A group of protesters stripped down to their bras and underwear on Saturday outside a Victoria’s Secret store in San Francisco, California, to protest media representations of ‘perfect’ bodies.

The members of About-Face, an organization promoting positive body images, wanted to send the message that women don’t need to look like super-toned and ultra-thin Victoria’s Secret models in order to be attractive.

Protesters proudly took to Facebook and Twitter to share photos of themselves, half-clothed and carrying motivational signs that said: ‘I pledge to love my body’.

Taking a stand: Members of About-Face, an organization promoting self esteem and positive body image, protested outside Victoria’s Secret in San Francisco on Saturday

Beauty comes in all sizes: The group, which included one half-dressed male (right), aimed to demonstrate that you don’t have to look like a size zero Victoria’s Secret model in order to be attractive and happy

The demonstration, which was organized mostly via Facebook, was called Operation Real Bodies Real Love: About-Face Action of Body Acceptance and Self-Love.

Jennifer Berger, executive director of the organization, told ABC7 that their message was: ‘Not everybody needs to be like that in order to be attractive, in order to be awesome in general.’

The group gathered to take a stand against the size-zero ideal. ‘We really wanted to speak out against that whole piece of it,’ she said.

Protestors included at least one male participant, who stood outside the store wearing just his boxers and carried a list of ‘tips for body love’, like ‘Tell yourself how great you are in the mirror’.

The group asked passers-by to sign a ‘body pledge’, which encouraged them to accept their bodies as they are.

They also enlisted people to add to and sign a petition against clothing brands like Victoria’s Secret, who promote the unrealistic media portrayal of the ‘perfect’ body,

The San Francisco-based organization, which was founded in 1995, also promoted the event via its website. ‘We want to represent the public and fight for more accurate representations of bodies in the media,’ said a release.

 The unattainable ‘perfect’ body: According to About-Face, Victoria’s Secret is guilty of promoting an unrealistic representation of the ideal body, and negatively affecting women’s self esteem

Speaking out: ‘Not everybody needs to be like that in order to be attractive, in order to be awesome in general,’ said Jennifer Berger, executive director of the organization

‘About-Face equips women and girls with tools to understand and resist harmful media messages that affect self-esteem and body image,’ says the website.

Reasons include the fact that ‘teenage girls who read articles about dieting are five times more likely to take extreme weight-loss measures five years later than girls who do not read such articles.’

Read more: Daily Mail