Why are women sharing their 'old and ugly' photos for model Paulina Porizkova?

Supermodel Paulina Porizkova has had quite the few days on social media. First, she received an ageist comment criticizing her bikini selfie. Next, she started an entire body positivity movement.

Just days after someone called her “old and ugly” on social media, the Czech supermodel has turned one negative troll’s comment into a positive movement allowing women (and some men) of all ages to embrace their looks.

The “old and ugly” trend all started when Paulina posted a selfie in a bikini.

Looking healthy and relaxed, Paulina showed that supermodel prowess knows no age limits.

Paulina Porizkova was, after all, the first Central European woman to appear on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in 1984, aged 18.

However, one comment stood out for Paulina.

Someone wrote under her photo, “You must be in so much pain to keep posting bikini pictures at your age. I’ve always thought that getting old and ugly is hardest on the pretty people.”

The insulting comment added, “The fall from grace is so much farther when you were beautiful… I pray you can come to terms with your mortality. We all get old and ugly.”

Paulina at first reposted the comment on her own profile, writing “This is the ageist shaming that sets my teeth on edge. Older men are distinguished, older women are ugly.”

She concluded her post with a powerful message, writing “There is no such thing as ugly and old. Only shortsighted and ignorant.”

Well, if that wasn’t enough of a message to any age-shamers, many people have rallied behind Paulina to share their own “old and ugly” photos, using the hashtag #oldandugly.

Plenty of fans have shared selfies in support with one exclaiming, "Do it anyway! Every body is valid. Every body is a bikini body."

Paulina has written of the social media trend, "At first beautiful mature women started to post their own 'ugly and suffering' bikini photos.”

"And then, close-up selfies of their beautiful faces. And men got in there too, posting themselves at their 'old and ugly' age, hiking, working out, climbing mountains, hanging with their grandkids and their spouses — just having the times of their lives. ... I ended up in tears at well past midnight, still scrolling and commenting on this wave of affirmations of one another.”

“For one night, the world seemed a beautiful place."