Star Wars: The Mandalorian Star Gina Carano Lashes Out At Instagram For Censoring Nude Photo

Star Wars: The Mandalorian star Gina Carano is lashing out at Instagram for censoring a nude photo of her, which the fighter-turned-actress posted earlier this week. The photo showed a nude Carano standing in front of a well-lit window in sillohuette, head arms behind her head, which is thrown back in a pose of freedom and celebration. That’s not speculation, either: Carano’s nude photo was posted with a Prince quote as the caption: “I find freedom sexy. I find freedom so sexy I can’t even explain it to you… You wake up every day and feel like you can do anything.”

After Instagram censored the photo, Gina Carano turned her social media activities to Twitter, where she posted a scathing clapback at Instagram’s censorship policies, stating: “So that’s what it’s like to be censored for no reason. Pic was taken down by Instagram. There’s much more important news today but that was some classic bullshit. The whole post was about freedom of expression. Violating zero rules. Ironic. Feels like I graduated. 👍 Thanks Karen”

The unfavorable reaction to Carano’s nude photo post didn’t just come from Instagram: other celebrities also had something to say about the matter. UFC fighter Renzo Gracie went so far as to post a message to Carano, “instructing” her to put some clothes on – purely out of love, of course (of course…):

“Put some clothes on… you don’t need it.. you are among the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen..” he wrote. That makes you unique.. there’s no need for sex pics… you are the most beautiful woman that walk around. Simple as that.”

Leaving that questionable point of view aside… Instagram has earned a pretty bad stigma among female users, for what they see as unfair rules of censorship on the platform. Everything from “tasteful nudity” to pictures of suggestive garments (nipple outlines) or even breast-feeding mothers have been censored by Instagram, while pictures that are overtly more sexual (explicitly posed crotch and/or butt shots) are left free to run. That controversy led to an update of Instagram’s policies in 2015, allowing for things like breastfeeding. You can read the Instagram content policy, below:

We know that there are times when people might want to share nude images that are artistic or creative in nature, but for a variety of reasons, we don’t allow nudity on Instagram.

“This includes photos, videos, and some digitally-created content that show sexual intercourse, genitals, and close-ups of fully-nude buttocks. It also includes some photos of female nipples, but photos of post-mastectomy scarring and women actively breastfeeding are allowed.”