End The Body Fascism of Size-ism!

national | rights, freedoms and repression | other press

Monday March 28, 2005 21:34

by Ní thuigeann an sách an seang is má thuigeann, ní in am.

it's Time to re-awaken the indignation.

it has now been 5 years since Sizeism the concept entered the english language of Ireland when a The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted on Monday May 8th, 2000 to outlaw discrimination against fat people. Well, of course they didn't really say fat people because that might reek of . . . discrimination. They voted to add the words "body size" to already exciting laws banning discrimination based on "race, colour, religion, age, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, disability, place of birth or gender identity".

The vote was a big victory for America's Fat Acceptance movement, which has scored similar legislative victories in Washington and Santa Cruz, California.

The vote was a big victory for America's Fat Acceptance movement, which had scored similar legislative victories in Washington and Santa Cruz, California.

& the milestone in the struggle against Fascism
was reported by Elaine Lafferty for The Irish Times
http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2000/0510/fro3.htm

Since then, sizeism didn't really get off the European rights based movement's table and walk the walk or talk the talk.

There was an internet site built after an 18stone (thats 95.2543977 kilograms if you're a numerate Irish primary school kid) I digress, into point placing...

yes after a 95.2543977kg woman was asked to leave Harrods supermarket for wearing leggings.
She sued and lost.
http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=10&si=631739&issue_id=6311

But her case inspired the keymakers to put this site together:-

under the slogan-

Sizeism can be as awful as sexism or racism.
http://www.ibiblio.org/usenet-i/groups-html/alt.support.big-folks.html

But other than that, no Irish group to fight the rights of those who suffer for their size has emerged.

Whilst the neighbouring London Authority got int trouble for a prominent health campaign aimed at reducing disease amongst the young, with a "don't look like a back of a bus" advertising campaign.
indeed the World Cancer Research Fund UK paid for it.

http://www.bigfatblog.com/archives/001192.php

So if you're "overweight" you might consider going to the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, USA 2005 Convention.

NAAFA represents the interests of fat people globally, http://www.naafa.org/ for various reasons,
due mostly to big bones and glands, the interests of fat people in the Third World don't seem to be an issue.

It is time that those who know we are closer to a Wallmart Telly dinner in Boston, than a drought efected field in Nigeria, to re-awaken the indignation. Enough of this "hypocrisy" in high places which offer size-ist propaganda like this-
http://www.irishhealth.com/clin/ffl/obesity.html

Write to
the minister for health,

Mary Harney,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2.

and ask for her department to end this body fascism and blatent political correctness and maybe even support your rights based campaign.

The last link is to a site which invites you to relish the joys of irish fat based cookery and can only support itself with Tsunami relief funding adverts.
Indeed a second Tsunami is on it's way with a 8+ richter scale quake registered today. So if you can, donate. You know you're making a difference, and all the money is going to the poor people, fat or thin alike.