On what was to be a day to celebrate the complete awesomeness of being a woman, actress Daisy Ridley was unceremoniously called out for being too thin. More specifically (and on International Women’s Day, no less) a follower of Ridley’s Instagram posts lamented that Ridley’s character of Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens sets a bad example for young girls that don’t yet understand that “real women have curves.”

Rightfully frustrated with the unprovoked commentary, Ridley took to social media to respond to the accusations. On her Instagram account she retaliated with a well thought out response that was intelligent, passionate and right on target. She states that:

I will not apologise for how I look what I say and how I live my life cause what’s happening inside is much more important anyway and I’m striving to be the best version of myself, even if I stumble along the way.

Great words from strong role model! Daisy Ridley continued:

For anyone who has a problem with ANYONE in life, be them someone you know or someone you don’t, remember that expression, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

Soon after Ridley’s comments were made public on Instagram, fans of the actress began verbally harassing the poster of the original “curves” comment. Feeling a need to calm her supporters, Ridley commented once more, adding:

Guys it was not my intention for anyone to send messages to that poor person that posted the original picture. My whole post is about being kind to each other, so please refrain!

Seems like some people missed the entire point of Ridley’s commentary completely, which is a real shame. As a person who is fairly large and completely understands how judgmental others can be about outward appearances, I feel pride and support for everything that Ridley is trying to say. In a world where bad things happen to people everyday, and we are all just trying to get through life day by day, can we all just agree to drop this body shaming nonsense? If you are a parent of a young girl and you are worried about what role models she will see in the world, go out and be that role model for her. She will learn from watching you. Letting someone be who they are and, at the same time,  loving who you are is the start of true happiness.

I just have to add here (because my innate nerdiness won’t let it go) one last comment about the character Rey. As a woman that has been scrounging through broken bits of Imperial and Alliance vehicles for what looks like, at least, ten years and has to climb up and down piles of sand in the killer heat and then eat minimalist meals every day–there’s no way that girl is going to have curves. But I guarantee you that she is a real woman nonetheless! Curves, or the lack of curves, do not make or break a woman, who is defined by so much more than her body.

What do you think of all of these women on women shenanigans? Is Daisy Ridley correct in her comments or do you have a thing or two you could disagree with? Let me know down below!