Fat Liberation and UU

Rev. Dr. Cynthia Landrum, Rev. Molly Brewer, Rev. Julie Brock

Fat UU Clergy Against Sizeism Caucus Group
Taking Up Space: Fat Liberation and UU examines the following: Fat bodies are often viewed as bad bodies, even in UU spaces. A group of UU clergy will present a theological context that lifts up the worth and dignity of every body, of every size. Through facts, stories, and examples, we will equip congregations to question and transform fatphobia culture.

Sizeism (from https://www.definitions.net/definition/sizeism)

Size discrimination or sizeism is a form of discrimination based upon a person’s physical size, including but not limited to height and/or weight. Sizeism usually refers to extremes in physical size, as in an extremely tall person or an extremely skinny person. This can also be applied to discrimination against the fat and/or obese.

Definition of sizeism (from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sizeism)

: discrimination or prejudice directed against people because of their size and especially because of their weight … this is one way to dismantle the power difference society’s privileges grant us through such institutions as racism or classism or ageism or sizeism.

— Sarah Lucia Hoagland

… Hollywood horror stories about sizeism abound. Carrie Fisher said in 2015 that she had been pressured to lose 35 pounds before appearing in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

— Brooks Barnes

From (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sizeism)

Sizeism is aligned with the social construction of the ideal or “normal” body shape and size and how that shapes our environment. In the U.S. we can observe many public facilities shaped by this “normative” body including; telephone booths, drinking fountains, bleachers, bathroom outlets (sinks, toilets, stalls), chairs, tables, turnstiles, elevators, staircases, vending machines, doorways…to name a few. Design assumptions are drawn about the size and shape of the users (height, weight, proportionate length of arms and legs, width of hips and shoulders).^[5]

Body-shaming, more specifically weight-shaming of men and women, is a widely known characteristic of sizeism, shown in the form of prejudice and discrimination can include both skinny shaming^[6] and fat shaming.^[7]