A timely move.
With its September issue, Allure is making a big move towards walking the walk when it comes to body positivity. The magazine has announced that it will no longer use “anti-aging” in its pages.
Editor-in-chief of Allure, Michelle Yee, says that beginning with the September issue, the magazine is “making a resolution to stop using the term ‘anti-aging.’ Whether we know it or not, we’re subtly reinforcing the message that aging is a condition we need to battle—think antianxiety meds, antivirus software, or antifungal spray.”
Allure Magazine’s September Cover Star: Helen Mirren
With the announcement of its bold and positive editorial decision, Allure chose a fabulous star to grace its cover for the September issue: Helen Mirren. The Oscar-winning British actress, 71 and seen on the big screen most recently in the blockbuster The Fate of the Furious, has long been a champion for aging gracefully.
She spoke to AARP The Magazine last year about embracing life’s changes: “Certainly when I was 45, the idea of being 70 was like ‘Arghhh!’ but you only have two options in life: Die young or get old. There is nothing else. The idea of dying young when you’re 25 is kind of cool—a bit romantic, like James Dean. But then you realize that life is too much fun to do that. It’s fascinating and wonderful and emotional. So you just have to find a way of negotiating getting old psychologically and physically.”
Though it may seem like a small step, Allure’s editorial choice to stop using the term “anti-aging” is a concrete action toward changing for the better the way beauty is discussed culturally. As Yee notes, “I hope we can all get to a point where we recognize that beauty is not something just for the young…together we can start to change the conversation and celebrate the beauty in all ages.”
Three cheers for that!
