Fat & Happy?
Fat Acceptance is a social movement to eliminate the social stigma of being overweight. It can be dated back to 1967 when 500 people met in New York's Central Park to protest against the anti-fat bias in society. As with most protest movements, they needed to destroy so set fire to diet books as a sign of their rejection of this particular societal norm concerning beauty. There is always something about the act of burning books that makes me look down upon the fire starters.
Once full female equality was achieved in the 1970s, the feminist movement needed something else to keep them relevant and in the news. Even in the 70s, it was obvious that we were all getting bigger which showed no sign of reversing. So feminists appropriated the fat acceptance movement. In 1979, a new phrase was coined Big Beautiful Woman which captured the hearts of fat women everywhere. It also had the unintended consequence of removing a little bit of personal responsibility from all women.
This movement has been welcomed into the social justice movement as obesity is apparently linked to race, class and sex. The current poster child for the movement is the American singer Lizzo who is adored for weighing 300 pounds. This movement is heavily influenced by Queer Theory – a critical theory that sees all social norms as problematic. A new academic area of research and scholarship has been developed to study and validate this movement - Fat Studies. It sits alongside Black Studies, Gender Studies, and Queer Studies.
In the UK, you are more likely to be obese if you are black so this is evidence of systemic racism. Men may be more likely to be overweight, but women are more likely to be obese which is proof that the patriarchy is oppressing women. Class is just another word for poverty - poorer people, especially their children, have the highest rate of obesity. This is surprising considering they have the least amount of money to spend.
A 2017 government report on health highlighted obesity as a risk factor for developing a whole host of diseases. Including 3 times more likely to develop colon cancer, 2.5 times more likely to develop high blood pressure, and 5 times more likely to develop diabetes.
It is estimated that the NHS spent £6.1 billion on overweight and obesity-related ill-health from 2014 to 2015. This is projected to reach £9.7 billion by 2050, with wider costs to society estimated to reach £50 billion per year.
An all-party UK parliamentary group published a report in 2012 called Reflections on Body Image. It found that 1 in 5 people had perceived they had been victimised because of their weight. They recommended that Parliament investigate "appearance-based discrimination" and place it under the same legal basis as racial discrimination. This would mean changing the Equality Act 2010 which makes it illegal to harass, victimise or discriminate against anyone based on specific characteristics.
Why are we constantly putting 'feelings' over 'logic'? We are taking away people's agency and responsibility for their own lives and choices just so they can feel better about themselves in the short term. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. A fat person may be upset and embarrassed for being obese, but pandering to their feelings does not help them avoid life-threatening illnesses and a life of depression. Fat people know they are fat. Not one of them is happy about this fact, regardless of what they may tell you to mask the pain and embarrassment.
We have all seen fat actresses and celebrities promoting fat acceptance until they personally lose weight and then tell us how amazing they feel and they are so happy. UK Singer Adele. Actresses Rebel Wilson, Gabourey Sidibe, Ricki Lake, Melissa McCarthy. All pretended to be happy and in control when they were fat, but the truth came out after weight loss.
"I can't stop eating. I eat because I'm unhappy, and I'm unhappy because I eat. It's a vicious cycle." - a quote from an unpleasantly named character in the second Austin Powers film.
This is the cycle I see many people trapped in. I have family members in this position. I watch their mental and physical health decline as they dampen down the pain with more eating which increases the problem, so more food is required. Excess weight damages physical health which makes activity difficult so less exercise is taken, which compounds the weight gain and increases depression.
Being conscious of your own weakness while watching it ruin your life must destroy you mentally. The feeling of helplessness, the feeling of disgust at yourself for not being stronger in character. The crumbling of confidence and self-respect - a living hell of your own making.
A beggar sitting on a street corner is saving up for a fix, once they earn enough they can inject and escape this world. This act breaks them a little more – physically and mentally. Over time, they need more drugs to dull the increasing pain from the continuous damage they are inflicting upon themselves. More drugs are needed. You have an unfixable problem when your medicine is also the illness.
But pretending you do not have a problem, and encouraging others to pretend as well does not change reality. It only creates more damage which in turn requires more medicine to treat – or should I say, eat.
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