Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman posed nude for Sports Illustrated once again. The 23-year-old participated in the “In Her Own Words” campaign, as it is being called by the magazine. In the picture, you can see words and phrases painted across Raisman’s body such as “Women do not have to be modest to be respected” and “Fierce.”

In an interview with the magazine, Raisman explained her choice of words like this:

“I would like to remind everyone that being a survivor is nothing to be ashamed of, and going through a hard time does not define you. I hope that we can one day get to a point where everyone realizes that women do not have to be modest to be respected. We are free to draw confidence and happiness in our own way, and it is never for someone else to choose for us or to even judge us for that matter. For me, ‘In Her Own Words’ serves as a reminder that we are all humans, we are all battling something, and it is OK to not be OK. We are not alone and we need each other.”

Raisman recently testified against Larry Nassar, the former US Olympic doctor who was convicted of sexually molesting hundreds of underage girls. She has since been outspoken regarding a need for further investigation, alleging that a culture of protecting perpetrators is what allowed Nassar to commit his crimes for so long.

Women do not have to be modest to be respected— Live for you! Everyone should feel comfortable expressing themselves however makes them happy. Women can be intelligent, fierce, sexy, powerful, strong, advocate for change while wearing what makes them feel best. The time where women are taught to be ashamed of their bodies is OVER. The female body is beautiful and we should all be proud of who we are, inside and out. Thank you so much @si_swimsuit @mj_day @darciebaum @ja_neyney @taylorbphoto & the rest of the team.

A post shared by Alexandra Raisman (@alyraisman) on Feb 13, 2018 at 9:18am PST

Becky Scott is the editor of The Schmooze. Follow her on Twitter, @arr_scott

It’s our birthday and we’re still celebrating!

We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news.

This week we celebrate 129 years of the Forward. We’re proud of our origins as a Yiddish print publication serving Jewish immigrants. And we’re just as proud of what we’ve become today: A trusted source of Jewish news and opinion, available digitally to anyone in the world without paywalls or subscriptions. 

We’ve helped five generations of American Jews make sense of the news and the world around them — and we aren’t slowing down any time soon.

As a nonprofit newsroom, reader donations make it possible for us to do this work. Support independent, agenda-free Jewish journalism and our board will match your gift in honor of our birthday! 

Don't just read the Forward - invest in it. Make a gift and our board will match it.

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$129 $180 $360 OTHER AMOUNT