Who is Five Hundred Pound Peep? We may never know, but in 2001 she published an article about a major life change, then in 2010 followed it up with “Goodbye NAAFA and the rest: Why I left Size Acceptance.”
To assess the movement’s condition after an interval of almost a decade, she closely studied its “websites, publications, organizations and spokespeople” and concluded that it had noticeably shrunk. Yes, many if not most of its goals were praiseworthy — equal rights; no discrimination; plain old human decency (among other things) — but somehow it just wasn’t able to hang in there.
Two major organizations had formed — the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA) and the International Size Acceptance Association (ISAA). There were also smaller groups with specialized aims like socialization and dance, but by 2010, the membership numbers had fallen off and the foundations were no longer just weakened, but at the stage that could justifiably be called “crumbling.” The author made some observations:
— Americans have gotten even fatter and corpulence is becoming even more reviled…
— The first reason Size Acceptance has not grown is it promotes fat rather then just dealing with it as a physical characteristic.
— Fat people can indeed be healthier and in better shape via exercise and better food, but some reality checks are in order.
— Physical realities come crashing through for those who suffer with obesity in its most severe forms.
The slogan “Health at any size” did not really catch on, because even the most zealous fat-acceptance enthusiasts were unable to maintain the notion that truly healthy health is possible once a person gets north of 400 pounds or so. Trying to maintain the ideal of good health at any size is a losing battle.
For a writer, the great advantage of having a place online where people can not only find you, but can also talk back, is a real boon — because it gives you even more to write about. And also, of course, it allows the writer to receive feedback from regular people, who say things like:
I cannot, with a clear conscience, advocate or agree with any movement that does not address the reality of the negative health consequences of severe obesity.
“Five Hundred Pound Peep” noted the absence of solid, serious medical studies focused on “supersized” individuals such as herself, and consistently made such solid points as,
— Imagine a kidney disease foundation telling those with kidney disease they must accept their condition. Fat people are told this is “your lot in life you must accept it”.
— “Fat” for most fat people is not their preferred way of being… for many it hurts, and makes everything harder to do.
— Obesity is seen like something like tallness, a normal part of person’s makeup.
— Repeating mantras of “Fat People are healthy,” even amid oxygen and wheelchair dependent people, very few are buying into the lie.
The author made the very painful point that, outside of the Size Acceptance clan, many obese people are not buying into the positive angle at all, but perceive SA as a population of “extremists who have given up.” She accused the size acceptance crowd of walling itself off to an inappropriate degree, and wondered out loud where the academic researchers might be who are “willing to face honestly the complexities of obesity.”
And according to the personal opinion of at least one public voice, namely “Five Hundred Pound Peep,” this sort of activity should have no place in the movement:
Some “size acceptance” websites, you will find obese women selling videos and nude photographs of themselves to the proverbial “FA” [or fat admirer]. Odd that objectification of fat women, has been one of the results of the “acceptance message.”
Increasing numbers of obese women came to see that the fat admirer (crudely known as the chubby chaser) really should have no place in this discussion. Technically, that extreme degree of fat admiration is what is known as a sexual fetish. But wait, it gets even worse.
One other debauched world is the one of “feeders” who seek to make their significant partner fatter and “feedees” who want to be fatter.
In other words, there are excellent reasons for the parents of overweight children to reject complacency or acceptance. Not wishing their daughters to grow up and star in sexual fetish porn is one of the strongest of those reasons.
Your responses and feedback are welcome!
Source: “Goodbye NAAFA and the rest: Why I left Size Acceptance,” Archive.is, 07/04/10
Images by Kyra_Starr/Pixabay
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