ONE SIZE DOESN’T HAVE TO FIT ALL –
Oct. 13, 2021 – Fast-forward to the age of 11. I’m in a bathroom stall with my lunch tray, hovering my knees above the toilet to perfectly balance my meal of 2% milk, carrots and chicken nuggets. My heart is pounding as I keep my ears open to make sure no one walks in. I’m frantic as I put each of the five pieces of chicken into my mouth as quickly as possible. If they don’t see me eating the “unhealthy food,” it doesn’t really count.
From a young age, I felt the eyes around me always looking at my larger body and making it impossible to eat a meal without fear of judgment. For many years I carried that shame with me, and eating any food when someone else was present became a difficult task. When I saw a recent article in The Daily Mail shaming Tess Holliday simply for eating an ice cream bar at Disney World, my immediate thoughts were, “Oh wow, it must have been a slow news day.” I wasn’t surprised to see a picture depicting a fat woman eating in a negative light. Anyone who exists in a marginalized body knows that the vultures are just looking for anything to use to get their message across, or better yet to sell another subscription.
