I'm going to post a couple links to sources for the next couple days to hopefully start a conversation in this space! These will fall in the area of Fat Studies and there's some norms you should be aware of:

  • "fat" is taken as a neutral descriptor, think of it as reclaiming the word.
  • "obese" arbitrarily medicalises fatness and Others fat people

I'm a cis man and I have (had) body image issues (in the past)

https://humanparts.medium.com/my-journey-toward-radical-body-positivity-3412796df8ff

I'm queer and fat

https://www.dropbox.com/s/yeefpijtl4s7orv/Flaunting%20Fat%20%E2%80%93%C2%A0Sex%20with%20the%20Lights%20On.pdf?dl=0

I'm queer and not fat

https://www.bitchmedia.org/post/fat-liberation-is-totally-queer

The others don't apply to me and/or I only have the energy/time to read one source

https://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/everything-you-know-about-obesity-is-wrong/

:sankara-salute:

👉 Part 2 is up

👉 Part 3 is up

  • NotAnOp [comrade/them]
    ·
    4 years ago

    I was never morbid, but I was obese for almost 20 years. I was shamed, it made me hate myself more which led to stress eating.

    It wasn't until I lost my health insurance that I became hyper health focused to help prevent medical bankruptcy, even if it was only marginally improved. Gave up meat and dairy, work out regularly, and follow nutritional guidelines. The US healthcare system scares the shit out of me and I know it's only delaying the inevitable but its worth it to me. Definitely helped my sex life too, until last year...but fear and pleasure will only take you so far down the road.

    One day I looked into the mirror and saw fat, I gave my torso a squeeze and two things came into my mind that cemented my resolve: My consumption habits deprived food from the hungry while destroying myself and I need to plan and commit to my own physical/mental transformation (like going from an agricultural to industrial civilization) if I was ever going to commit to advocating societal change of AmeriKKKa.

    It worked for me, not because of the Darwinist healthcare system or fat shaming, but because I finally learned to attach positive health habits to my moral desires.