On Fat Shaming
At the risk of appearing trollish, I posted a version of the following on someone else’s Facebook timeline because I believe it’s important to educate others about the detrimental effects of fat shaming, even of public figures we dislike. I admit: I have been guilty of this, especially when it comes to our former president (2017-2021). However, upon reflection, I realize I don’t need to resort to slinging barbs at someone’s physical condition -- better to call out what they do and what they say. After all, we don’t shame Texas Governor Greg Abbott for being in a wheelchair -- we stick to issues at hand, even in our parodies. We intuitively understand it would just be a cheap shot to “wheelchair shame” someone. Fat shaming is never a good look. There’s a lot to criticize about a certain political figure (to remain unnamed here) without resorting to her physical looks (it’s true that, in our culture, fat women seem to take the brunt of fat shaming). Obesity is not a choice.