENT STORIES:
And here I was, thinking it was latent pedophilia/homosexuality on the part of straight men that makes them want their women to look like prepubescent boys.
Posted by: GM | May 30, 2007 9:27:39 AM
I love Beth Ditto now, more than ever!
Posted by: Jason | May 30, 2007 9:35:18 AM
Um, yeah Beth. So it has NOTHING to do with the fact that straight guys want to dominate women, and fucking a skinny waif makes them feel like bigger men? Give me a break. If ONLY gay men had that much power.
Posted by: Gregg | May 30, 2007 9:46:15 AM
she is so right. i don't know a single straight guy who finds these haggard bony stringy haired women attractive, but gay designers continue to perpetuate this sick misogynistic cycle. course then again, most of the designers look like 40 miles of bad road themselves, so maybe they just want everyone to look like shit.
Posted by: dan | May 30, 2007 9:52:25 AM
I agree that some gay men who work in the fashion industry attribute to this problem. But Beth is not winning the high ground by making a blanket statement that, as a whole, we're more to blame than anyone else.
By painting women as victims she removes any and all responsibility for them to make responsible choices about their own health.
And I take particular exception to her statement that gay men do not know what it's like to be held to a physical standard. How many chubby men do you see on the covers of men's magazines dear?
Posted by: mark m | May 30, 2007 9:55:56 AM
I Totally Agree.
Posted by: forreal | May 30, 2007 10:06:53 AM
Oh please. Just more man-hating bullshit, looking for external sources for her own problems. She has a point that stick figure women are impossible goals for most women, but I rather think that the magazine editors are more responsible for the content of their photo shoots than the designers are. Anna Wintour, anyone?
Oh and another thing... anyone who thinks that men don't feel pressure to live up to a physical ideal hasn't seen a men's magazine in decades. We all feel pressure. It's just that some of us can manage it more effectively than others... just like women do. We're more alike than we are unalike...
Posted by: Brian | May 30, 2007 10:08:14 AM
Yeah, Mark M is quite right. People have to be responsible for themselves. However, I do worry for young men and women (specifically teens) who are bombarded by these images and made to feel like they have to live up to this standard.
Posted by: Rob (lrdarystar) | May 30, 2007 10:08:30 AM
Other than the fact that she is wrong about gay men, she is right about being poor and being overweight, its a proven fact that when someone's poor, they tend to eat more processed food, fried food, and fewer veggies, and with all the stress of just getting by, over eat. So, other than her hatin' on gay men, she opens a huge can of worms as to what's is causing this massive level of obesity, and who deems what as attractive that's based more on income levels than anything else. Straight guys just like some gay men, like tiny lovers, makes them feel bigger in the privates dept., and as most of the gay porno guys are about 5'2"-5'6", she is right waifish, even with huged roided muscles makes you look huge, LOL!
Posted by: Juan-Carlos | May 30, 2007 10:10:36 AM
Right. I give a shit about what women look like. Oh, wait, no, I don't.
Gross generalizations by an fat, angry lesbian. Hey, look! I can play this game, too!
Posted by: Iko | May 30, 2007 10:13:39 AM
If you go the site linked above and to the NME.com site, the quotes are edited differently--a reminder that these things can get decontextualized when they're reported and made into flashy headlines. At NME she says: "There are lots of things that are part of that machine..."--contrary to the headline above, it doesn't seem like she's targeting gay men in the fashion industry any more than she is targeting the Paris Hiltons and the Beckhams of the world. Her heart is in the right place. (Though her buddy Kate Moss is also part of that machine, so...)
Posted by: J | May 30, 2007 10:15:53 AM
Gee, Beth did not realize it was MY fault that you've been unable to push back from the dinner table, or not binge eat at the local KFC.
You're fat and you need to take responsibility for your own life - even if gay designers (as if there is some cabal operating against women) think women should be thin or even skinny.
Posted by: hoya86 | May 30, 2007 10:26:47 AM
Seriously, I love the Gossip, but give me a fucking break. If women would stop buying fashion mags with -4 size models, they wouldn't see that which gives them such a negative body image and they'd go out of business.
Plus, if gay men are driving girls to be bone thin, why is (at least) America getting fatter and fatter. If we are doing it, we're not doig a good job.
Posted by: Marco | May 30, 2007 10:39:29 AM
Whew. She better watch it. Pissing off the gay bois will completely cut down on the number of fat girls who are asked to the prom. I think she's completely wrong anyway. I love me a loudmouth, sassy, heavy girl.
Posted by: Chris | May 30, 2007 10:39:33 AM
Gay men to blame for skinny women models? Puhleeze! If women didn't buy the clothes that (some) gay men design (hello, there are women and straight men that design these clothes too) and if women didn't buy the magazines in which these models appear ... well, you get the idea. If these women are victims, pointing fingers at gay men is not going to spare them.
And to say that men don't know what it feels like to be expected to look a particular way, well, that's a total load of crap. Has she not seen any men's magazines or men's clothes or men's fashion ads ever? Really, check out the AussieBum or DNA ads on this site.
C'mon - fantasy--and sex--sells clothes. If Beth doesn't like that, she can damn well do something about it. Otherwise, she best get over it and stop blaming others for the things she doesn't like.
Posted by: TP | May 30, 2007 11:08:36 AM
Why is it that anytime a woman speaks her mind, narrow minded men here go off on her? Weight with women and how its used to promote beauty has been around forever. While, I don't think gay men are the reason per se, more like staright guys, well, some gay men since some are part of the decision making for fashion, she is right about the poverty part.
Poor women don't see themselves as victims, they are put into victim hood by society and by in large see themselves as survivors. And, its amazing how many gay men who post here are so bitter and narrow minded. I guess they must be able to enjoy that male privilege, even though they are at times as discriminated against as the poor fat woman in the mobile home park.
Tolerance should be for all people, not just ones who look a certain way, and it sure would be nice to see that some posters would at least try to see how people who are different are treated in society, instead of bashing with impunity
Posted by: janet | May 30, 2007 11:10:21 AM
The number of really thin women in this country is puny compared to the number of really heavy women. The real problem is obesity, not thinness, particularly from a public health perspective. Models are freaky because designers want the allure of the exotic. They want to stand out. They DON'T want to be normal or pedestrian. Notice she didn't complain that almost all models are white, ages only from 13 to 22 and tall. However, they had reality TV show "The Agency" about a modeling agency in NYC and the models would often overeat. The women agents would be just as harsh as the men (who were all gay).
Posted by: anon | May 30, 2007 11:10:26 AM
Yes, well... A quick scoot through the Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney sites reveals.......loads of skinny models. Thin has been the predominant look since the Sixties and plenty of women (not least Mary Quant) have been complicit in perpetuating it. It's not a black and white, male versus female issue by any means.
Posted by: John C | May 30, 2007 11:10:40 AM
By any measure, Beth Ditto is obese. She may try to blame her obesity on gays, models, the Beckhams, whatever, but what she puts in her mouth at 4 a.m. has more to do with how she looks and how she feels about herself than anything else.
Posted by: Tom | May 30, 2007 11:24:14 AM
"Men don't know what it feels like to be a woman and be expected to look a particular way."
Beth's obviously never been a gay man in a gay bar.
Hey, Beth! You got your 15 minutes. You got mentioned on Towleroad. You clearly don't know what you're talking about. Now shut up.
Posted by: Jake | May 30, 2007 11:36:43 AM
Why is it that anytime a woman speaks her mind, narrow minded men here go off on her? - Janet
Please.
Firstly, accussing others of being narrow-minded isn't actually anything an enlightened person would say. Secondly,
Secondly, disagreeing with her doesn't make one narrow-minded. It's narrow-minded to pretend the only opinion that matters and carries any weight is your own.
Posted by: Marco | May 30, 2007 11:36:58 AM
JANET - so because Beth is a woman who is speaking her mind, we must let her off the hook? That is sexist bullshit. If a guy said that gay men are to blame for skinny women, the responses would be the same.
Try not using Beth's vagina as an excuse. The responses here have far less to do with Beth being a woman, and far more to do with defending ourselves against an unprovoked and downright stupid attack.
Posted by: Gregg | May 30, 2007 11:37:27 AM
Also Janet,
If you've got some proof of men ragging on women for saying stupid things more than men for saying similarly stupid things, I'd love some proof of it.
You can still be a strong woman and say some incredibly stupid shit.
Posted by: Marco | May 30, 2007 11:39:25 AM
This is nothing new. Mo'nique has spewing the same homophobic crap for decades. A fat woman blaming gay men for the pervasiveness of thin women in fashion. Perhaps I'm wrong, but are there any gay men who serve as Editor-In-Chief for a woman's fashion magazine?
I'll be sure to toss Beth some ding-dongs when the True Colors tour rolls (no pun intended) into town.
Posted by: John in Manhattan | May 30, 2007 12:18:55 PM
She wants to gain points with straight people so she knocks gays. Andrew Sullivan does this too.
Beth is still a lesbian and most straight people hate her for it. She doesn't realize that. She will soon.
Posted by: Jack! | May 30, 2007 12:32:49 PM
wasteless pig.
Posted by: Otto | May 30, 2007 12:44:57 PM
Actually the secret is, she only weighs 75 lbs. Unfortunately though, she lives in Perez Hilton's asshole. Hence the 400 lb. thing that she is. By the way dear-14:59, and ticking.
Posted by: Otto | May 30, 2007 12:48:03 PM
Gay men have embraced strong, full-figured women. Jennifer Hudson, ring a bell. Beth should take a look at FHM or Maxim. See what straight men want.
As I said before she is trying to score points with straight people.
Gay people please refrain from dehumanizing her like calling her a pig. We are better than that. Let's move forward and upward. She will eventually see how she was wrong.
Posted by: Jack! | May 30, 2007 12:57:55 PM
I could not be more over Beth and her broken record...
Posted by: Andrew | May 30, 2007 1:05:48 PM
There's a difference between what straight men actually want and what the certain industries want women to think they want. The beauty industry (which goes hand in hand with the fashion industry) champions a (mostly unattainable) ideal of super young and skinny because that's what nudges women into spending money on crap that they're told will make them be more desireable. The Beauty Myth and all. But those ideals, particularly high fashion models, are hardly what most straight men want.
There do happen to be a number of gay men working in the industries that put pressure on women to be thin, but there are lots more straight people in those industries too. It's easy to pick on the gays in those industries because they are identifiable. But for every gay designer, there are many more straight photographers and straight female editors (the latter having the most power). And she's dead wrong if she's saying that gay men in general are responsible. Gay men in general are powerless.
Posted by: SGR | May 30, 2007 1:16:49 PM
BTW-Just- Jack!
She was rude when she stereotyped me. So give up on the hold hands lets get along crap. She is talentless, and still a pig.
Posted by: Otto | May 30, 2007 1:26:45 PM
I still remember the early Roseanne as a stand-up comedienne saying, "I think God made gay men so us fat women would have somebody to dance with."
Posted by: MJ | May 30, 2007 1:52:44 PM
Her comments make me want to be front-row-center at one of her concerts just so that I can throw chicken wings at her.
Posted by: peterparker | May 30, 2007 2:22:19 PM
It is certainly not gay men's fault that women have body issues. Although advertising does create unrealistic expectations it wouldn't work if people didn't buy into it--gay men have pretty serious body issues as well. Look at the eating disorders among gay men--the over working out, the plastic surgery, if someone doesn't have a six pack they are somehow fat, a perfectly attractive man with a 34 inch waist is fat--it goes on and on.
Posted by: Daniel | May 30, 2007 2:27:07 PM
i wonder what Lil Debbie, Betty Crocker and Sara Lee feel about Beth's remarks?
Posted by: sean | May 30, 2007 2:29:46 PM
What a nice way for her to bring the queer community together on the eve of Gay Pride Month.
Posted by: Greg | May 30, 2007 3:29:15 PM
Um... she's right though women in fashion are just as bitchy/cruel.
Posted by: Giovanni | May 30, 2007 6:14:49 PM
It shows a part of your personality you take care of yourself granted i sit my size 2 ass in the kitchen thats irrelevant i thank genetics. However i did not feel pretty until i looked into fashion and related lifestyles in the "regular" world mediocre a.k.a fat is worshipped bitch needs to shutup
Posted by: sasha | May 30, 2007 9:04:12 PM
i think guys settle only fat girls avaiable call it average and tap it.
Im tired of this im a real women pity me bullshi this is genetics not laziness well ieat 3000 cals a day sometimes less give me meat ill fry it with potatoes cheeses and bread. Size 4 not unrealistic.
How many times does noe get asked you must be bullimic or something or your cold cause you don't eat like being skinny is a crime
Posted by: sasha | May 30, 2007 9:12:21 PM
Mark M and Brian, I agree 100%!!
Posted by: Zeke | May 30, 2007 11:07:56 PM
Hmm... I just thinking of all the female "idols" that gay men have... Ethel Merman (not small)... JUDY!!! Garland (not small)... Liza "with a Z" Minelli (not small)... and BETTE!!! "the Divine Miss M" Midler (not small). Okay, there's Cher, Celine, and Barbara but I don't think anyone would suggest that anyone but the ladies themselves are responsible for their looks.
And as someone else pointed out we seem to have added Jennifer Hudson to the list and I believe Kelly Clarkston also has a pretty big gay following. Neither of them are what you might call petite.
I'm lead to believe that Ms. Ditto spouted off her mouth for one reason only. To get noticed. Since I've never heard of her before, I'll say her ploy probably failed. While I do know her now, I really don't care to hear any more from her.
Posted by: Dean | May 31, 2007 1:17:31 AM
______________________________________
GEEZ WHAT TOTALLY HOMOPHOBIC, JEALOUS BITCH CRAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOT ALL DESIGNERS ARE GAY, BUT ALL DESIGNERS WANT MODELS WHO ARE THIN LIKE CLOTHESHANGERS, SO THE CLOTHES MOVE, AND THE LINES LOOK MORE VERTICAL.
This is simply a rant by a big girl who cant be a model and want to blame men. If women wanted to see clothes on size 10 or 16 models, they are not stupid puppets, they would demand it, and it would be done.
PLUS -- when women see clothes on a model who is not like them, they can imagine. If the woman is similar to them, jealousy and comparison start.
Posted by: BOB | Jun 5, 2007 9:48:36 PM
Who the hell is Beth Ditto?
Enough said. Ok, not really.
Put down the RingDings and jump on a treadmill. There's no shame in being fit! She's just given up and is trying to find a scapegoat for her own problems with weight. Obesity is unhealthy, and God forbid people try to change unhealthful behavior.
Posted by: kevin | Jul 21, 2007 1:11:04 AM