I'm a woman of few words, but many interesting ideas. My Tumblr is mostly dedicated to body positivity, but my art as well. Sometimes, the two meet.http://pudgyfingers.blogspot.com
http://www.jennhayesdotcom.blogspot.com
-Jenn Hayes
Alicia Caudle - breathe
Love and Ball-Terminals hand drawn typographic poster by Bjørn Ortmann from Daddy Studio
Absolutely LOVE this poster. Wish I could own a print, but after emailing Daddy, they said that there are not currently selling prints :(
Hand Embroidered Typographic Project
THISDress
1900-1901
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Black and Grey Tattoos by Eric Marcinizyn
Like it or not, fat people are at war. I’m not hyperbolizing or dramatizing. If you don’t believe me, Google “War on obesity”. Tonight HBO premiered its new documentary series “The Weight of a Nation”. On the premiere page it says “Obesity in America has reached a catastrophic level. Almost every aspect of our lives is threatened. The first step toward ending the damage is learning how to fight back.”
I spend a lot of my time politely asking people to please stop oppressing me. I don’t apologize for that, nor do I begrudge it – it’s proven to be a very effective way to create change and I think that people deserve to be given the benefit of the doubt and the support they need to shift their thinking, and it’s a reasonably pleasant form of activism. I will continue to do it.
But I also have to acknowledge that there is a war being waged against me because of how I look, by people who have been given every opportunity to know better. In concert with HBO’s documentary, I received a Tweet letting me know that Kaiser Permanente is launching the “most aggressive anti-obesity campaign in history.”
They know that there are healthy fat people and unhealthy thin people. They know that not a shred of research shows that any method of weight loss works in the long term. They know that research shows us that we could vastly increase health by providing access to healthy foods, safe movement options, and affordable/free evidence based health care. Nobody is obligated to be healthy or thin; however, I wonder how many people would make different choices if they knew they just need 30 minutes of moderate movement 5 days a week? If they knew that people who choose simple healthy habits have very similar health outcomes regardless of weight. What would people choose if they knew they could abandon the goal of weight loss completely and they could still pursue health. America could be a successful role model for giving people access to health, but instead they are choosing to be a failed role model for thinness - waging war on people based on their appearance for tremendous profit and actively blaming the casualties of the war for the war’s massive failures.
Let’s be clear - they are pathologizing a body size. It doesn’t matter if they say that we need to seek solutions environmentally instead of at the individual level, or if they say that we should have “compassion” for fat people – they are still telling people that is is not ok to exist in fat bodies and that they should see fat bodies as a threat to America. There are tons of thin people who eat unhealthy foods and are sedentary (which is completely their right), but as far as the government is concerned, as long as you are thin you’re part of the “solution,” feel free to do whatever you want. They want people to look at me (and you, if you’re fat) and think “She is part of a catastrophe. She is threatening almost every aspect of our lives. The first step toward ending the damage is learning how to fight back against her.”
I say that if they want a war, I will damn well give them one.
—They Want A War, Let’s Give Them One - By Ragen Chastain (via redefiningbodyimage)
Because you know, all of our healthcare costs are TOTALLY wrapped up in the OBESITY EPIDEMIC! /sarcasm.
(via redefiningbodyimage)
Go ahead and keep telling me my body is wrong, because I know the fucking truth.
I am fat.
And I am healthy.
So, fuck you.
—-
(This message brought to you by the frustratingly hateful, fear-mongering bullshit stemming…
inspirationsinillustrations.com
Caitlin Hackett
“Fat” is an adjective - not an insult.
So. I designed and impulsively posted this message last night within a 2 hour span, then promptly fell into a fabulous fatty slumber.
I had no idea upon waking this morning that it would have spawned nearly 1,000 notes overnight, but I anticipated a clear divide between those who see the truth in the message and those who reblog it simply to refute it - or to give me what they probably felt was a welcome lesson on the finer points of grammar.
As with my past viral messaging experiments, I made a bold statement and left the message up to the viewer to project their own perspective and experiences onto.
But at the same time, the design is evocative of what I believe. It is my personal perspective. It is my experience.
The image I used is a photo of my own body. My fat belly. My stretch marks. Me.
Yes, I am aware is is not SIMPLY an adjective.
Yes, I am aware that the word “fat” is multidimensional.
Let’s take a closer look at the dictionary definition of the word, to reiterate the fact that I am not fucking illiterate.
Bottom line - Fat is many things.
I choose to use it as a word to define and describe my body in a positive way.
I aim to strip the negative connotations that continually weigh the word down as a descriptor.
That was my purpose behind this message.
If you don’t understand this purpose, then consider it.
If you don’t agree with this purpose, then this message is clearly not for you.
If you agree with this purpose, then please spread it - and explain why you agree.
——
I’d like to address some initial responses I’ve found in the notes that I find either intriguing or amusing. Reading into the feedback that stems from putting my messages out there like this is always such a learning experience.
THIS IS THE MOST STUPID THING I’VE EVER READ.
“Adjecive” and “insult” are not mutually exclusive, god damn it.
In fact, insults are usually adjectives. Occasionally a noun. But mostly adjectives.
Learn grammar. It helps.
Thank you for the grammar lesson and for missing the point entirely.
What? NO!
Fat is a noun. It is a substance. It is something you HAVE, not something you ARE.
It does not define you.It is something that defines you if you choose to use it that way - and I do. Not as an insult, but as a positive descriptor. I have an abundance of fat on my body. I am fat. This word empowers me. When it is used as an insult against me, it no longer has any effect on me. That is the power we have over owning words, our bodies, and ourselves.
SERIOUSLY!!!! THIS!!! SO MUCH!!!
I hate it when I call myself fat and people are like “don’t be so hard on yourself”. I’M SERIOUSLY NOT! I’M FAT! I DON’T GIVE A FUCK! Guess why? BECAUSE I KNOW I’M FUCKING BEAUTIFUL!!! I JUST WEIGH MORE THAN THE AVERAGE PERSON OF MY HEIGHT, AND I’D RATHER SAY THE WORD ‘FAT’ THAN THAT WHOLE SENTENCE. SO FUCK YOU.
Thank you for sharing an experience that aligns with my intent.
the why do i feel akward and search for another word everytime i think about it?
Because the word carries with it a lot of negative baggage. It makes people feel uncomfortable. It’s time to consider the fact that the negative baggage can be removed, the more we use the word within a positive context.
I would even go so far as to say it is a noun, not an adjective :)
You HAVE fat, YOU are not fat.
Yes, a body contains fat. When a body contains a certain amount of fat, a person may consider defining themselves as fat. We have the power to describe and define ourselves.
This word lose its “power” when we realize that our weight can’t define us…
In my experience, the moment I stopped letting my weight define me in a NEGATIVE way was the moment I decided to use the word “fat” to define my weight and my body in a POSITIVE way. My weight does not define me, my health, or my worth - but it is a part of my identity, an external aspect of my character, and I find nothing wrong with using it in that way.
——
Sometimes I think perhaps I should include a description of my intent along with these things - but then, where is the fun in that? :3
Thank you, all.
Haley
Amedeo Modigliani, Woman with Blue Eyes, 1918, oils, 81 x 54 cm
Modigliani. Before I was educated (or mildly educated) in art history, I drew in a fashion much like his. And when I learned about him, it was like worlds opened up for me.
Caitlin Hackett - the front half of the serious beak album cover post water color, 12” by 12”, water color, colored pencil and ballpoint pen on paper.
