22 - Notable Figures and Organizations.
Failed to add items
Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.
Add to basket failed.
Please try again later
Add to Wish List failed.
Please try again later
Remove from Wish List failed.
Please try again later
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
22 - Notable Figures and Organizations.
-
Narrated by:
-
By:
About this listen
Early Pioneers and Influential Texts.
Bill Fabrey, an engineer, founded the National Association to Aid Fat Americans (NAAFA) in 1969 after observing discrimination against his wife Joyce, establishing the organization as an early advocate for fat acceptance by challenging societal stigma and promoting civil rights for larger individuals. NAAFA's efforts focused on combating bias in employment, healthcare, and public spaces, laying groundwork for community support networks that emphasized self-acceptance over weight loss.
In 1973, the Fat Underground, a radical feminist group in Los Angeles led by Judy Freespirit and Aldebaran (Sara Fishman), published the Fat Liberation Manifesto, framing fatness as a form of oppression intertwined with patriarchy and capitalism, particularly critiquing the diet industry as exploitative and linking body size to women's subjugation. The manifesto demanded an end to fat shaming and promoted pride in larger bodies as resistance to beauty standards, influencing subsequent activism by portraying fat discrimination as a civil rights issue akin to other feminist struggles.
Susie Orbach's 1978 book Fat Is a Feminist Issue argued that women's overeating stemmed from internalized patriarchal controls on appetite and autonomy, advocating therapy groups to address emotional roots rather than dieting, which sold widely and inspired fat acceptance workshops across the UK and US. These pioneers fostered supportive communities that reduced some social isolation for fat individuals, yet their core assertions—that fatness posed no inherent health risks or could be decoupled from biological consequences—have faced empirical refutation, as longitudinal data consistently links higher body mass to elevated morbidity and mortality independent of stigma reduction efforts.
Contemporary Advocates and Groups.
Tess Holliday, a plus-size model and prominent fat acceptance advocate, has continued to promote body positivity and fat liberation in the 2020s through social media campaigns and public statements rejecting weight loss pressures. In April 2025, she discussed the impact of GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs like Ozempic on the movement, arguing that such medications reinforce anti-fat stigma rather than addressing systemic biases. Holliday's activism includes calls to dismantle "fatphobic logics of health," positioning fatness as compatible with fitness and empowerment, though her personal experiences with online harassment have highlighted internal tensions within body positivity circles.
Other influencers, such as Tess Royale Clancy, have centered "fat joy" in 2025 advocacy efforts, using platforms to reject stigma associated with larger bodies and critiquing brands for diluting body positivity into less radical inclusivity. These figures often frame fat acceptance as a form of resistance against societal norms, with campaigns emphasizing self-acceptance over health interventions. However, experimental research indicates that body positivity messaging may reduce weight loss intentions more among individuals with higher BMIs compared to weight bias-focused appeals, potentially reinforcing stasis in obesity prevalence.
The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA), founded in 1969 but active into the 2020s, organizes events like Fat Liberation Month in August 2024, featuring virtual brunches, Gen-Z affinity spaces, and drag story hours to foster community and combat size discrimination. NAAFA's 2024 newsletter emphasized intersectional fat joy and opposition to biases in policy and culture, including healthcare settings where "fat-shaming" is portrayed as a barrier to equitable treatment. The group advocates for ending weight-based discrimination through education and legal challenges, though its volunteer-driven model relies on member support amid declining participation noted in broader movement shifts.
The Association for Size Diversity and Health (ASDAH) promotes the Health at Every Size (HAES) framework, which prioritizes intuitive eating and joyful movement over weight reduction, influencing healthcare providers and educators in the 2020s. ASDAH's resources target dismantling weight-centered paradigms, claiming that size inclusivity improves outcomes without BMI-focused interventions, and it maintains directories of HAES-aligned professionals. In response to rising use of weight-loss drugs, ASDAH and similar groups have campaigned against medical "fat-shaming," arguing in 2024-2025 statements that such practices exacerbate stigma rather than health, despite epidemiological data linking higher BMIs to elevated risks independent of bias perceptions.
This episode includes AI-generated content.
No reviews yet
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.