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Tess Holliday Says It's A 'Slap In The Face' When People Dismiss The Plus-Size Label

"When there's young girls that are searching the term plus-size, that's the identifier to find someone that looks like them, to feel like they belong, to feel like they fit in and that they're not alone."

Tess Holliday is all for using the term "plus-size" and says it's a "slap in the face" when people want to dismiss the label, especially curvy models.

"What about all the women that look up to you?" the size 22 model told HuffPost Canada Style of her colleagues while visiting Toronto to launch her new line with Penningtons. "When there's young girls that are searching the term plus-size, that's the identifier to find someone that looks like them, to feel like they belong, to feel like they fit in and that they're not alone."

She continued, "If you take away the title, which has never been used in a negative way, then how are they going to fit in, or what are they going to identify with?"

And while the 30-year-old #EffYourBeautyStandards advocate feels she always "stirs the pot" when speaking on this issue, she insists it's important to keep the conversation surrounding the term going.

"Maybe if we just don't shut up and keep talking about it...that's how things bring awareness and change."

Watch the video above for more on why Tess Holliday thinks it's okay to run with the term "plus-size" and why she embraces the conversation on the term.

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