I have been following (and been commenting on) the recent discussions in the Fatosphere about “good fatties” and “bad fatties”. Surprisingly and sadly, it has been a rather divisive and explosive topic with misunderstandings abounding on all “sides”.
I’m not sure why this state of affairs should be, really, since we are all on the same team regardless of our views on this particular matter. Surely constructive discussion about what Fat Activism’s goals are and how best to achieve them is to be encouraged?
Anyway, Life’s been very full on recently, keeping me very busy and without the energy to compose a decent blog post about this or anything else. But when I have more time I intend to post more about this in future.
A-freaking-men! Can’t we all just get along and agree the big question is working to end sizist prejudice?
Movements for social justice always argue over which one method will acheive their goals, but the fact is each movement needs to work from multiple angles. Each movement needs both those being in-your-face and those trying to slowly bring people around to the idea that maybe those ‘others’ aren’t nearly as scary as they’ve been led to believe.
I firmly believe that helping prove that fat is not an automatic death sentence is important. Too many people have swallowed the concept that any hint of fat is going to kill us all, and most people won’t relax until they understand that it’s possible to be both fat and healthy. I also firmly believe that it’s important to teach people that prejudice is prejudice and prejudice against a group is ALWAYS wrong. There is no shame or wrong in being unhealthy. How well we care for the bodies we have is an individual choice and a glance at that body cannot tell anyone how we choose on that issue. There are health issues that are completely beyond our control. There are people who beat the odds with every risky behavior. This is not a moral question, so it does not have a moral answer.
The truth is, the more fronts on which we fight fat prejudice, the more people we are going to bring along with us, and the more progress we will make.
So let’s stop fighting each other and join forces against the true enemy: The Judean People’s Front!…er…the people who are actually telling us to be ashamed of our bodies, no matter how we feed them, how we move them, or what health issues we face.
Wait, aren’t we the People’s Front of Judea?
Splinter!
(LOL. I’ve been wanting to shout that since this whole debate started.).