People are 'bump-shaming' Kate Middleton—Here's why

October 15, 2017 9:27 PM

Rregardless of her build, belly size, or how far along she is, it’s never acceptable to comment on a woman’s body—pregnant or not.

People are super-excited that

The duchess has been laying low due to her hyperemesis gravidarum, a condition that makes pregnant women incredibly sick, but she made an appearance on Tuesday at a Buckingham Palace event honoring mental health workers.

Naturally, everyone wanted to catch a glimpse of the royal baby bump, so all eyes were on Kate's stomach at the event. She wore a gorgeous blue lace dress and you could see just a hint of a tummy when she turned sideways.

Plenty of people freaked out (in a good way), but others were total a-holes about it, publicly trashing Kate and her bump for not being larger.

Here are just a few of the lovely comments floating around the Internet:

“Seriously…I can’t see anything!”

“Can a woman this skinny actually get pregnant?”

“I’ve looked more pregnant after a Sunday lunch than she does.”

“Frump with a small bump!”

“I’ve got more of a bump, my baby is 9 months old!”

“Like a peanut on an ironing board. I know she’s been ill but she’s painfully thin!”

Yes, Kate is slim. In other news, the sky is blue. She’s also been really sick and is probably only a few months pregnant. But regardless of her build, belly size, or how far along she is, it’s never acceptable to comment on a woman’s body—pregnant or not. Baby bumps come in all shapes and sizes and having a small bump doesn’t mean a woman’s pregnancy is any less valid.

Unfortunately, Kate isn’t the only woman who has been publicly shamed over her bump: Fitness blogger Sarah Stage has been repeatedly bump-shamed for having a small belly during her pregnancies and celebrities like Jaime King and Coco Austin were shamed for the same reason. People also criticized Kim Kardashian and Chrissy Teigen for having what they decided were oversized baby bumps.

Seriously, body shaming in any form is still body shaming—and it’s never okay.