alldolleddown:

[TW ED]

Making a simple graph and filing it under ‘thin privilege’ because a lot of y’all are missing this point by a mile.

When we’re talking about thin privilege, the most common argument refuting its validity (aside from some bigoted ‘fat people suck’ noise) is the assertion that thin people (particularly those classified as ‘underweight’ by the incredibly flawed BMI scale) are sometimes mistakenly assumed to have eating disorders, and that harassment stems from that. This view is fundamentally uninformed and incorrect because the harassment of thin people (while deplorable) is far less pervasive and severe as compared to the harassment of fat people. Although thin individuals may face some harassment (’go eat a sandwich’) on the basis of their body shape, they are still the accepted norm. At the end of the day they can look to any media outlet (movies/television/magazines/ect) and find an overwhelming source of reassurance that their body type is not only indicative of beauty, but also of strength, moral fiber, success, wealth, wellness, kindness, and overall worth.

But what really bothers me about the “I don’t have privilege, people assume I have an eating disorder!” thing is that it trivializes the experiences of individuals (across the entire spectrum of sizes) who actually suffer from an eating disorder. Being falsely accused of having an eating disorder is not comparable to having one, and its certainly not comparable to having that disorder dismissed. It does not erase your privilege. But if you want to talk about privilege when it comes to eating disorders and size, think about this:

• A diagnosis of anorexia often requires that the patient’s weight presents itself in a specific BMI category. If a fat individual presents with all of the symptoms of anorexia, they will still not receive a proper diagnosis. (In other words; If patient A is exhibiting signs of anorexia and is ‘underweight’, they will be diagnosed with anorexia. Meanwhile, if patient B is exhibiting signs of anorexia and is ‘obese’, they will either be given a diagnosis of EDNOS or not receive a diagnosis at all.)
• Society dictates that weight loss (except in the case of illness/extreme thinness) is always a desirable occurrence. As such, when fat people lose weight, they are congratulated on their ‘accomplishment’ with no regard as to how that weight loss occurred. And it’s not just family and friends who will partake in this support; Doctors similarly read weight-loss as an unconditional success. They will reassure their patients that they are healthier after the weight loss and encourage them to continue the behavior that got them to lose weight in the first place. Fat individuals are more likely to continue their behavior unchecked, as they continue to be encouraged by others. Meanwhile, if this same occurrence happened to a thin person, there would likely be third-party concern.
• Thinness grants an individual better access to recovery communities. When thin people are diagnosed with (or self-admit to) an eating disorder, and express the desire to pursue recovery, they are unilaterally supported and given access to the resources that they need. Meanwhile, if a fat person is diagnosed with (or self-admits to) an eating disorder, they are either disbelieved (‘only thin people have eating disorders!’), dismissed (‘oh, well it can’t be that bad if you’re still fat’) or encouraged to continue their behavior, if only to a lesser extent (‘don’t starve yourself! but don’t eat too much either, you still need to diet).

So, again: Being falsely accused of having an eating disorder is nothing compared to actually having an eating disorder (and, if you are a fat individual, having it be dismissed completely). You still have thin privilege even if that one guy told you to eat a sandwich. You still have thin privilege even if someone mocked you for being flat-chested/bottomed. Privilege is something that you cannot erase with minor isolated incidents.