Keeping it 100. Emily Ratajkowski revealed in a new interview that she had almost become numb to the term “attention whore” after being labeled as such so many times.
The Gone Girl actress, 25, penned an emotional essay for Glamour’s October 2016 issue, in which she opened up about the harsh criticism she received following her vocal support of former Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders.
“Commenters said I had ‘an excess of beauty and lack of brain’ and told me to ‘shut up and show us your tits,’” Ratajkowski, who famously appeared topless in Robin Thicke’s 2013 “Blurred Lines” music video, wrote. “But I was also criticized in a very specific way — for seeking attention. They wrote me off as ‘a desperate attention whore,’ saying I was taking part in the conversation only because everybody else was too.”
The British-born beauty went on to explain that she feels she is judged differently because she is a woman, and pointed out that her political comments would be perceived differently if she were a man.
“I realized then that I’ve been called an attention whore so often that I had almost gotten used to it. And as women, we are accused of seeking attention more than men are, whether for speaking out politically, as I did; for dressing a certain way; or for even posting a selfie,” she shared. “Our culture has a double standard that runs so deep, many women have actually built up an automatic defense — attempting to be a step ahead of potential critics by making sure we have ‘real’ reasons for anything we say or do.”
She added: “Our society tells women we can’t be, say, sexy and confident and opinionated about politics. This would allow us too much power. Instead our society asks us to declare and defend our motivations, which makes us second-guess them, all while men do what they please without question.”
This isn’t the first time Ratajkowski has taken a stand for female empowerment. Back in March, she vigorously stood behind Kim Kardashian after the reality star, 35, posted a controversial nude selfie. As previously reported, the E! star’s NSFW photo inspired a divisive argument among celebs such as Ariel Winter, Demi Lovato and Bella Thorne, who supported her, and those such as Piers Morgan, Chloë Grace Moretz and Bette Midler, who most definitely did not.
After Ratajkowski came to Kardashian’s defense via social media, the mom of two sent the model a beautiful bouquet of flowers to show her appreciation.
“Thank you for the beautiful flowers and note @kimkardashian 💛 it’s so important that we let women express their sexuality and share their bodies however they choose,” Ratajkowski captioned a photo of the floral arrangement in March. “✌🏼️🌟💕 ‘Merely external emancipation has made of the modern woman an artificial being. Now, woman is confronted with the necessity of emancipating herself from emancipation, if she really desires to be free.’ Emma Goldman.”
