Oct

If you’ve read the November 2009 issue of Chatelaine, you know that we’re huge fans of the fat acceptance movement – and more specifically, of Kate Harding, a Chicago-based blogger and fat acceptance activist.

Fat acceptance, in part, involves removing the stigma we’ve attached to the word “fat;” reclaiming the word for what it actually is – a descriptor, not a judgement. Great idea, but it still takes some getting used to. Case in point, I just got off the phone with Michelle Allison, a clever, lively, and from the sounds of  it, super-fun Canadian nutrition student who also has her own blog, The Fat Nutritionist.  When I emailed Michelle to set up the interview, I received an email back with the subject line “Dear Fat Nutritionist.” For a moment, my heart skipped a beat – had I actually addressed my email that way? It turns out I didn’t, the subject line is Michelle’s standard reply to emails she receives on her blog. But even if I had, she wouldn’t have cared, because Michelle – like all other fat acceptance crusaders – is very frank about the fact that she is indeed fat. But she’s also very clear about what that does, and does not, mean. 

You’ll be able to read more about Michelle in the January 2010 issue of Chatelaine, but for now, I’ll leave you with this quote from today’s interview. It’s a great one:

“Fat is a loaded term – it’s way more than a descriptive adjective. It’s a code for dirty; ugly; smelly; lazy; out of control; it has all of these moral implications. By insisting on the word ‘fat,’ we’re trying to strip it of those moral associations. We want people to realize that when there is news in the media about the obesity epidemic and they’re showing those photos of people with their heads cut off, completely dehumanized, they are actually talking about real people. Your family members. Your girlfriends. Your boyfriend. Whomever. We’re trying to normalize the word by emphasizing that it applies to real human beings. We’re not some sort of species that needs to be eradicated from the face of the planet.”

Body Talk