I genuinely would like your thoughts on my experience: I am severely underweight. I get gawked at, my health brought up, and insulted because of my body by strangers, relentlessly. When I was obese, I never experienced any of that. I actually received way more compliments when i was overweight and when i was obese than i receive at my current weight. I have been respectful and made no negative comments - I'd appreciate if you could respond in the same manner. Thanks

I’m sorry you are getting negative comments for your appearance–appearance-based society is harsh–but I’m not sure what you’re expecting or hoping for in terms of an answer. One person’s experience, while important to them, is not necessarily reflective of more general trends.

You can read about the damaging and prevalent nature of fatphobia on this and many other blogs, and also in news and scholarly articles. Simply googling the phrases is enough to access these resources, but we’ve linked to them in our FAQ, and @bigfatscience and similar Tumblr blogs make it their entire mission to expose and discuss these resources.

It is well documented that fat people are openly and pervasively discriminated against in many core areas of life like in relationships, in medical situations, in parenting situations, and in employment. It is well documented that fat people are often hated and feared, and that people are taught in many cultural contexts to find fatness disgusting, unappealing, or even morally reprehensible.

I don’t think you really believe your singular experience, which unfortunately is a product of living in an appearance-based society in general, negates all of this other and more general evidence…do you?

If you’d like to discuss body-shaming that goes beyond fat-shaming, there are plenty of thin-centric body positivity blogs and resources out there. So why come here, if not to center thin problems in a fat space? You all took over body positivity…why not fat acceptance, too?

These are the kinds of trolls I’ll never understand. Health concern trolls, keyboard warriors, liftbros, fatpeoplehate denizens, evo psych drones, soldiers of the obesity epipanic, honeymoon dieters–I understand why you think we’re your enemy (though I don’t agree, of course).

But those of you who are picked on for appearance-based features that aren’t related to being fat…why do you think this voids or invalidates what fat people go through? Is it just that you need to be the biggest victim?

I get that in social media spaces it can sound like activists are engaging in a victim mentality by centering our activism around educating people in the ways in which we’re mistreated and discriminated against. Just getting people to take thin privilege seriously was a HUGE thing when we got started. It’s what put this blog on the map, and very controversially.

In the years that followed the founding of TiTP, thin privilege became more of an accepted concept, appearing in “serious” publications like the NYT. But it wasn’t like that at first. We had to work hard and put up with 1) trollwaves, 2) doxxing, 3) entire subreddits dedicated to hating us (hi, former r/fatpeoplehate and current r/fatpeoplestories!), 4) being ghostnoted and suppressed by Tumblr (who has ghostnoted us for over five years now), and Facebook (who banned linking to TiTP a couple of years ago), 5) being flagged as an “unsafe” site in some child-centric safesearch algorithms. And still, we’re here, we’ve persisted and only gained more followers in that time.

How does talking about thin privilege–which is real, and whose existence and attempt to obtain it abuses, oppresses, and kills fat people regularly–hurt you?

Really?

Do you not have empathy for others? Can you not imagine having a different experience other than your own? I remember what it was like to be thin. Why do you think I founded a thin privilege blog? Because I was a thin hot thang from 15 - 25. Before that, I was fat. After that, I was (and am) fat.

I know there’s a whole different set of problems to deal with when you’re thin, particularly when you’re a woman, though sometimes also when you’re a man–my first long-term relationship was with a guy whose BMI was very underweight, who worried about not looking as buff as his lawyer peers and thus competitive with them, who worried about simple stomach flus sending him to the hospital because he didn’t have a lot of weight to spare, who actively attempted to gain weight (which is, when you’re naturally very thin, as hard as losing weight and will come off very quickly as soon as you abandon your regimen).

I know there’s a lot of double-standards about body shape. About being the “right kind” of thin (big boobs and butt, though in my day you were supposed to have big boobs and no butt). About being tall but not too tall (I was always too tall). About wearing tight clothes that weren’t too tight. About the backlash from fatphobia, which is the jealousy and desire of many not-thin people to obtain thin privilege, rearing its head as “thin-shaming”.

I also remember being treated in general like a human being worthy of 1) love, 2) sex, 3) being the heroine in movies and stories, 4) employment, 5) family love and children, 6) appropriate medical treatment. I remember how different all that felt from when I’d been fat before, and how differently I was treated after I was fat again.

How I was visible when I was thin, which sometimes felt bad, like I was too exposed, but was mostly good. Normal. A fellow human being amongst other human beings.

But when I was fat I was invisible in a bad way, like being shunned, and when briefly becoming visible, the anti-hero of some cautionary tale, freak show, or pathetic cry-athon.  There is very, very little good visibility in being fat, when we’re allowed to be visible at all. Just being visible subjects us and our representatives to derision. By being visible we are “glorifying obesity”. Being visible when thin is simply normal human living. The ones who do it really well get paid, simply for by being visible whilst thin. Their stories are seen as aspirational, not cautionary.

I don’t understand the people who come on TiTP to cry thin tears, because you’re a part of this culture as much as I am. If you have even a shred of empathy you’d realize that, at the very least, a blog that talks about all the ways in which being thin is privileged, to the point of putting fat people in danger at the hand of medical professionals and authorities, is not the place to talk about getting catty comments about your thin body.

Why in the world would you ride up in here and expect us to privilege your thin concerns in a place that’s all about criticizing thin privilege?

Go to literally any other body positivity blog. A thin person probably runs it, they’ll publish your complaints.

Complain to literally anyone on the street. You will get a much, much more positive reception to your thin concerns than any fat person talking about fat hatred, abuse, and oppression.

Here? Fucking sit down and listen, for once. You might learn something.

-ArteToLife

Character Profile : Alus

Full Name: Alus Beauregard Pronunciation: Ah-Loose Beau-Regard (IPA: ɑːljuːs boʊɹəɡɑɹd) Nicknames: Alice (dontcallhimthisunlessyouwannagetyelledat) Height: 5′8″ (a few ilms higher with heels, which he wears ALWAYS) Age: ~24 Zodiac: Nald’thal, The Traders (note: Alus’ actual nameday is unknown, this is just his father’s chosen Guardian to represent his twin sons.) Languages: Common, Some Hingan.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

Hair Colour: Golden Blonde Eye Colour: Heterochromia; Right eye is purplish-red, left eye is yellow-gold. Skin Tone: A light tan bronze with a gold-ish undertone. Body Type: Muscular and burly; built for stamina and strength. Long legs. Accent: Some sort of hybrid of the fancy speech of the high Ishgardian nobility and the common (British?) Ul’Dahn. He tends to sprinkle his speech with “thous” and “thees” he picked up as a follower of Urianger, and only ever uses contractions when particularly frustrated or flustered. Dominant Hand: Right-handed Posture: Ridiculously perfect at all times; it actually comes off as too stiff or formal to most people as he practically never lets his posture relax. Scars: Countless large and small upon his chest, back, stomach, arms, thighs... none on his face. He covers evidence of his scars well with his habit of constantly wearing discreet formal clothing. Tattoos: None.

CHILDHOOD.

Place of Birth: Unknown - Found outside Ul’dah, at the church of Saint Adama Landama. Hometown: None; adopted son of a constantly travelling Eorzean merchant. He simply regards the region of Eorzea as his home country. Birth Weight / Height: Unknown. Manner of Birth: Unknown. First Words: Probably something generic like Papa. Siblings: Twin brother to Arc Beauregard; his best friend and partner in adventuring. Parents: Gwenneg Beauregard (Adoptive Father; Deceased) Parental Involvement: His father had a seemingly endless supply of stories for Alus of fantastical tales of knights, princes, and paladins who rescued damsels, protected the weak, and saved the realm from evil over and over again. The family was close and always there for eachother, doing practically everything together - always open, honest, and kind to one another. Alus will never forget his father, nor ever spend a single day not wishing he could see him alive and happy just one more time.

ADULT LIFE

Occupation: Free Paladin, Military Field Medic, and Cafe Proprietor. Current Residence: Sleeping on the too-small couch of his personal Cafe Nobilitea. Close Friends: Arc Beauregard and Urianger; the latter probably thinks of Alus more as an acquaintance. Relationship Status: Single; not really taking dating very seriously right now. Financial Status: Constantly fluctuating; he has a bad habit of giving away his gil to the first random needy person he sees, or spending his pocket money on lavish dyes and glamours. Driver’s License: A rarely used chocobo racing license that qualifies him for high-level racing of the Gold Saucer chocobo races, and a proof of ownership card for his military-issued chocobo. Vices: Gambling, Shopping, Unwanted Lecturing, Rambling

SEX & ROMANCE.

Sexual Orientation: Questioning (Asexual) Romantic Orientation: Panromantic Preferred Emotional Role:  submissive  |  dominant  |  switch  |  unsure Preferred Sexual Role:  submissive  |  dominant  |  switch  |  sex repulsed Libido: As someone absolutely inexperienced with romantic relationships, he believes that sex is an extremely sacred and personal romantic thing between two people deeply in love instead of something done for the simple sensation of pleasure, and becomes extremely flustered when personally talked to about sex. It’s just not something he particularly cares about besides the emotional meaning it may mean to someone he will one day care about. I think he understands some people care about sex more than he does, and he respects that. Turn Ons: Patiently being given the opportunity to take the lead in flirting ; Being able to help people ; Having his hair complimented ; Having a piece of his loose clothing cautiously held on to ; Being open & cheerful about his platonic love and devotion for someone he barely knows, and having that enthusiasm returned. Turn Offs: People entering his close personal space or being touched w/o his permission ; People who betray or lie to their friends and/or allies ; Being ignored ; Violence ; Vulgar language Love Language: When Alus likes a man, he is very upfront about it. He’ll throw around phrases like “I love you!” without restraint, even while barely knowing them. If he’s truly comfortable with someone, he’ll touch them first - Usually just as a hug or holding their arm or hand - That’s his sign to basically say “You can touch me back however you want.”. When he’s romantically interested in a woman, however, he’s the opposite of that confidence - He’s constantly stuttering, looking away, clearing his throat, trying so hard to just form a proper sentence, and squeaking out outright pleas for them to do something to stop being so damn attractive for ONE SECOND just so he can think clearly. He will NEVER touch a girl without her permission first. For nonbinary people, it may depend on if said person is more feminine or masculine. Relationship Tendencies: Alus has never been in a steady romantic relationship before, but I imagine he’s the sort of guy to bring flowers to his loved one every day, insist on cooking for them, constantly shower them in compliments, and greet them with an excited running attack hug. He’s like an excited golden retriever, he loves you so much.

MISCELLANEOUS.

Hobbies to Pass the Time: Shopping, gaming/gambling at the gold saucer, baking, flower arrangement, coordinating new outfits, making simple jewelry, visiting grave sites of fallen acquaintances, and praying at statues of Nald and Thal. Mental Disorders: Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) Physical Illnesses/Disabilities: Minor small segments of numb nerve damage on random small segments on his body. Left or Right Brained: Right brain. Fears: Losing his loved ones, especially his brother ; Slugs & other slimy creatures ; Messing up in battle ; Being directly responsible for the deaths of others through his own negligence ; Being abandoned by all his friends and allies ; Being betrayed Self Confidence Level: Alus actively chooses to see the good in others and himself. He tries so hard to do this that it is practically an obsession; his personal code he will never break. Alus will never lose hope. He can’t lose hope.. Everyone is depending on him. Underneath it all, however, Alus is constantly terrified. He just does his best to think of the optimistic views in situations, and it often actually works for him. Vulnerabilities: His twin brother Arc ; Citizens he’s sworn to protect ; His allies ; His pets ; His acquaintances ; His Cafe ; His gut-reaction to react in absolute flustered embarrassment when aggressively flirted with ; People seeing him without his clothes - viewing the scars all over him in which he believes are grotesquely ugly.

Tagged by: @miqo-vynnie THANK !!!!!! ITS SO FLATTERING THANK ;_;<3

Tagging: I SINCERELY APOLOGIZE IF YOU’VE ALREADY DONE IT BUT @nozomikei @ladyrivienne @sacha-desyre @bookbornexiv @kohaku-son @oleandre-ffxiv @lalaliya  AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO SEES THIS IM SORRY IF I DIDNT TAG YOU ITS NOTHING PERSONAL IM JUST RLY FUCKIN STUPID AND CANT REMEMBER WHOS ACTIVE