Disney plus-size princess petition reaches 22,500 signatures

A US teenager wants more realistic characters to boost girls' self-esteem

Frozen heroine Anna has eyes that are bigger than her wrists - a distortion that could harm girls' self-esteem (Disney)

More than 22,500 people have signed a US teenager’s petition for Disney to introduce a plus-size princess.

Jewel Moore, who attends high school in Virginia, believes a more realistic character would help boost the self-esteem of girls who may “feel ugly for not fitting the skinny standard”.

“I made this petition because I’m a plus-size young woman, and I know many plus-size girls and women who struggle with confidence and need a positive plus-size character in the media,” she wrote on petition website change.org.

“Studies show that a child’s confidence correlates greatly with how much representation they have in the media,” she continued. “If Disney could make a plus-size female protagonist who was as bright, amazing and memorable as their others, it would do a world of good for those plus-size girls out there.”

Moore told Yahoo! that her main ambition is “for little boys to see plus-size Disney princesses so they don’t grow up and think women they date have to look perfect”.

Animated Disney princesses are famous for their skinny figures, over-sized sparkling eyes and all-round ‘perfect’ physiques - little has changed since Snow White first appeared in 1937.

The most recent Disney protagonist, Anna from Frozen , has been criticised for her inaccurate proportions – her eyes are almost three times the size of her wrists.

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