Jameela Jamil Under Fire For CupcakKe Weight Loss Method Criticism
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Jameela Jamil Under Fire For CupcakKe Weight Loss Method Criticism

Actor and body positivity activist Jameela Jamil is facing online backlash for her call-out of CupcakKe's weight loss method.

For a little context, over the weekend CupcakKe informed fans that she had done a water fast for the past month, alongside two new photos.

And though reactions were varied, Jamil's response telling CupcakKe what to do didn't sit well with a lot of people.

"Please take this down," Jamil wrote. "Most people reading this may not have the medical supervision or extensive knowledge needed to even TRY to attempt this safely. The dangers are immense, and it will harm your metabolism, so isn't even an effective tool for weight loss. It's just very unsafe."

However, given that many experts say that shaming behaviors is an unhelpful practice in cases like this — let alone on a highly-visible, public scale, many thought the message would've been more appropriate as a DM. Meanwhile, others wondered if Jamil took into consideration that CupcakKe has recently been going through some other personal struggles.

Not only that, but as noted by BET, many online also pointed out that the issue of eating disorders is a particularly nuanced one for Black women — something that Jamil completely missed with her response.

As writer Clarkisha Kent pointed out in her initial Twitter thread and subsequent piece for WearYourVoice, the "MULTIPLE beauty standards we are up against and expected to live up to" were not taken into consider within Jamil's critique.

Not only that, but the actor also completely ignored "the adversarial relationship [Black women] are taught to have with our bodies from nigh-infancy only to have it exploited and spit back at us later in life" — something that further reinforces the idea that "if CupcakKe were a White woman, this convo would look different."

In response to the criticism, Jamil apologized to CupcakKe for "putting you on blast without knowing anything about u."

"Having now learned of your personal struggles, I realize I should have done more to protect you rather than bring you stress," she wrote. "This goes beyond not just being so careless as to quote tweet someone whose context and life you're unaware of. But also, being extra careful to not pile on to Black women, who are already piled onto, ignored and policed the most. I hear all the criticism. I see my fuck up."

And while CupcakKe hasn't responded directly to Jamil, she did take a moment to tweet earlier today that she's "extremely blessed" to be on the fast, though she doesn't "suggest anyone to try this without consulting with a doctor first."

Photo via BFA

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