No child should go through this.
By Emily Blackwood — Written on Sep 22, 2017
Ariel Winter looked stunning walking the red carpet at the Emmy's wearing dress with not one but two slits that showed off her gorgeous legs.
Jaws were droppin' for a reason. The girl is a 10.
But not everyone was a fan of the look, with pictures of Ariel Winter landing on those nasty 'worst dressed' lists across the web.
But the Modern Family actress didn't ignore the insults like most celebs, instead she posted a rant on her Instagram account putting all her haters in their place.
"I’m not a stylist! I don’t know what to wear everyday so I look ‘appropriate’ or ‘fashionable.’ Also, screw having to always look appropriate or fashion. For what? Society? Who gets to decide what is appropriate or fashionable????? I wear what I like and no one should fault me for that. I don’t want people to constantly see me in the news for going to dinner, or grocery shopping, or anything.”
While the paparazzi can be annoying when it comes to commenting on women's appearances, what most people might not have realized is that one of her biggest haters is her own mother.
On a recent episode of Inside Edition, Winter's mother, Crystal Workman, begged for her daughter to reconcile their relationship — and body-shamed her at the same time.
At first, things seem sincere.
“It’s time to fix your relationship with your mom," she says at first. But then she starts commenting on Winter's recent "behavior".
“I feel this is a cry for help from my child.”
Winter hasn't been quiet about her estranged relationship with Workman. In a 2013 interview with Teen Vogue, she revealed that when she was 14, someone working on Modern Family reported her situation to Los Angeles Child Protective Services.
Soon after, Ariel Winter was emancipated from her mother under the allegations of emotional and physical abuse. Her sister was appointed as her legal guardian.
According to Winter, her mother often insulted her weight and deprived her of food. She described Workman as a "stage mom and worse" who physically abused her and subjected her to extreme sexualization when she was a child.
“People thought I was 24 when I was 12,” she said.
Workman denies the allegations that she slapped and hit her daughter and said she hopes to reconcile with her in the future.
Winter hasn't spoken to her mom in years, and Workman says financial problems have forced her to sell her home in L.A. that the teen grew up in. She said she had to move into a storage facility.
But none of that is Winter's problem — especially since she's the victim of abuse.
Board Certified Clinical Psychologist Sonja Raciti Psy.D said that though the physical evidence of child abuse may be over when the victim becomes an adult, the effects of it are long-term.
"Emotional and psychological abuse affects your self-esteem and your ability to attach with others," Raciti said. "You hear on repeat all of those degrading and shameful things that your abuser has said in your head and a part of you believes them to be true because you heard them so often."
"Your present life and success does not matter because emotionally you are still that small helpless child who is being abused by the person who is supposed to love you. Until you are able to process the loss of innocence and the abuse you went through, attaching to others is frightening."
So no, it's not okay for Workman to call out her daughter so publicly. Doing so is continuing the abuse Winter has tried to run from for years.
But Ariel Winter is a strong girl. After the interview aired, she tweeted the following:
"Very sad when someone chooses a public forum to reach out to someone. Also sad when that reach out comes in the form of criticizing."
Well said Ariel. Well said.
Emily Blackwood is an editor at YourTango who covers pop culture, true crime, dating, relationships and everything in between. Every Wednesday at 10:20 p.m. you can ask her any and all questions about self-love, dating, and relationships LIVE on YourTango’s Facebook page. You can follow her on Instagram (@blackw00d) and Twitter (@emztweetz).