By Britta Eberle

Did you know that some people are very angry about Disney’s new movie, Moana? They are arguing that the main character, Moana, is a bad example for young girls because she is more “realistically bodied” than previous Disney princesses. Instead of an exploding bust and itty-bitty waist, Moana looks more like a regular girl.

In one article, Moana was called obese and said to promote bad eating habits. A woman wrote this. A woman. If she looks at Moana’s flat chest and slender hips and thinks “obese,” I don’t even want to know what that woman considers skinny. All the girl does is eat bananas, coconuts, and fish while she’s swinging around on a tiny boat and battling evil monsters!

But seriously, words matter. And when we judge women, even animated women, by their bodies, our children are listening.

Moana is healthy. She is athletic. And she is strong.

I was raised watching movies featuring princesses whose ultimate goal was to find true love. That’s it. Find true love and…the end.

Moana isn’t looking for love. She’s trying to save her people. In an age when children’s toys and media are becoming increasingly sexualized and unrealistic, it’s refreshing that Disney is bucking the trend. Moana joins company with other strong female characters like Mulan and Elsa. And that is something to celebrate.

I’m not raising my daughter to be a princess, and finding true love is most certainly not going to be the end of her story. She might grow up to be a doctor, a teacher, a wife, a mother, or who knows what. I’m focusing on raising a person who is brave, strong, confident, and kind.

Finally, our daughters have role models who portray these characteristics. So instead of bashing these princesses for not being skinny enough or being too headstrong, we should hold them up and raise our daughters up along with them.

This post was originally published on This Is Motherhood.

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