Is Emily Ratajkowski’s Armpit Hair Really ‘Empowering’ For Women?

Emily Ratajkowski has written an essay for Harper's Bazaar about, in her own words, the 'importance of women’s right to choose (how she dresses, what she posts, if she decides to shave or not)'. To promote it, Ratajkowski posted a photograph of herself, shot by Michael Avedon, in which she appears to have under-arm hair. Naturally, the internet has several opinions on this, many of which have eclipsed the content of the essay itself.

On Twitter, there have been men suggesting Ratajkowski is no longer their 'crush' (something which she may be relieved to hear, more than anything) and many people suggesting that the hair itself is fake.

Referring to body hair in her essay, she writes: 'If I decide to shave my armpits or grow them out, that’s up to me. For me, body hair is another opportunity for women to exercise their ability to choose—a choice based on how they want to feel and their associations with having or not having body hair. On any given day, I tend to like to shave, but sometimes letting my body hair grow out is what makes me feel sexy. And there is no right answer, no choice that makes me more or less of a feminist.'

This is, along with most of the points Ratajkowski makes in her essay, perfectly reasonable. But it just feels strange that body hair is still this much of a talking point in relation to women, femininity and feminine identity, whatever that may be.

Of course, Ratajkowski has every right to shave, not shave or indeed do whatever she wants to do – but it feels rather cynical to suddenly see her using body hair as a kind of shock tactic, intended to promote something she has written on why a woman's write to choose body hair should not, in fact, be anything shocking.

It feels unfair to criticise Ratajkowski herself, however. She is a woman writing about why, as a woman, she should be able to make choices that make her happy – not which satisfy society's expectations.

The world's reaction to this photograph – whatever your opinion of Ratajkowski – highlights exactly what the essay is asserting: 'Young women are ripped apart from every angle as they grow up. In the era of selfies and social media, they are prone to immediate feedback and criticism. More than ever, they are doubting and questioning everything about their identities.'

It just feels disappointing that, in 2019, female body hair is still something to talk about.