Equality is Embodied, Oppression is Violence

It is becoming clearer and clearer to me that Feminism, or the general fight for equality is a totally embodied fight. The oppression of women and all oppressed people is largely an attack on their bodies and an attempt to control those bodies. I could get all Foucaulty with this but I wont, because it is simple really.

When you help to prop up standards of appearance and bodily existence you create a narrow (literally) mould by which we measure people. The more you fit within this mould, the more you are treated as a human being worthy of rights and respect. If you don’t fit the mould, your body is more likely to be subjected to violence. For example, we all pretty much agree that women’s bodies have been more scrutinized and therefore controlled (e.g. abortion and contraceptive rights, forced marriage, FGM, etc) than men’s bodies. I think its safe to say that this sense of a right to control women’s bodies and not just consider their rights basic human rights is because we have historically considered women less human and individual and more like public property. They are our mothers and daughters and in order to protect them we must control their bodies FOR THEIR OWN GOOD. Most of you will be familiar with this misogynistic and sexist rhetoric disguised as morality. It results in the mistreatment of women’s bodies to a really horrific level. This is what all sexist culture and rhetoric does: it is complicit in violence towards women and belittles the seriousness of violence towards them. The problem is when people who understand why THAT is wrong, do not understand why it is similarly wrong to seek to control people’s bodies in other ways. I’m talking about fat people. Being obese actually is far less of an issue to others than STDs and teenage pregnancy, for example. In BOTH cases if we assume that restricting and shaming is helpful here’s how it goes:

We tell teenagers that they are disgusting for wanting to have sex and should not have sex= teenagers get more STDs and get pregnant more often because they don’t know how to protect themselves and feel ashamed of asking.

We tell fat people they are disgustingly unhealthy and need to stop eating so much and get off the sofa= fat people feel victimized and bullied, end up hating their bodies and therefore treat their bodies like shit by eating a pile of crap and never getting off the sofa. OR they get an eating disorder and develop serious health problems related to that.

NEW SOLUTION

We tell teenagers its their choice whether they have sex or not, we tell them how to not get STDs or get pregnant, we respect their bodily autonomy=less teenagers get up pregnant or contract STDs.

We stop going on about people being fat and start appreciating all bodies (including fat bodies) for their beauty, abilities, and the human being they carry around = people are more likely to treat their bodies with kindness and respect, eat food that is beneficial to their health, get out of the house more, exercise, and therefore actually have better health. They may still be fat and not lose any weight, they may gain weight, but they will be healthier than they were.

But this is a bit simplistic, no? Since when is personal health something you can demand from someone else? Just like any other bodily choice (tattoos, sexual activity, clothing) this is something that people don’t really have a right to be concerned about. When you show ‘concern’ for obese people and urge them to lose weight, what you are really doing is finding a reason to demand weight loss from them because you DON’T WANT TO SEE FAT PEOPLE. I said it. You don’t like looking at fat people because for a million reasons it makes you uneasy. You REALLY don’t like looking at fat people who aren’t hiding their fatness. That’s really scary. It’s like a closet racist who feels uneasy when Obama’s on TV, like, its ok if you see a black guy on the bus but when you see one who has got the NERVE to be president that just irks you so much more.

But let’s get back to bodies. Racism and Colonialism is a clear example to illustrate it. So when people started theorising using a SCIENCE that non whites were inferior, their bodies became fair game. They were enslaved, raped, lynched, THEIR BODIES WERE TOTALLY VIOLATED AND DEHUMANISED. And right now its that same phenomenon reformulated with this crazy capitalism whereby we ALLOW bodies of those oppressed, non-white and non-western people to be exploited, abused, killed, raped. It’s everywhere, Mexicans in the USA, untouchables in India. We don’t hear news reports on the faceless people killed by drone strikes in Pakistan or bombs in Iraq, but every single person killed in the twin towers was painstaking identified and their families compensated financially (of course this terrorist attack was CERTAINLY a tragedy but I ask that all unjust killing be treated with the same reverence). It seems odd to compare this to fatphobia but they are born from the SAME SYSTEM.  A million other oppressions could be named and discussed in relation to these but I think you’ve got the picture now!

We need to stop supporting some bits of this system of bodily exploitation, control, and degradation while purporting to fight other parts. If you fat-shame people and then say you are a feminist, THINK HARDER. 

Liv writes fat and Feminism and everything in between!

Our amazing talk on Thursday is fast approaching!

This is the event on Facebook!

Here two awesome pieces taken from our speaker, Liv's, blog! Her writing is really diverse but I've focussed on two about fatphobia to relate to our talk

Hope to see you there!

You Don't Look Fat

When thinner people (especially people I love) tell me I ‘don’t look fat’ I get real mad.

Because aside from the fact that it is a huge part of my recovery to see and love myself and my body as fat - not curvy, not chubby, not thick, but FAT - it’s also reaffirming that this person thinks of fat as an abstract concept, in the most harmful way, as what it isn’t.

It is telling me that you think fat people = unfashionable, lazy, gross, smelly, unkempt, ugly, un sexy, [add infinite number of negative things here].

What I’m hearing is ‘You cannot be a fat person and not be those things’ .

Well let me tell you something.

I am a fat person.

I am counted as obese by the medical industry.

I weigh 225lbs at least, and stand at 5”9.

I am a dress size 16-20 depending on the store, on average a size 18.

Did you notice that that list contains NO inherently negative descriptors? It is just pure representation of fact, and WE attatch negatives to those facts because of attitudes WE carry around with us.

I am all of those facts, but I am not all of those negative things, let alone any of those negative things BECAUSE I am fat.

When people tell me “but you don’t look like a size 18/fat/obese etc.”,  all I am hearing is “you don’t LOOK like my preconceptions of what size 18s look like” and we all know what those preconceptions are, because we (especially women) are all made to internalise them regardless of our own body type, and fear them, and avoid them at all costs. You expect a size 18 to look ‘bigger’ or ‘less ..X..’ because you have internalised a perverted and warped idea of what the basic definition of ‘fat’ is – a high amount of adipose tissue. That’s all it is. Being a size ..X.. is all that that is. Being X does not necessitate Y. You are perpetuating the false notion that fat = unattractive/unappealing/unhealthy/etc. and that any attractive fat people are attractive in spite of their fatness. As if fatness was something that should be excused, or apologised for, or looked over, explained away, justified, or euphemised.

If someone is standing in front of you and they tell you they are dress size X, then that dress size is what they look like.

Can well-meaning thin people stop saying this to us?

It is NOT a compliment. It is not the right thing to say.

And the fact that you think it is one is one big fat problem.

I will not euphemise my body for your discomfort.

QUIT IT BEFORE I EAT EVERYTHING YOU LOVE.

_________________________________________________________________________

Some Thoughts on Thin Privilege and Employment

Thin Privilege is not worrying that you will be turned down for any job because your potential employer will perceive your weight as being synonymous with “lazy”

Thin Privilege is being able to apply confidently for jobs in the clothing retail sector, unaware that many fat people don’t even bother most of the time, as one glance at their weight marks them as instantly “unfashionable” by the majority of employers, regardless of how on point their personal style is.

Thin privilege is being able to apply for jobs where uniforms are mandatory as the uniform will undoubtedly be carried in your size.

Thin privilege is being able to find cheap interview outfits because more stores cater to smaller sizes.

Thin privilege is being perceived as “put together” when the reality is “I rolled out of bed and landed in this” because people have been conditioned to believe clothes look better and more expensive on thin bodies.

Thin privilege is not turning up to interview to be turned away after five minutes of non-relevant questions as your interviewer has already judged you as unsuitable due to their false weight-based assumptions and prejudices.

Thin privilege is not discovering a less qualified, less experienced, thin person got the job you were up for, probably because of negative assumptions based on your weight.

Thin privilege is not being considered “bad for business”, because of your weight, when working in the service sector.

Thin privilege is being relegated to stock room work because your weight is seen as ugly and your boss needs a people-pleaser up front, despite your incredible people skills and service experience.

Thin privilege is being paid more than your fat co-workers for doing the same job -  because of your weight.

Thin privilege is being regarded as “more professional” than your fat co-workers, thereby progressing further and quicker in your chosen career, due to others’ weight-based prejudices.

Thin privilege is not having to worry about unfair dismissal based on your weight.

Thin privilege is not being called irrational or neurotic when you voice these real concerns to your friends, family, and most importantly, your employers.

Thin privilege is being unaware of all of the above.

___________________________________________________________________________

I KNOW THIS IS UNHEARD OF but the Fashion Industry is Super Racist

By Umber Ghauri

Still processing the commentary I’ve been reading online about the October 2009 Vogue Paris photoshoot of Lara Stone. In case you didn’t know she was made to appear black. Was it racist? OH YES and here’s why:

Why not use a black model?

Many comments focus on the idea that these images are a positive and beautiful representation of blackness. If so why was it necessary to use a white model? I feel Vogue’s choice of Lara Stone was implying that a black model wouldn’t have produced photographs as good as the white model. THAT’S RACIST GUYS. Also let’s consider the fact that only white models were used in that issue, and many other issues of Vogue. This means white models are getting paid to be black and black models are getting squat for being black.

It’s racist to paint white people black.

It just is. Many commentators wrote that this is a double standard. I think its pretty damn racist to make black models appear white too. So, no, its not. Also EDUCATE YOURSELF on the history of blackface.

This photoshoot doesn’t exist in a vacuum

The mainstream fashion industry, especially Vogue, does racist things all the bloody time. There was the lovely photoshoot with Anja Rubik in Vogue Italia 2009 where the token black woman was her maid. There’s that fact that Prada didn’t use a single black runway model between 1997 and 2008. There’s Manolo Blahnik refusing to have Vibe photograph his shoes until black supermodel Iman called him personally. Less than 1% of Vogue covers have featured a non-white person. In 1999 top executives from Elle model management were filmed saying Africa would be a better place if it was full of white people and that a black or ‘Oriental’ model would never work on a Milan runway. They represented Naomi Campbell at the time. Karl Lagerfeld photographed Claudia Schiffer in blackface AND yellowface in 2010.  Jean-Paul Guerlain said in 2010 that he worked ‘harder than a n****r’ to make his perfumes. Victoria’s secret recently launched a lingerie line called ‘Go East’ featuring white models in eroticised ‘ethnic’ costume. Even when sexualizing exoticness, black and minority ethnic women aren’t palatable enough so they dress up white models to look a bit like them. Victoria’s Secret messed up in 2010 too when they did a ‘Wild’ segment in which they put all 8 of their non-white models (out of 34 models) in ‘tribal’-looking body paint surrounded by black men painted in a similar manner. The same show’s country barn segment featured one non white model. They also stuck a Native American headdress on Karlie Kloss, offending tons of Native Americans who consider the headdress to be a symbol of honour and spirituality, not titillation. A third of Native American women are raped in their lifetime. 85% of those women are raped by a non-native. We can thank Victoria’s Secret for adding to a culture which objectifies and eroticises those women. BUT I DIGRESS.

I really could keep going for a long long time.

ARE WE CONVINCED ITS RACIST YET?

Sources:

 http://www.complex.com/style/2012/09/a-history-of-racism-in-fashion/

http://i.huffpost.com/gen/853334/thumbs/o-KARLIE-KLOSS-570.jpg?5

http://cdn.trendhunterstatic.com/thumbs/racist-editorials-vogue-italia-stereotypes-a-black-woman-as-a-maid.jpeg

http://colorlines.com/archives/2010/12/victoria_secrets_fashion_show_saves_all_the_dark_skinned_models_for_wild_things_segment.html

http://i.imgur.com/SUZqa.jpg

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/11/13/victoria-secret-apologizes-after-use-native-american-headdress-in-fashion-show/

http://www.racialicious.com/2012/09/06/victorias-secret-does-it-again-when-racism-meets-fashion/

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/racist-editorials-vogue-italia-stereotypes-a-black-woman-as-a-maid

http://stylefrizz.com/200909/lara-stones-black-vogue-paris-october-2009/

Let the Fatties Rise

As a thin woman it seems odd that I would feel strongly about fatphobia to most people. For some reason people think it odder than being straight and caring about LGBTQ oppression, being rich and caring about poverty, or being white and caring about racism. So here I will explain my personal encounters with fatphobia and fat resistance.

Like most women I’ve had to face criticism directed at my body. At 11 years old my father saw my protruding stomach and told me I must lose weight because he was worried about my health and the fact that I wouldn’t be able share clothes with my thin cousins. I wasn’t even fat. I’ve never been fat, but I feel as though I have. Despite never being larger than a size 10 I have felt a sense of achievement when I’ve lost weight and a sense of failure when I’ve gained weight. This is a common experience for most people, and I was lucky enough to never develop an eating disorder. I believe I didn’t because of the fat women around me.

My grandmother was fat. She was always fat. She was also the person whom I loved most and who loved me most. When you love someone, their body becomes yours and you love it the way you should love your own. In every fold you find a warm place to hide, a place that is only love. I knew she would eventually die, probably before me, but I never imagined it would happen quite the way it did. So when in the last years of her life a heart consultant told her to eat only one apple a day until she ‘looks like a supermodel’ I was rightly enraged. Later a heart surgeon refused to operate on her because she was obese. This led to irreparable damage that killed her a year later. Not only did the consultant essentially ask her to starve herself, he disregarded her diabetes, meaning if she didn’t eat often enough, her life would be at risk. If she had listened to this respected doctor, she would’ve accidentally killed herself very quickly. My overwhelming concern was for her health but it seemed that those most qualified to save her hated her body because it was fat. Of course the consultant’s advice was incredibly sexist too, advising a woman to ‘look like a supermodel’. It seemed obvious it was her appearance he wanted to fix and make acceptable, not her failing heart.

What I felt about her body was something I hadn’t heard anywhere else and found hard to understand myself. I was horrified by how they threatened her dignity, how they shamed her and how they made a body which I so loved, seem like something wrong that needed to drastically change. Was it perverse of me to love her softness, her round face, her strong thick wrists? It was confusing to me that those who didn’t know her could ever find anything wrong with the body that had fed me, protected me, held me. I loved that she was fat. Why was it so hard to understand loving a fat body not DESPITE its fatness but without conditions?

Recently I’ve discovered fat resistance, fatshion and body positivism. They are a whole new space where there is no fear of fat, no repulsion, no conditions for loving a body. Regardless of my thinness, it has made me look at my body as something entirely different. I smile at my tiger stripes (stretch marks), feel the comfort of my round belly, and see the life in my jiggling flesh. Suddenly clothes aren’t there to be ‘flattering’ but to decorate and celebrate your body. Clothes that are bright and cling to your round belly and let your fat be free and unbound by spanx. Here I see bejeweled bodies that move, that sag, that take up space, and demand attention.  

So this is my thank you to fat women who love their bodies and have taught me how to love mine in the face of violent hatred and fear or fatness, internal and external.

Umber Ghauri, head of Courtauld Equality

Reflecting on the Vagenda discussion

Nerves and adrenaline seem to have nullified most of my memories of the BA interview day. However, what did seem to resonate was when a BA3 tour guide describing the likelihood of future student romances. ''Basically, we're 80% girls here and most of the guys are gay. In that case, I'd recommend looking outside the campus for any relationships.''
At that point I was slightly taken aback to what seemed to be blatant stereotyping from the mouthpiece of an academic Institute. Surely such flippancy was single minded, if not improper? It was also apparent that there mustn't be any smoke without fire.
Could it be true that there is a ubiquitous quality in studying art that attracts more gay men and women? Certainly it is bigoted to subscribe to the idea that 'poofs just like pretty pictures’? I'm pretty sure that the Courtauld gay population doesn't similarly 'die for' a matinee performance of Wicked after a lovely day of sparkles and shopping.

In this case, I think it is necessary to consider what makes an art historian and whether these reflect the experiences that define many gay people.
An LGBT person spends a lot of their youth attracted to someone they are told their gender shouldn't. Unrequited crushes in the playground may make one ponder why they like Francis rather than Frances. What is it in the body’s chemistry and brain’s mathematics that makes an XY pair of chromosomes more appealing? An LGBT person may already have spent a lot of time pondering the taboo in beauty and gender. It is with these eyes, an LGBT person doesn't take the Odalisque or Apollo Belvedere for granted as just sexy people, but symbols; symbols of the relationship between Zeitgeist and attraction. It is in their position, an LGBT person can begin to cynicise, analyse and scrutinize the construct of desire. It is a position that has been shared by names from Leonardo to Wincklemann to Leibovitz.
A careers adviser isn't likely to tell us that Art History is the most employable degree. Coming out as an art historian frequently meets the timeless snort of derision, or being questioned whether it is a subject for 'arty people who can't paint?'
It takes a tolerant and brave individual to pursue such a condemnable degree in a tide of economic bedlam and a gale of public ignorance. Wading through a gale of public ignorance is commonplace for many LGBT people.
It may not be just an art History student that may be 'queer.' Art history is queer. It is natural that the two seem to collide and an asset to the Courtauld that they have. That includes you, Brian Sewell.

Giorgio Grande, Courtauld Student

Why did Umber start this rather vague society?

Equality is a deceptively simple word that has defied application throughout history, because inequality is so often the result of a series of silences and omissions, things that don’t occur. Deeper in contrast with the shallow victories of changes in law or changes in politically correct terminology, to name two examples. This society aims to fight silence. I want to know what you think of the Courtauld, philosophy, the leveson enquiry, porn, books, marriage, gay marriage, global warming, tax, ‘ethnic’ printed scarves, femfresh, Ingres, colonialism, etc, etc, basically anything.

The hesitation to express one’s oppressive experiences (big and small) often lies in a fear of inadequacy. Someone’s always worse off, and we’ve all been very lucky on the whole. However, failing to express and therefore failing to value the array of experience that comes with difference (whether that difference is due to gender, sexuality, disability, race, class, or a myriad of others) is to waste that experience, its to deny and devalue your life. In order to be taken seriously or viewed as intelligent we so regularly decide that our ideas are not as valuable as the ideas of those on our reading list, people who are older, richer, and more normal or more weird (the ‘I’m weird but not weird enough to be interesting’ insecurity is more common than you think). Something that is consistently reinforced by a plethora of authorities that systematically drown out our voices. Here is an opportunity to say what you want to say without risking a bad mark.

Why is your voice important at all?

Because allowing yourself to speak allows others to speak and therefore (quite selfishly, perhaps) you benefit from hearing other people’s voices (you also might quite like expressing yourself, which is great). Yes, Roland Barthes has a lot of great ideas which we should read about, but we all know that academic reading lists are dominated by white men. Now there’s nothing wrong with white men, clearly they have some fantastic and vital ideas and experiences, but don’t you want to know other things too? Don’t you want to know what an equally intelligent queer, adopted, disabled black woman (for example) thinks of Mark Rothko? Politically it is important to understand how certain aspects of society affect the most vulnerable but it is also just interesting. It frustrates me that I’m missing out on hearing what so many people think about things I think about too, how am I supposed to have better ideas if I cant steal yours? It also frustrates me that people think I’m playing the gender card or the race ‘card’ if I mention an instance of being treated differently. Being treated differently is a problem, but it can be a productive one if it is discussed. My experience is great, but I’m greedy, I want to hear how your world is different to mine (but equal, of course).

What do I want from you?

I want you to get in touch with me, tell me an idea you have for a video, an article, a poem, whatever, or send me something you’ve already done. If Giorgio and I think its up to scratch we’ll post it on the blog. Alternatively, I want to arrange talks, debates, lectures, performances, basically events. If you have an idea for one please let me know.

If you want to take on an active, regular role in this society get in touch, we will probably need more hands as we grow.