Anti-Bias Anti-Racism: Anti-Fatmisia/Fatphobia

Fatmisia (also called Fatphobia or Sizeism) is prejudice plus power; anyone of any weight or body type can have/exhibit size-based prejudice, but in North America and across the globe, thin people have the institutional power, therefore Fatmisia is a systematized discrimination or antagonism directed against fat bodies/people based on the belief that thinness is superior.

Fatmisia stems from three incorrect cultural assumptions:
1. There is, with minimal physical divergence, a "right" or "normal" body type and it is a thin one.
2. There is an automatic correlation between thinness and physical health (and in turn, that health is an indicator of value).
3. Fatness or a fat body type is "abnormal" and therefore a (social) disadvantage and/or a health risk.

Fat folks can be agents of ​fatmisia as well (particularly when acting as representatives of fatmisic systems, such as higher education or the healthcare system) by perpetuating the notion of thin superiority and using it to discriminate against other fat people. For example, a plus-size nurse pracitioner may repeatedly recommend that a fat patient lose weight rather than addressing the patient's actual health concerns.

The Fear of Fat—The Real Elephant in the Room (video)
What is Fatphobia/Fatmisia?
​Fatphobia: 5 Facts and a Guide for the Disbeliever
Are Fat People Really Oppressed?

1. Where does fat phobia come from?
2. Here’s What Fat Acceptance Is—and Isn’t
3. "Stout," "Full-Figured," or "Fat"? A Look at the Neglected History (and Politics) of Plus-Size Fashion
4. “I do not owe you health”: Fat Movements Rethinking Equality
5. Revisiting the Fat Liberation Manifesto 46 Years Later
6. The Way We Talk About Our Bodies Is Deeply Flawed
7. To end fatphobia, we need to dismantle Western civilization, says Philly therapist Sonalee Rashatwar
8. Fat Phobia Affects Everyone
9. Patients of Size Are Being Harmed in Ed Recovery. This Printable Resource Aims to Help
10. There Is No Liberation for All Bodies Without the Liberation of Fat Black Women and Femmes

More links challenging fatmisia

The U.S. has a problem with its weight—but not in the way you might think. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 70% of Americans are either overweight or obese, but there’s another side to the “obesity epidemic” that isn’t spoken about enough: fat bias.

Americans who aren’t fat live in fear of becoming so. An estimated 45 million are on some kind of diet. According to a Gallup poll, 45% of Americans fret about weight, and in one study, almost half of girls ages 3 to 6 said they worried about being fat.

To read the full article, click HERE.

1. Fat Is Not a Bad Word
2. Refuse the Scale: “Fat” is Not a Diagnosis
3. I See You, Fat Grrl: Fat Pride and Fat Visibility
4. Why We’re Proud of Our Fat Bodies
5. Virgie Tovar Explains The Difference Between Body Positivity And Fat Activism
6. No Fluffy Self-Love
7. Fat and Proud
8. 13 of Our Fave Plus Size Cosplayers – Who Are Also Women of Color!
9. These Dancers Are Destroying Stereotypes​
10. For The Fat Girls Who Like To Get Naked On Instagram

More links celebrating Fat Folks