Dascha Polanco Speaks Out About Sizeism in Hollywood

If you’re a size 8 or 10 in real life, you’re considered average. But if you’re that size in Hollywood, well, you’re sized out.

That’s the stark lesson learned by Dascha Polanco, who plays Dayanara “Daya” Diaz on Orange Is the New Black. According to Vogue, despite the fact that the actress and style maven stars on a hit TV series and has 1.9 million followers on Instagram — where she’s often seen trading her onscreen scrubs for bold, fashion-forward ensembles — she can’t seem to get high-end fashion labels to dress her for premieres or red carpet events.

“I understand that it’s business, but still, it’s like, really?,” Polanco tells the publication. “My industry friends, who are clear and honest with me say, ‘Girl, they don’t have your size, and you’re not at that level yet, so you have to either move that way or just build those relationships so that later in the future maybe it happens.'”

Polanco notes that many stars who have “sample-size” figures seem to have no trouble getting famous designers to lend them expensive gowns simply in exchange for publicity — which the actress can clearly offer — but when it comes to fuller-figured women, it’s slim pickings. “It’s funny that a lot of the brands are dressing people who are not offering anything as far as talent, they’re just out there,” she tells Vogue.

And it’s not like Polanco can’t wear the heck out of a high-end dress …

… or rock a pants look like it was literally made for her.

Seriously, the girl knows how to werk:

So the problem must be the fashion industry, we’re left to conclude. And other voluptuous stars have experienced the same size discrimination. According to the Washington Post, even after her star-making turn in Bridesmaids, Melissa McCarthy said she found it next to impossible to find a major label to dress her for the Academy Awards. “Two Oscars ago, I couldn’t find anybody to do a dress for me,” she said in 2014. “I asked five or six designers — very high-level ones who make lots of dresses for people — and they all said no.”

In response to designers’ sizeism, McCarthy launched her own fashion line, Melissa McCarthy Seven7. “I’ve been every size on the planet and know that I didn’t lose my sense of style just because I went above a size 12,” she says on the brand’s website, where she promotes not only her fashion line — which includes everything from maxi dresses to pencil-fit jeans — but also a guide to help customers find their perfect fit.

And Polanco is strongly considering following in McCarthy’s sartorial footsteps, according to Vogue. “I’m creative enough, and to be honest with you, I don’t mind work. Now more than before, it’s like, ‘You’re not going to make my s***? Well, I’m going to make my own!'” she told the publication.

Leslie Jones, SNL’s breakout star and one of the four funny ladies in the upcoming Ghostbusters remake, was vocal on Twitter about designers not being willing to dress her larger frame.

Although most fans were supportive of Jones’s struggle, some stylists piled on with some pretty harsh criticism. According to the Hollywood Reporter, stylist Jeanne Yang chalked it up to “pure economics,” saying, “People have this belief that showrooms and designers have racks and racks of clothing in all sizes. They don’t.”

But Jessica Paster — who has dressed stars including Emily Blunt and Nia Vardalos — didn’t hold back when she suggested the 6-foot star should conform to the industry’s high standards of one-size-fits-all figures. “[Jones] should have known four to five months ago the date of premiere, and said, ‘I’m not a sample size, I need to go to designers early or buy myself a dress.’ Don’t be blaming designers and saying they don’t like you,” Paster said.

But top designer Christian Siriano had a different reaction when he saw Jones’s tweet. Siriano reached out — literally (well, using hand emojis) — to the comedian, who happily accepted the designer’s subtle offer to dress her with an enthusiastic “YAAAAAASSSSSS.” The result? A little bit of trademark-Siriano shenanigans:

And then, a fierce red gown to light up the red carpet — which Instagram’s own Instagram saw fit to regram:

Siriano may be the common thread in this entire body-positive high-fashion movement. Not only did he swoop in to save Jones, but also he’s been known to dress many of Polanco’s Orange Is the New Black co-stars, including Danielle Brooks (Taystee) and Jackie Cruz (Flaca), who were groomswomen at his recent nuptials, as Yahoo reported.

Could it be time for a Polanco-Siriano fashion line to be conceived? We couldn’t think of a better, or more timely, collaboration.

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