The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Fat Feminist: ‘Stop Staring at Me!’

Posted on | August 26, 2014 | 76 Comments

Erin McKelle Fischer (@ErinMcKelle) is a Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies major at Ohio University we’ve encountered a few times previously. She has expressed hostility toward “penis-in-vagina sex” and the “norm” of heterosexuality. In June, we took note of her column about “the very real struggles that young feminists face.” Now she has another “very real struggle” to share with us:

Talk about calling in fire on your own map coordinates, huh? Let’s see what Erin has to say about this Important Feminist Issue:

I’m also a body image and fat positive activist, which basically means that I don’t believe there is anything inherently wrong or bad about being fat. In fact, I love being fat.
Since I enjoy wearing a lot of clothing that reveals my skin and shows off my body, like crop tops, short skirts and shorts, bikinis, leggings and tight dresses, I have to deal with a lot of backlash. Because god forbid a fat woman likes the way she looks and lets the world know it.
Because fat girls aren’t supposed to take pleasure in our bodies or even consider showing other people what they look like, there is a lot of sh*t that can hit the fan. Mostly caused by other people not knowing how to handle someone as sexy as me owning it.
The good news is that the fat positive movement is starting to take off and people are starting to notice. The #fatkini hashtag has gone viral on Twitter, plus sizes are starting to be sold in the stores of hip and trendy retailers like Forever 21 and H&M, and fat is starting to lose some of it’s stigma as a bad word. We’re making progress.
Despite this, though, some people really need to get an education in how to treat fat girls who like to show off our curves some respect. . . .
If you’re offended by me showing my stomach or the way my thighs jiggle, you need to f*ck off. My body is my own and no one has the right to tell me what to do with it. Period.
Boohoo, you have to look at a fat woman’s body. . . .
The most common reaction I get from others when I wear revealing clothing are stares. Some people will sort of roll their eyes or look disgusted; others will just stare as if I’m some kind of art exhibit at a museum. Either way, there are a lot of stares.
Look, I understand that I’m challenging your views on fat womanhood and forcing you to question your beliefs and attitudes, but keep this contemplation to yourself. Yes, I do notice when you’re looking. Yes, it does make me feel uncomfortable.
I’m not some sort of object to be admired; I’m a human being first and foremost. Respect my right to choose to be fabulous and move it along. . . .
You might have the urge to shame me for daring to own my sexiness as a fat girl, or you may even want to compliment me for my taste. But either way, I really don’t want to hear about it. . . .

You can read the whole thing. I cringe in anticipation of the rude things commenters will say about Erin’s “sexiness as a fat girl.”

 

Category: Feminism

Comments

76 Responses to “Fat Feminist: ‘Stop Staring at Me!’”

  1. Dana
    August 27th, 2014 @ 10:16 am

    Not sure that Freddie Mercury had Miss Fischer in mind when he said that fat bottomed girls make the rockin’ world go round.

  2. Dana
    August 27th, 2014 @ 10:18 am

    Anyone want to bet that she voted for the First Lady who is so diligently attacking obesity?

  3. Dianna Deeley
    August 27th, 2014 @ 10:18 am

    Especially on bicycle seats?

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  5. maniakmedic
    August 27th, 2014 @ 1:12 pm

    Maybe she’s buying into that new physics theory about the universe and the Higgs Boson and scale symmetry. She’s really no bigger than that Kacy Catanzaro chick, who managed to put a bunch of guys to shame by completing the final course on American Ninja Warrior. She doesn’t really have any mass or size, she just looks like she’s spent far too much time at the local Krispy Kreme.

  6. MNHawk
    August 27th, 2014 @ 2:46 pm

    I’m also a body image and fat positive activist, which basically means that I am unemployed, and will probably always be so.

    Fixed.

  7. Wombat_socho
    August 27th, 2014 @ 3:12 pm

    I’ve seen cosplayers who are chunkier than the characters they portray, but as Jeanette remarked previously, a happy face and a kind smile makes up for quite a bit.

  8. Richard McEnroe
    August 27th, 2014 @ 4:22 pm

    This woman could not fight a leopard and win.

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    August 27th, 2014 @ 5:40 pm

    […] women, a stereo­type exploited by posts like this one by Brian Cates or this one by Stacy Mccain is to express your­self in a way that rein­forces those […]

  10. K-Bob
    August 27th, 2014 @ 6:53 pm

    Yeah. They say bear spray really works. And I might agree, if what they mean is a well-placed group of 30-06.

  11. K-Bob
    August 27th, 2014 @ 7:01 pm

    It’s also true in Special Sucketivity.

    Some people suck so bad they cause red shift.

  12. Mike G.
    August 27th, 2014 @ 9:30 pm

    My eyes are screwed up. When I first read it, I thought you said…”At least she’s got a hair shirt on.” Glad I re-read it.

  13. Bob Belvedere
    August 27th, 2014 @ 9:40 pm

    The Left celebrates the Ugly. It’s part of their efforts to overthrow The West, which has striven towards Beauty in all areas of life – especially the Spiritual.

  14. Bob Belvedere
    August 27th, 2014 @ 9:43 pm

    I must disagree, even though it make provoke the wrath of Wombaticus [Hail!]…

    Reason is THE tool of the Patriarchy.

    There’s often a logic present in the arguments of Ideologues. However, they refuse to combine it with Right Reason.

  15. Bob Belvedere
    August 27th, 2014 @ 9:45 pm

    See!…that’s why I refused Lasik. When confronted by such a creature that is both physically and spiritually Ugly, I can just take my glasses off and think of England.

  16. Bob Belvedere
    August 27th, 2014 @ 9:47 pm

    So what explains his going completely batsh-t crazy about thirty years ago?

  17. Bob Belvedere
    August 27th, 2014 @ 9:50 pm

    ‘Some’, Dianna?

  18. Dodd
    August 27th, 2014 @ 10:43 pm

    So, she’s proud to show off her body but doesn’t want to be looked at?

    Makes as much sense as anything else of hers you’ve showed us, I guess.

  19. Scoob
    August 27th, 2014 @ 11:00 pm

    I wonder with Michelle Obama’s school lunch mandates, does that make her a fat hater? When the government through the HHS mandates that we lose weight, will that make the government fat haters? I wonder if subject of this article supports Obamacare, if Obamacare inevitably will coerce her to lose weight?

  20. theoldsargesays
    August 27th, 2014 @ 11:12 pm

    This gal’s so bad that it needed repeating.

  21. theoldsargesays
    August 27th, 2014 @ 11:19 pm

    “I’m also a body image and fat positive activist…”

    To quote a line by Charlton Heston in The Big Country:
    “Yeah, I could see how you would.”

  22. Wombat_socho
    August 27th, 2014 @ 11:24 pm

    Well, we also have OPPRESSION! 😉

  23. Wombat_socho
    August 27th, 2014 @ 11:25 pm

    Spray and pray is no way to deal with Mr. Bear. A heavy rifle, and friends who bring their heavy rifles too, would be my preference.

  24. Art Deco
    August 28th, 2014 @ 10:52 am

    One problem at a time.

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