“It’s OK to not have a booty.”

This slogan and others can be seen on signs and booths at the upcoming Love Your Curves fashion show taking place on March 2 from 6-9:30 p.m. in the Live Oak Pavilion on the Florida Atlantic Boca campus.

“[The fashion show] is an attempt to change perceptions and is a kind of a safe space,” Moira Leonard, director of the student organization Peer Education Team said. “It is a place for people to freely express themselves and to be excited for that expression not only during the show but afterward.”

The sixth annual show, presented by the Peer Education Team and the sorority Delta Phi Epsilon, is open to people of all shapes and sizes. During the event, there will be booths as well as mental and healthcare professionals sharing information about eating disorders and body dysmorphia.

The show will feature six fashion categories including a Bohemian hippie theme, an activewear theme and a formal theme. Students can choose which themes they want to dress up for when they sign up, and everyone participates in the show’s final theme.

“Everyone gets a tank top at the end that says ‘I love my _____,’” Leonard said. “Students can fill in the blank with anything they want, it really promotes self-love and body positivity.”

Leonard added that there are always mental and physical health resources on campus available, such as Student Health Services and the Counseling and Psychological Services.

“As long as eating disorders exist there will always be room for improvement,” Leonard said. “As long as we live in a culture where we are expected to look or present ourselves in a certain way we will have body dysmorphia.”

If you are interested in modeling for the fashion show, you can sign up here.

“You can learn a lot and meet different people, and it’s always fun to show your stripes,” Leonard said. “If you want to stand up and say you want to be a part of this, come and join us.”

Tucker Berardi is the features editor of the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @tucker_berardi.