Fat Acceptance


© Peggy Hoehne

Ahh, the holidays are coming. Thanksgiving dinner; turkey, dressing, pumpkin pie. Then for the next month it will be dinners, parties, and snacks. Christmas cookies, eggnog, fudge, candies and much, much more.

Are you prepared to go out there and eat what you want and not worry if the next person is thinking, "Well no wonder they're fat, look at what they're eating." Can you take that Christmas cookie someone brought to work for break without worrying either about whether you should have it or whether everyone else thinks you should have it.

The question comes down to whether you are going to pretend to be on a diet and not eat all of the goodies in front of people or are you going to be the first to accept you the way you are.

There are a number of groups dedicated to fat acceptance. From the people in these groups you can learn to accept yourself as you are. And you know, once you start accepting yourself, you may be surprised how many others will accept you as well.

What is "fat acceptance" all about? The fat acceptance movement seeks to dispel myths and promote facts about fatness, and fights unfair discrimination on the basis of size or weight.

Why am I using the word "fat"? Wouldn't it be more politically correct to say large people or big folks? Perhaps it would, but fat is a short simple word we all understand. In his book Brain Droppings, George Carlin has a great explanation of why he prefers to use the word "fat".

"Let's get to some of these other non-victims. You probably noticed, elsewhere I used the word fat. I used that word because that's what fat people are. They're fat. They're not large; they're not stout, chunky, hefty, or plump. And they're not big-boned. Dinosaurs are big-boned. These people are not necessarily obese, either. Obese is a medical term. And they're not overweight. Overweight implies there is some correct weight. There is no correct weight. Heavy is also a misleading term. An aircraft carrier is heavy; it's not fat. Only people are fat, and that's what fat people are. They're fat. I offer no apologies for this. It is not intended as a criticism or insult. It is simply descriptive language. I don't like euphemisms. Euphemisms are a form of lying. Fat people are not gravitationally disadvantaged. They're fat. I prefer seeing things the way they are, not the way some people wish they were..."

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Here's the follow-up discussion on this article: View all related messages

2.   Nov 19, 2004 9:35 AM
In response to Very well-done article, Peggy posted by jerrib:

Thanks for the comments, Jerri. My wish for everyone is to just enj ...


-- posted by phoehne


1.   Nov 18, 2004 6:55 PM
Too bad the holidays are so hard on everyone when it comes to food.

-- posted by jerrib





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