Comments | silversliver: The last acceptable/open form of discrimination?

silversliver

The last acceptable/open form of discrimination?

Nov 06, 2005 04:00

I've been seeing in a number of blogs recently that discrimination against fat people is the last acceptable form of bigotry. I'm not so sure. There are many groups which are just as maligned and which in the grand scheme of things probably suffer more. These people are failing to consider that many people would rather be accused of being fat ( Read more... )

feminism, transgender, politics, gay rights

Comments 7

coriolinus November 6 2005, 12:23:56 UTC

Discrimination is rampant in our society. It's hard to let go of an "I'm the most persecuted" attitude, especially when you're feeling the effects of discrimination every day.
I think a big part of the issue stems from a fundamental disconnect; people can't imagine what discrimination feels like, so they see it more as a chance at their 15 minutes of fame than as a real point of suffering ( ... )

kiarda November 6 2005, 17:51:39 UTC

There's been a lot going around lately about America's "obesity epidemic," etc. It makes me think about how, back in the middle ages, fat was considered beautiful because if you were fat, it meant you were rich and glamorous enough to eat things like... meat. Today, everyone says that fat is so bad because of heart disease and diabetes and on and on, and I suppose that's true, but I'd rather have a fat society than a starving one. As far as I'm concerned, aside from being relatively young when it happens, heart attack is pretty much one of the most pleasant ways of going ( ... )

silversliver November 6 2005, 21:30:06 UTC

I don't think the "choice" matter is much of a factor in the differences in fat and sexual discrimination. Many people see being fat as a choice, too, since they associate fatness with overeating. The simple answer is that if you want to be thin you just eat less, so fat people are frequently seen as lazy. But they're not dismissed out-of-hand as deviants or perverts like homosexuals and trans* people (FYI "trannie" is derogatory) are. They are not dismissed as stupid or weak like women are ( ... )

kiarda November 6 2005, 23:03:56 UTC

FYI "trannie" is derogatory
Apologies, I didn't know. I would guess that confusion about LGBT words is pretty common among non-LGBT people. I mean, to me, it looks like a contraction of the technical term, so to hazard a guess, I'd say "okay." But I guess not. "Queer" is polite, right? But it wasn't 10 years ago? Most of the lesbians I know are very understated about their sexuality, except for one, who is very bawdy, and uses all sorts of impolite words to describe herself.

Many men feel their masculinity is threatened by women with power, homosexuals, and genderqueer people. Even seeing such a person walking down the street.This confuses me a little. Because *how do they know*? If you see a fat person, you can tell they're fat. Pretty much every gay person I know, I didn't know was gay until they told me. (I know far more lesbians than gay men, primarily from hockey.) There is a person at my church who, I assume, was born biologically male, but chooses to attend church as a female (what trans-category she fits in, I ( ... )

silversliver November 7 2005, 03:16:31 UTC

First, w.r.t. "trannie", I figured you didn't know, but it's good to know the connotations. "Queer" is becoming neutral, I think. It's more common for people use it to refer to themselves or others in the community than for heterosexual people to use it to refer to homosexuals. It can still be an insult, though. If the people you're with know you're friendly, it's usually not a problem ( ... )

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