The Violence of Fat Hatred in the “Obesity Epidemic” Discourse

Bibliographic Data

ID11230760
AuthorsJeannine A Gailey (0000-0002-4407-1332, Texas Christian University (TCU), Fort Worth, TX, USA, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume46
Issue2
Pages359-380
Publication date2022-05-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHumanity & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0160-5976 • E-ISSN: 2372-9708
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0160597621995501
OpenAlexW3133328498
LanguageEN
Citations received18
References cited39

The concern globally over the “obesity epidemic” has become one of the most widely discussed social problems over the last twenty or so years. There is an intense focus from the media, popular culture, government agencies, and medical community about the harms of “obesity,” which includes strategies for eradicating the “obesity epidemic.” Public discussions of “excess weight” typically imply that fat persons are responsible for their body size, and public health policy recommendations follow from that assumption. Through the voices of 74 women of size, I demonstrate the ways in which the “obesity epidemic” discourse is a form of symbolic violence. Interviewees discussed countless acts of public humiliation, blocked opportunities, and fears about attending appointments with health care practitioners because of the stigma, discrimination, and mistreatment they receive. Moreover, the anti-fat rhetoric made interviewees feel responsible for the oppression. The violence manifested through the “obesity epidemic” rhetoric creates and perpetuates the phenomenon of hyper(in)visibilty, a phenomenon where marginalized bodies are simultaneously paid tremendous attention and dismissed. I conclude by urging sociologists to include body size in their intersectional research, teaching, and activism

Blame · Criminology · Family medicine · Humiliation · Obesity · Oppression · Phenomenon · Political science · Politics · Psychiatry · Public health · Rhetoric · Social issues · Social stigma · Sociology · Stigma (botany · Diversity and Impact of Dance · Eating Disorders and Behaviors · Gender Studies · Law · Medicine · Nursing · Obesity and Health Practices

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