Greetings Readers! The BB and the WW are still working on some awesome changes for Gribbski's Guide, but we MUST post before those changes are finished! We're getting in on the conversation about a Facebook post that went viral. Here's the link, and a screenshot of the original post:
The "Inspirational" Fat Runner Post
As it usually seems to go with "thinspirational" posts, the Facebook status that someone thought would be encouraging and lovely was actually not at all. So, in our normal fashion, we are going to rip this thing into little pieces. Here's your list:
1. Privilege
Wow. That entire message comes from a major place of privilege. In a way it is good that this was written because it shows people who are less aware of thin privilege the types of thoughts and beliefs that are NOT OKAY to express and assume about fatties. These are just the types of condescending comments that fatties have to worry people are thinking, feeling, and believing everyday. To simply go out in the world and be a part of it, whether we are walking, running, chatting with a friend, or grabbing lunch, we have to worry that we are being thought of in this way. And then to add insult to privilege, this goes viral as an inspirational and positive message when it certainly is not.
You might be wondering WHY this is NOT inspirational, as it is being presented that way all over the internet. For the guy who wrote this status, running is apparently a normal activity. He makes the assumption that because the runner is fat, it is a struggle for him to run, rather than a normal activity. This assumption, like most assumptions, comes from a place of privilege.
In addition, he makes assumptions about the fat person's eating habits, lifestyle, mood, and health. Reinforcing the stereotypes that a fat runner struggles to run because of his junk food and beer binges, laziness, self-consciousness, and poor health makes the person who posted this ignorant, and the fact he thinks he's doing the fat person a favor by admiring him despite his "struggle" shows the poster's privilege. He's making himself look noble and sensitive while he continues a cycle of condemning fat people for being fat. The writer puts himself in the spotlight while the fat person is again reaffirmed as the Other.
2. Assumptions
Obviously this poster has made a number of assumptions. We've already pointed them out to you. But now, we'd like to take a moment to tell you just how damaging these kinds of assumptions can be. The WW has some experiences with this that will work nicely:
I have only ever gone running on a track when I've had unhealthy ideas about myself and my body. Running was never something I enjoyed. Instead, it was something I felt I had to do to change my body so I would be accepted by anyone. So the assumption that this poster made about the fat runner's thoughts would have been correct if that poster had been on my local middle school's track about seven years ago, where I would run after dark so no one else would see me sweat. However, not everyone is as insecure about themselves as I was at sixteen, so making the assumption that this person is having self-denigrating thoughts about their body while they run is absolutely ridiculous. Even if that was the case, it is incredibly insulting for someone to virtually pat me on the back because I'm performing an act out of self-hate. Imagine struggling with something and then having someone very publicly "help" you through it. Its like if someone was choking and then someone else performed CPR while yelling, "HEY LOOK I'M DOING CPR THIS GUY IS GREAT."
3. Authenticity
The original poster has no authorial authenticity. He posts as a person on the outside of the fat community; he goes on to demonstrate his lack of empathy, understanding, or acceptance for the fat community by perpetuating stereotypes and being disrespectful.
We aren't saying that you have to be fat to write about fatness, but you do have to obtain some understanding of the fat experience in order to do so.
As a thin person it may be difficult to know when it is okay and not okay to call someone fat. A simple guide is as follows: If you aren't fat, NEVER assume that you can go around calling anyone else fat. If you ARE fat, don't go around assuming that you can call anyone else fat. Although the BB and the WW are all about reclaiming the word fat as a positive adjective, not everyone is. Generally, calling someone fat in a factual sense isn't insulting if you know that they are secure in that identity. If you aren't sure whether or not they are secure in their identity, don't call them that. (Also, you can always ASK that person about their preferences).
Finally, DO NOT WRITE AN OPEN LETTER ON FACEBOOK CALLING A STRANGER "FATTY." You're just making assumptions. You know nothing about their preferences or identity and you aren't being factual.
4. Audience
The original poster was clearly writing this status for a thin audience. He exercises his privilege, makes assumptions, and lacks credibility and authenticity of experience. The following is a message for him and his supporters:
If you want to be a fat ally, it might actually be a very helpful exercise to write to a thin audience about respecting and loving fat people. However, it is NOT OKAY to write to a thin audience about fat stereotypes.
It is also not okay to tell an audience that you respect someone that you don't even know simply because they are losing weight. How about you respect that person as a human being and as a person who has the right to use the track for any purpose he wants?
When you tell a thin audience that you respect someone for losing weight, you may be trying to get them to think the following: "Oh, okay, let's not disrespect people on the track who are fat. At least they are trying!"
You may also think that this is noble or inspring. It isn't!
You're basically telling that thin audience that it is okay to respect fat people as long as they are trying not to be fat. The fact that this is the only reason the poster respects the fat runner is evident in his language when he talks about the fat "begging to be shaken off." Bodies deserve respect at all sizes.
This post pretends to address the fat runner, but it really isn't; the audience is all the thin people or self-loathing fat people who will believe that the original poster is a great person for being inspired by a fatty. Here's the problem with the original poster and all those in support of his message:
You are alienating fat people who love their bodies because the fat person that you are writing about doesn't exist. The fat person that you are writing about is a shallow, stereotypical fat character that you have fabricated to make yourself feel like an accepting person.
A body-loving audience isn't buying this!
Here are some supplemental responses to the original post, including one from a man claiming to be the fat runner:
A Response from the Runner
An Article Linking this Incident to the "Disabled People Are Inspiring" Phenomenon
