“You’re really skinny so go eat a burger” is not discrimination “You’re really fat so I’m not going to treat you like a person” is
I think people confuse “disrespect” with “discrimination”
Agree!!!!
But “you’re really skinny you’re not a real woman, because real women have curves” isn’t discrimination……..?
It’s rude and it’s incorrect but it doesn’t do anything other than hurt your feelings It’s not a widespread societal belief that thin bodies are gross and unhealthy, there isn’t an entire industry making multi million dollars every year dedicated to making thin ppl not thin, thin ppl don’t have to listen to how unhealthy they are and how terrible it is to live in their body all the time and how amazing formerly thin but no longer thin ppl feel now that they’ve changed their body, tv and magazines and music and media of all kinda doesn’t demonize your figure and make fun of you constantly for existing, and I could continue but this is a small list of why thin ppl are not oppressed and commonly do not experience social consequences for having a thin body.
i literally tense up when thin strangers talk to me because you folks just LOVE to bring up fat people’s weight, health, exercise, etc at the drop of a hat
I’ve literally had a thin person stop me, mid conversation with another fat person, to ask if i exercised, and then made a gesture with her hands to show that she saw how huge i was
i have NEVER in my ENTIRE LIFE seen someone my size on tv who wasn’t being put through weightloss routines, but i can’t scroll for 10 seconds online, or watch a single show, or open a single magazine without 400 thin people bombarding my view
people are literally being misdiagnosed, ignored, and nearly dying because of doctors who think every problem we have is cured with weightloss
i could go on and on, including verbal and physical abuse because of my fatness, but let’s just cut to the point
“go eat a sandwich” hurts feelings
“you’re going to die, fatass! HAHAHA” has a body count
Yes. Also thin ppl make more $$$ than fat ppl for the same jobs Thin ppl are more likely to get those jobs in the first place Thin ppl can do things like donate their eggs or be surrogates whereas most organizations will not take fat ppl for these things Thin ppl have entire malls full of clothing store options whereas fat ppl get maybe 3 stores in this mall if they’re lucky Thin ppl can spend substantially less on clothing than fat ppl because we don’t have the same amount of cheap options Etc.
I think the really important distinction here is that people commenting rudely on thin women’s bodies is an expression of sexism, it’s a product of the society we live in treating women’s bodies as possessions, as something she should be criticized and judged. As something everyone else has a right to an opinion on.
And that can be very hurtful, it’s so, so harmful for young girls to grow up seeing their bodies under such constant scrutiny, it is so, so harmful for young girls to grow up feeling that their body isn’t their own. Which is what happens when you grow up having people use your body against you.
But the shit that fat people get, which is outlined above much more eloquently than I could here, is a completely different form of oppression in it’s own right and comparing that too telling someone to “go eat a burger” is shitty and harmful and missing the point.
TlDr; using thin women’s bodies against them is misogynistic and contributes to the generally awful way society talks about women’s bodies but that is very different to the way fat people are treated, because the stigma against fat people, as outlined on this post comes from its own completely separate form of oppression and thus the two are not comparable because they are different issues.
^^^^^^^^
also keep in mind that fat women ALSO get the shitty and harmful sexism/body policing on TOP of fat discrimination.
Reblogging for the excellent commentary
