A while back I discovered a tumblr called /This is Thin Privilege/. It's a place where people share their stories of thing that have happened to them that would never happen to thin people. Its aim is to "showcase examples of thin privilege in order to illustrate fatphobia and fat discrimination." I go to it sometimes when I'm in a certain mood. I've even made a few submissions (though I don't know if they've been posted because it's updated very often and I don't have time to scroll through all the past entries). It's one of a raft of internet resources trying to expose the various privileges, and I think it does an important job.
In a nutshell, a privilege is when you gain advantage or are treated preferentially by society, because of some attribute that you have that you didn't earn. (Or put in less effort than others, I suppose.) Examining your privileges is kind of a modern-day version of being grateful for what you've got, but more than that - addressing privilege is also acknowledges those who aren't, and attempts to level the playing field.
I just feel like making a list right now of my privileges:
Privileges I Have:
white ---- able (on a basic level) ----- employed ----- intelligence ----- cisgender ------ heterosexual ----- English-speaking ----- mental health (able to present as, anyway) ----- lack of physical deformity ---- native-born/citizenship -----
(Hmmm, I'm sure there are more. I had never heard of some of these until I did some research into it recently!)
Privileges I Don't Have:
thin ---- male ---- health ----- Christian -----
So really, I'm very lucky in many ways. I feel sure that I can go out in public and not be racially vilified. I'm employable and employed. I earn enough money to live on. Even with some of the privileges I don't have, I don't feel them too much - I can't recall any situations where I've been discriminated against for being a woman, and while I don't identify as Christian, I don't subscribe to a religion that requires me to present as obviously 'different' from the norm.
Many people never think about these things - and many of them are people who really need to. I remember a story I heard years ago from an old-school feminist activist. It happened back in the 70s. She and some friends attended a human rights rally. The first half was on rights for black people, the second on women's rights. Almost all of the men left after the first half. She stopped one and asked, "why are you leaving now?" He said, "all that feminisim stuff is just for women." So all the people who most needed to hear the message, weren't going to stay and hear it. The people who most needed to hear it didn't even know they needed to hear it. I guess that's what having privilege entails.
I think of this story because, when I see all the fat activism blogs and other type of activism on the internet, it makes me wonder if it's really reaching its intended target. Yes, I see a few people comment on TITP that reading it has changed their perspective, but they're people who have actively sought it out and are willing to be open-minded. The people who most need to read and think and have their minds changed, are not going to actively bother to do that. It's all so frustrating.
Anyway, I don't know what I'm really getting at with all this. Looking at TITP and other fat activism sources brings up a lot of conflicting feelings for me. I feel angry that awful things have happened to these people, people who are like me. I feel despair that they are still happening. I feel hope that people are reading it and having their minds changed. I feel a sense of belonging: I relate to the feelings of the people who have posted. I have to admit, I feel a tiny bit better about myself when I read about people who are even more screwed up than I am. But I also start to fear that some of the things that have happened to other people could happen to me. I imagine the scenarios in my head. I get more paranoid, and more cynical about human nature. When I go out, I brace for something bad to happen instead of having an open heart and accepting whatever comes. I avoid going out and interacting with people. I really don't like that in myself.
I'm not blaming TITP or any other source out there. This is something totally in me, that I need to work on.
Anyway, this post really has no point, but it's just some stuff that's been floating around in my head.
Here's another site I discovered just last night: /Calming Manatee/. The manatee meme with calming words. (Well, not all calming per se, but positive in some way.) Mmmm, calming. Love the manatee.
