We Are Fat and We Are Legion

by Benjamin Duffy

  That’s just the way it is. Conventional wisdom recommends weight loss as a remedy for anti-fat discrimination. There’s no doubt that fat people suffer discrimination in housing, employment, promotion, and dating. However, it isn’t our job to conform to an eating disordered society just to be accepted as human beings. We should have our full measure of humanity regardless of our dimensions. I call that justice, and you’ll never catch me compromising on justice. Not now, not ever.

  Americans are fatter today than ever before. It’s not because we’re lazier or we eat more, it’s because affluent societies tend to gain a little bit of weight. And yet we live longer; a lot longer than our grandparents or their grandparents. That’s right, affluent societies experience exactly what fatphobes say is impossible—increased weight and increased longevity.

  So what’s the real reason fat people die younger than thin people? The first is class, which is closely correlated with race. Fat people tend to be poorer and darker than the population at large. Poorer, darker people tend to have minimal access to health care.

  The remaining reasons for shorter lifespans among fat people can all be attributed to the stresses of living in a fatphobic culture. Fat people commit suicide in slow motion through yo-yo dieting, diet drugs, weight loss surgery and general self-loathing. No study on the health risks of “obesity” have ever controlled for these factors. Logic dictates that it’s not the fat that’s killing fat people, it’s fatphobia.

  Don’t buy this line about shunning fat people “for their own good”. Fat people cannot be shamed into being thin, nor should it be tried. Fat people like me have been made social pariahs, passed over for jobs and locked out of the “normal” dating world. It hasn’t made us any thinner, it’s simply made us feel something less than human.

  Chapter Eight:

  An Inch of Ground to Stand On

  The Fat Majority is back in full swing. I swivel in my chair and approach the microphone. It’s Tuesday evening and I’ve been yearning for my soap box since the previous Thursday, the last time I did my show. I’ve got a bone to pick with a very powerful lady who just happens to be married to the most powerful man in the world.

  “In other news, Michelle Obama continues her war on childhood obesity,” I say. “Or as it should be called—her war on America’s fat kids. She’s been quoted as saying that she aims to stomp out ‘this problem’ of childhood obesity within a generation.

  “President Obama has signed an executive order directing the federal government to work with private industry in its fight against childhood obesity. Obesity is a problem as the First Lady has stated, and the government has now declared war on that problem. Goodness, I want to talk some sense into that woman. How’s that war on drugs workin’ out for ya? How about that war on terrorism? When was the last time the government has gone to war with a social phenomenon and come out victorious? Hmm?

  “I think her intentions are good. Mrs. Obama’s probably just a little unaware that fatphobia is just as illogical as any other kind of prejudice. And just as harmful to its victims as well. She’s surrounded with fatphobic propaganda and she buys into it.

  “But please, Michelle—don’t make fat kids your whipping boys and -girls. I voted for your husband. I wanted to see you two in the White House and I was thrilled to witness Barrack’s historic inauguration. I nearly shed a tear or two. I mean, who else was I going to vote for? That guy who never saw a war he didn’t like and his ditzy cheerleader sidekick? Geez, I’ll never forgive McCain for foisting that woman upon us, the beauty queen. Nobody outside of Alaska knew who she was until she got tapped for McCain’s running mate and now she’s on Fox News around the clock!”

  I’m getting wound up again, losing my focus. I’m supposed to be talking about fat issues not Sarah Palin. I’ll have to steer the show back on course. I always get off track whenever that ditzy Republican chick becomes the topic. I hate her.

  “So I guess the point I’m trying to make is that I really, really, want to like this elegant young couple in the White House. But Michelle, you have to leave the fat kids alone. Rather than concentrating on weight, you should be concentrating on health. They’re not the same thing and they don’t go hand-in-hand. Thin is not automatically healthy and fat is not automatically unhealthy.

  “To make matters worse, Michelle has offered up her two daughters as examples. They’re like eleven years old and their mother is embarrassing them in front of the whole country. She’s using Sasha and Malia serve as exhibit A and exhibit B of fat kids who need to lose weight. Sheesh, Mrs. Obama. If you’re trying to give your children an eating disorder, you’re doing a bang-up job. Young teen girls already have problems with poor body image without being used as the picture of America’s so-called epidemic of childhood obesity.

  “The First Lady also mentioned that she put her daughters on a diet because the doctor warned her that Sasha and Malia were outside of the normal range on the BMI scale. You may be asking yourself—BMI, what’s that? Most people believe that BMI stands for Body Mass Index. It’s a common misconception. It actually stands for blatantly meaningless information. The measurement is arrived at by arbitrary means and it tells us next to nothing about health.

  “So Mrs. Obama put her daughters on a diet according to the advice of her doctor. Nearly all scientific research on the subject indicates that girls who diet at such a young age are at a higher risk for eating disorders. Dieting is a ‘gateway drug’, to borrow a little lingo from the ONDCP. Not all diets lead to eating disorders, but all eating disorders begin with a seemingly benign diet.

  “Michelle didn’t call it a diet, of course. She just switched to low-fat milk, replaced sugary drinks with water, ditched hamburgers entirely and monitored portion sizes. Some of you may be saying to yourselves—that’s not a diet, that’s a lifestyle change. I assure you, if you’ve ever told yourself that, you are on a diet. If you’ve ever put any food on a no-no list, you’re on a diet. A diet is a diet is a diet, no matter what you call it. And none of them work. They aren’t designed to work either. They’re designed to keep you shelling out your hard earned cash.

  The red light begins to blink on the phone. Oh goody, a caller. I love callers. They add so much color to the show.

  “Hello caller, welcome to The Fat Majority with Gabby Medeiros. What’s on your mind?”

  “Uh, did I just hear you say that fat is not necessarily unhealthy?” asks a male voice.

  “Uh-huh,” I say. “You heard right. Fitness and fatness are not mutually exclusive. Healthy people come in all shapes and sizes.”

  “You’re full of crap,” says the man.

  Oh no. I get one of these callers every once in a while. That’s okay. It’s a teachable moment. I’ve found that people who call in and insist that fat cannot be healthy are usually the same people who put themselves through hell to keep themselves looking thin. The idea that someone else might choose to forgo the useless agony and simply enjoy life as a fat person is just unfathomable to them. Everyone should suffer as they do. They deny themselves the simple culinary pleasures of life, and they can’t stand the idea that other people don’t.

  “I’m full of crap? How so? Enlighten me.”

  “You cannot be fat and healthy. Everyone knows that. Obesity is linked to every known health risk under the sun. Fat people have much shorter life spans than regular people.”

  “Regular people?” I ask.

  “Yeah,” he says.

  I despise the term. I’d like to reach through the phone and slap him for using it. “Okay, caller. So how much longer do so-called regular people live? What’s the difference in life expectancy?”

  “I don’t know the exact number, but—”

  “Oh, you don’t know the exact number,” I interrupt. “I thought I was discussing this with someone who knew what they were talking about. You sound like a real expert. Studies have found that if you control for other factors such as social class and race, the difference in life expectancy betwee
n fat people and thin people can be measured in months, not years. Being short or left-handed has a more profound impact on life expectancy than being fat.”

  “That’s such bull,” the man retorts. “A healthy fat person is an oxymoron.”

  I sigh. “Caller, you’re an ox and a moron. If I thought for one second that your diatribe was based on a genuine concern for my health, I might be able to stomach it. But I know better than that. When people say that we should lose weight for our health, that’s almost always a smokescreen. We both know that you aren’t worried about fat people and how long they live. You just hate fat people. Your bigotry won’t allow you to give us an inch of ground to stand on in this society. If that last bit didn’t convince you, let me point out that Americans continue to live longer and longer lives with each passing generation while also getting fatter and fatter.”

  “Oh, Gabby…”

  “What?”

  “You’re so lost. You’re feeding the public misinformation and it’s a disservice. You don’t think that there’s a difference between the health of thin people and the health of obese people?”

  “To the contrary.”

  “Huh?”

  “Fat people do suffer from poor health in plenty of instances. But it isn’t the fat that’s killing us. It’s the fat discrimination. Do you think that black skin is a health hazard?”

  “Excuse me? I don’t understand the question.’

  I snort. “What’s not to understand? It’s a very straightforward question. Is black skin hazardous to your health?”

  “No, of course not,” says the caller.

  “Well, the life expectancy of an African-American in this country is six years shorter than the national average. So, by your logic, having black skin is a health hazard. African-Americans really ought to get their skin lightened, right? Get out the bleach.”

  “Oh, come on,” whines the caller.

  “Come on?”

  “Yeah, I mean…the reason black people have shorter lives is because they’re poorer and a lot of them don’t have health insurance and…”

  “And what?”

  “Other factors too. The lifestyle of the lower economic classes isn’t very healthy.”

  “Uh huh. And there’s a lot of discrimination in the medical field, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Your explanation for why African-Americans live short lives is also a perfectly valid explanation for why fat people do too. Let’s start with health insurance. Do you have health insurance, caller?”

  “Of course. This is Massachusetts. It’s mandated.”

  “It’s nice having health insurance, isn’t it? Then you can have regular doctor’s visits and stay healthy, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Well guess what? In some states you can’t even buy health insurance if you’re too fat. Not at any price. You’re too much of a burden on the system. Even African-Americans aren’t forbidden to buy health insurance. They just can’t afford it. Ditto fat people. Due to rampant fat discrimination, fat people earn less money than their slim peers. They get passed over for jobs on account of prejudice. Did you know that the average fat woman earns seven thousand dollars a year less than the average thin woman?”

  “No. I didn’t know that.”

  “It’s true. When was the last time you saw a fat lawyer or fat businesswoman?”

  “Probably never.”

  “See my point now? Even in states where the insurance companies will sell policies to fat people, they may be required to pay two, three, or even four times more for it. That prices a lot of fat people out of the market. Diminished income equals no health insurance. No health insurance means that the doc won’t catch whatever’s ailing you, even if it has nothing to do with being fat. Fat discrimination accounts for most of the difference in life expectancy just as institutional racism accounts for the difference between whites and African-Americans.”

  “You’re forgetting one thing, though,” the man counters. “Black people are born black. They can’t change that. You can lose weight.”

  He really thinks he’s beaten me with that zinger. I’m tiring of this trifling fatphobe and I’d rather not get into the many reasons that he is in fact wrong about fat people being able to change. Besides, I’m up against a break soon.

  “Caller,” I sigh. “You sound like every homophobe I’ve ever known. Your logic is exactly the same. Gays choose be gay so it’s okay to hate them. Fat people choose to be fat, so they’re okay to hate too. Let me ask you another question, this one of a more personal variety. Do you like your penis?”

  “Uh…”

  “C’mon. Just answer the question.”

  “Yes, I’m rather attached to it, you might say.”

  I chuckle a little. “Well, there’s your problem. Don’t you know that men have shorter lifespans than women? Don’t you think that you should do something about that?”

  “About what? My gender?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I can’t,” says the caller. “This is just the way I was born.”

  “Oh, but you could get a sex change. The fact that you haven’t had a sex change proves that you choose to be a man. It’s not at all like being black because you’ve made a conscious decision to remain a male. But you could lop off that organ and take hormones for the rest of your life. Why not? Then you’d be on the right track to sounder health.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Thank you, caller,” I say. “Just as I’m not going to cram my body with artificial junk, you won’t take hormones. Just as I won’t put myself through some dangerous and expensive surgery, you won’t mutilate yourself with a sex change.”

  I hang up on him and cue Queen’s “Fat Bottomed Girls”, my official outro music. My work here is done.

  * * *

  One of the biggest obstacles to fat rights is the erroneous but widespread belief that fat people are fat by choice. As if anyone would choose to occupy the rung of the social ladder just above midgets. Who would choose to be fat knowing that it means being treated like crap on a daily basis? That would be like choosing to be gay. It can’t be a choice.

  Yet the myth persists. The logic goes something like this—all people are thin by nature, but some of us are so lazy that we become fat. Or we’re so gluttonous. Or stupid, treacherous, weak-willed, or fill-in-the-blank. Whatever the adjective is, it’s always degrading. And it’s always our fault.

  The truth is that fatness is almost entirely genetic in nature. Two people of the same height, weight, and body fat percentage can lead wildly different lifestyles. One can be a couch potato while the other exercises regularly. One can indulge every gastronomical desire for rich foods while the other eats like a bird.

  The explanation for such discrepancies lies in our inherited DNA codes. Some lucky people are born with the ability to eat what they want and not get fat. A miniscule fraction of people are born with the ability to someday achieve the societal ideal of a waifish Calvin Klein model. Even those lucky people usually can’t quite get across the finish line without the “assistance” of an eating disorder. The rest of us are stuck in the bodies we’re in, with all of the glorious cellulite, love handles and muffin-tops God gave us. No amount of dieting is going to get us into a size four dress.

  Identical twins offer valuable insight into the science of weight. Because identical twins share the exact same DNA, they essentially eliminate nature from the nature-versus-nurture dichotomy. Any differences in weight between the two can only be explained in terms of environmental factors. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine attempted to determine how much influence DNA had by comparing sets of twins from four separate groups: identical twins reared separately (93 pairs), identical twins reared together (154 pairs), fraternal twins reared separately (218 pairs), and fraternal twins reared together (208 pairs).

  The study concluded that 70 percent of the differences in body mass index could be explained by genes. Environ
mental factors played little or no role in their weight.

  No set of twins has ever been found to exist in which one was extremely thin and the other extremely fat. They simply don’t exist. Most sets of identical twins stay in rather close proximity to each other, never straying more than ten or twenty pounds apart at any given time in life. This evidence strongly suggests that fat people are fat for the same reason that short people are short and bald people are bald—it’s their genetic destiny. We don’t fault short people for their shortness, or bald people for their baldness, yet we as a society excoriate fat people for their fatness.

  I can safely say that I was born fat. In my entire thirty-six years, I have not enjoyed a solitary skinny moment. My mother tells me that I weighed nine pounds at birth. That’s quite large for a boy. For a girl, that’s enormous. I was also a fat toddler, a fat adolescent, and a fat teenager, before graduating to fat adulthood. I’ve always been fat. There is no other Gabby Medeiros. This is the natural size and shape of my body. This is who I am.

  There was a time in my life when I tried desperately to lose weight. I’d never even heard of the phrase “fat acceptance”. Just like most fat people, I blamed myself and believed that it was my body that needed fixing, not other people’s ignorant attitudes.

  I did everything short of sticking my finger down my throat. Anorexia and bulimia are not my style. I’m very proud of myself for never subjecting myself to that sort of torture just to lose weight. I was very vulnerable at that time in my life, but apparently not vulnerable enough to starve myself. I retained a little self-respect, even while flailing away in a sea of self-hatred and poor body image.