During the Olympic Games, sports fans and TV viewers around the world were able to see the superhuman feats some athletes can accomplish— and the Paralympics are no exception. The Paralympic Games are a series of sports events just like the Olympics, but instead, involve athletes with a range of disabilities, including paraplegia, ataxia, and limb deficiency. Since the Olympic Games ended several weeks ago, campaigns have been going on to promote the upcoming Paralympics, which begin on Sept. 7. One recent campaign has received particular attention for publishing a questionable issue for their magazine.

Vogue Brazil found themselves the center of controversy when instead of photographing actual Paralympic athletes, they snapped a cover photo for their magazine using two completely able-bodied models who were photoshopped to appear as if they had disabilities. The woman on the cover, Cleo Pires, had her arm edited off, while the man, Paulo Vilhena, had a prosthetic leg photo shopped onto him.

People took to Twitter and other social media platforms to communicate their strong feelings about the representation. The caption of the cover photo, which reads “We are all Paralympians” sparked outrage. To compare able-bodied people with Paralympians is disrespectful to those who live with a disability. They deserve to be represented fairly, especially given the fact that the athletes have worked hard to be where they are now in the Games. A disability is not something that should be taken so lightly that it can be edited on for advertisement or commercial purposes. Instead of using their platform to showcase teams of elite athletes, the Brazilian edition of Vogue creates the message that the real Paralympic Games and athletes themselves are not interesting enough to promote.

On the other hand, some point out that the Paralympic athletes that the models were representing did not seem to have any issues being represented by able-bodied models; both Renato Leite and Bruna Alexandre were on set as the photo-shoot was taking place, and were even photographed with Pires and Vilhena during the session. However, what Vogue Brazil did cannot be justified just because the two athletes did not protest the decision.

People with disabilities already have such little representation in the media as it is. When it comes to the larger scale, like the Paralympics, the athletes should be given more acknowledgment and more respect because of how much they have accomplished, and for being an inspiration for so many of those sitting at home and watching.