Rachele Cateyes, a Milwaukee, Oregon blogger, is a self-proclaimed “Fat Babe” who keeps a blog about body acceptance and body positivity. On one of her blog posts, she posted a picture of herself wearing a blue bikini. She was shocked to learn that the said photo was stolen and used by an online diet company in one of their campaigns. The photo was posted as the “before” image in a “before” and “after” picture.
Cateyes said that she posted the image on her blog to show her readers that anyone can wear a bikini and have a positive self-image. The photo was taken by her husband on one of their trips to the beach.
Diet company steals plus-size woman’s photo for fat-shaming advertisement: http://t.co/BPPZo3fmcP pic.twitter.com/FKOc6dYiXj
— Cosmopolitan (@Cosmopolitan) March 13, 2014
The blogger did not know that her picture was stolen until her readers tipped her off.
Cateyes sent a message on the company’s Facebook page and stated that they were using her picture without permission, and that she would like to have it taken down. She received a response, but it was not something that she expected. The response said, “We have no control over it. You need to contact the people who specifically put this on his website.”
According to Brian Westbrook, a technology expert, it is illegal to download photos from the Internet without the owner’s permission and use it to make profit.
Cateyes said that the use of her picture goes against everything she believes in. The use of her picture is like telling the public that her body is bad and it is something that girls do not want to look like.
Followers of Cateyes’ blog are now helping her spread the word about her stolen picture. They have also emailed the company requesting to remove Cateyes’ picture. Their efforts seem to have paid off, as the image no longer links directly to the official website of the diet company.
How To Be A Fat Bitch eCourse #1
Image via Rachel Cateyes, Twitter