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heyfatchick: pluseyes: tangledupinlace: herhighness: If someone is not fat, why do they care...

heyfatchick:

pluseyes:

tangledupinlace:

herhighness:

If someone is not fat, why do they care about fat acceptance?  I am not being dumb on purpose, I just don’t get it?  I myself am plenty fat and mostly okay with it, but if I woke up Frances’s size I’d be pretty fucking happy, I gotta say!

I mean…if this is the body that people see as representing Fat Acceptance then people will probably be like “Hell yeah!  This kind of fat is acceptable!” because…she’s not fat. I’m not explaining myself very well, I know.  It’s early?  Or something.

pluseyes:

Frances from Corpulent in the Australian press!

There are so many things wrong with what you said, but I understand your confusion…especially if you’re rather new to the movement. 

The idea that someone who’s so dedicated to bringing fat people social justice is being shunned for not being fat enough for you is a totally weird idea to me and more importantly for you to judge her body that way means you don’t really understand what FA is all about.  All bodies are good bodies, as they are in this very moment. 

Not that it matters, but a lot of the article is about Jackie from Fatuosity who is more typically “fat-looking” than Frances. Regarding your first question - maybe because she’s smart enough to have seen that oppression of one kind of body has negative effects on everyone (not least, I’m sure, because it might affect someone she cares about). Whatever her reasons, it is FANTASTIC to have slimmer fat activists as well as bigger ones, as it helps to refute the misconceptions that:

  • we are PROMOTING being fat over other body shapes
  • we are just “making excuses”, and
  • we are somehow exclusive or resentful towards thin people

Diversity is key, man.

I can understand how you might think they put Frances on the main picture because she’s a more “acceptable” size. And that’s probably true. (Though it could equally because her photo was so energetic, happy and just plain luminous!) The article has a lot of shortcomings aside from that, like the “last socially acceptable prejudice” thing, and the confused tagline that “bigger is better” - but as I always find myself saying, at least it’s a start.

I’M SORRY, WHAT? WHAT THE WHAT?! Alright, I know herhighness and pluseyes have come to some sort of resolution on this, but as I am the person in question I feel the need to explain some shit.

Hi there! I’m Frances from Corpulent. I’ve heard “you’re/she’s not fat” quite a few times since being involved in fat acceptance and it doesn’t get any less stupid the more I hear it. Telling me (and indeed, anyone smaller than you) that I’m not fat at best ignores and at worst flippantly disregards all of the life experiences that have led me to identify as fat.

So first things first: I am fat. According to my measurements, I am plus sized. I weigh 95kg/210 pounds (give or take a few). According to my height and weight, I am obese. When people talk about the obesity epidemic, they are talking about people like me. I have had family members tell me, repeatedly and sometimes in tears, that they are worried about my health because of my size. If you have a differing set of eligibility criteria for ‘fat’, please tell me what it is and explain why yours isn’t bullshit.

I recognise that I am not very fat. I’m very, very conscious that I have a measure of thin privilege. But that doesn’t negate the fact that, yes, I actually am fat. As Kate Harding said in a really awesome article on Salon, “It’s … OK to point out that I’m not that fat, so I’ve never personally been the victim of the worst fat hatred our culture has to offer — that’s the plain truth. But telling me I’m not fat is a goddamned lie.”

Secondly, and far more importantly: Even if I somehow, magically, became skinny overnight I would still be involved in fat acceptance. Why? For the same reason I support gay rights, despite being in a heterosexual relationship. For the same reason I advocate for asylum seekers, despite being an Australian citizen. For the same reason I work in domestic violence policy, despite having never been in an abusive relationship. Because I recognise the inherent value of people. Because it’s the fucking decent thing to do.

Repeat after me: Fat acceptance is for everyone.


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