Viral Petition Body Shames YouTube Star Over Possible Eating Disorder

A viral petition has put a YouTube star at the forefront of a debate around women’s body image online, Mashable reports.

A petition signed by 18,000 people — which has since been removed — called on YouTube to temporarily ban Eugenia Cooney from the media platform, claiming that she “has a serious medical condition and needs to seek help.”

Cooney has almost 900,000 subscribers and is well-known on the platform for vlogs on beauty products and style. Critics are now saying that her thin frame sends a bad message to younger viewers, arguing that her primarily younger female viewers between ages 12 and 21 have “already battled anorexia and other eating disorders.”

Cooney has responded to the criticism, but hasn’t said whether she is battling a disorder. She also has never plugged any kind of “thinspiration” message on any of her social sites.

In a recent video, she asked fans not to worry.

“Seriously, I’m definitely fine I’m definitely not dead or going to die right now…don’t worry I’m alive, I’m ok,” she said.

While she acknowledges that she’s “fine,” her words don’t inspire a ton of confidence that she’s healthy. But should she be forced to leave?

“I don’t think it’s a good thing to do people. If anything, the whole sitatuion has been kind of upsetting. I’m doing OK, because I’m used to getting hate on the internet,” she said. “Seeing a lot of dislikes, I just really feel like that’s not going to make anyone feel good.”