Madonna Sees Sexism as Instagram Removes Photos

Madonna is ticked at Instagram after the platform removed photos in which she bared a nipple. The 63-year-old called out the company as she reposted the images with a tactfully placed heart emoji, reports Cosmopolitan. “It is still astounding to me that we live in a culture that allows every inch of a woman’s body to be shown except a nipple,” she wrote. “Giving thanks that I have managed to maintain my sanity through four decades of censorship…… sexism……ageism and misogyny." An Instagram spokesperson tells the Wall Street Journal that Madonna violated its policy on nudity and gets no special treatment as a celeb.

"While we understand not everyone will always agree with where we draw the line, our rules are designed to help keep people of all ages safe on our apps, while giving space for as much expression as possible," says the spokesperson. The company has budged on the issue in recent years, allowing images of breastfeeding or in works of art, for example. As Yahoo notes, Madonna's photos were a "throwback" of sorts to her 1992 book Sex. Madonna is not the first to view the banning of the female nipple—but not the male's—as sexist, and an earlier campaign took a creative approach to the issue.