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What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat

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What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat

By: Aubrey Gordon
Narrated by: Samara Naeymi
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From the creator of Your Fat Friend and co-host of the Maintenance Phase podcast, an explosive indictment of the systemic and cultural bias facing plus-size people.

Anti-fatness is everywhere. In What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat, Aubrey Gordon unearths the cultural attitudes and social systems that have led to people being denied basic needs because they are fat and calls for social justice movements to be inclusive of plus-sized people’s experiences. Unlike the recent wave of memoirs and quasi self-help books that encourage readers to love and accept themselves, Gordon pushes the discussion further towards authentic fat activism, which includes ending legal weight discrimination, giving equal access to health care for large people, increased access to public spaces, and ending anti-fat violence. As she argues, “I did not come to body positivity for self-esteem. I came to it for social justice.”

By sharing her experiences as well as those of others—from smaller fat to very fat people—she concludes that to be fat in our society is to be seen as an undeniable failure, unlovable, unforgivable, and morally condemnable. Fatness is an open invitation for others to express disgust, fear, and insidious concern. To be fat is to be denied humanity and empathy. Studies show that fat survivors of sexual assault are less likely to be believed and less likely than their thin counterparts to report various crimes; 27% of very fat women and 13% of very fat men attempt suicide; over 50% of doctors describe their fat patients as “awkward, unattractive, ugly and noncompliant”; and in 48 states, it’s legal—even routine—to deny employment because of an applicant’s size.

Advancing fat justice and changing prejudicial structures and attitudes will require work from all people. What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat is a crucial tool to create a tectonic shift in the way we see, talk about, and treat our bodies, fat and thin alike. Anthropology Body Positivity Gender Studies Social Sciences Women Discrimination Social justice Health
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An honest look into what it's like to be fat all your life. I also recommend the author's podcast 'Maintenance Phase'.

Great book!

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Absolutely brilliant book. The narration was pitch perfect too. I strongly recommend this to anyone wanting to know how to understand how the world works for fat people, and how to change it.

Brilliant book

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I think everyone should listen to it however I barely could listen to chapter 5&6 because there was a lot of talk about rape and assault and I thought that the author should've given a warning as it can be a an incredibly difficult thing to talk about or listen to.

The book itself is very informative and interesting. it's not what i thought it would be. Also, it is mostly catered to people who live in America though some things apply internationally.

At points I felt guilty for my size, that I am not fat and if I am that I am at the thinner end and I felt a bit excluded but that could be my perception.

I would recommend this book for sure though at points it was hard to listen to.

I think everyone should listen to it however..

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If you’ve ever had to navigate the world in a fat body, you will probably find echos of your own story here, and feel heard and understood. If you haven’t experienced the world in a fat body then reading this, I hope, will help you grow your own understanding and compassion for real people of size. Hopefully together we can build the just world Aubrey dreams of.

Read it

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I never realised what a fat shaming world we live in. this lady's accounts of abuse, hatred are just heart breaking this book is a massive eye opener

A must read !!!!

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