We do not revel in fat. We do not choose the physical difficulty, social ostracism, and too-small world as ends in themselves.
We do not revel in fat. We are not gleeful when the numbers on the scale get bigger. We do not hide skinny photos in shame, evidence of an awkward era of less-than-perfection.
We do not revel in fat. We do not make a careful study of ‘healthy’ foods so that we may eschew them, turning up our noses like children at the idea of greens as we reach for boxes of processed sugar. We do not avoid healthful avenues or parties hosted by vegan friends.
We do not revel in fat. We are not disgusted when thinner people walk past. We would not deny a thinner person—thinner than fat us—his or her chance to grace the pages of a magazine or star in a film. We do not curse out our children if they aren’t fat like we are. We don’t cry if they refuse to gain weight Thanksgiving after Thanksgiving, or think that they’re less worthwhile for their non-fatness.
We do not revel in fat. We are not unmindful of our own mortality, sickness, age. We are not blind to the Reaper, nor do we wish to invite him sooner. We do not choose to exchange momentary pleasure for future consequences. We are not numb to struggle, sickness, or pain.
We do not revel in fat. We are not enamoured with sugar, lard, sloth.
We do not revel in fat. We are not addicted.
We do not revel in fat. We are not diseased.
We do not revel in fat. We are not morally bankrupt.
* This is a piece intended to run counter to the myth promulgated by anti-FA that Fat Acceptance means Fat Revelry. It is intended to expose the myth of Fat Acceptance as necessarily pro-fat, instead of what it really is—pro-human.
fatwaitress
/ January 9, 2011Amazing post! After finding a post that attacked my blog this week I think that people seriously need to remember what we are about. I need to remember this.
bigliberty
/ January 9, 2011Thanks! I think the crux of the anti-FA argument is to dehumanize us — claiming that we somehow ‘choose’ our fat like someone can pick a shirt off a rack.
I don’t consider my fat a choice, ultimately, because I don’t consider life-long dieting or surgery reasonable options. Lots of people would prefer to restrict and make exercise a part-time job — fine with me. But I still don’t consider it reasonable, in general. I consider it a sentence some have imposed on themselves out of fear, ignorance, and shame.
‘Choosing’ my fat, for me, was the same as choosing life. There was no choice.
violetyoshi
/ January 10, 2011This is fantastic! Not only does it make the point that we are not reveling in our fatness, like anti-fa people say we do. It points out how thin people are reveling in their thinness as a contrast. All in all it shows we’re morally superior to those anti-fa people.
notblueatall
/ January 10, 2011Oh I love this!I love how it points to fat-hate in a clever way. Thanks for this. And the smile it gave me.
bigliberty
/ January 10, 2011Cheers, thanks!
magickalrealism
/ January 11, 2011Well said, especially with the absurd attitudes that we are choosing to make our own lives more difficult.
sleepydumpling
/ January 25, 2011Amazing. Just amazing.