"Queering Fat Embodiment" (tentative title) - anthology - call for papers

Call for Papers

Tentative title: Queering Fat Embodiment

Type: Edited book

Submission deadline: January 15th, 2012

Contacts and editors:

Samantha Murray Samantha.murray@mq.edu.au (Main contact)

Cat Pausé c.pause@massey.ac.nz

Jackie Wykes wykesj@unimelb.edu.au

Scope:

Against the backdrop of the ever-growing medicalisation and pathologisation of fatness, the field of Fat Studies has emerged in recent years to offer an interdisciplinary critical interrogation of the dominant medical models of health, to give voice to the lived experience of fat bodies, and to offer critical insights into, and investigations of, the ethico-political implications of the cultural meanings that have come to be attached to fat bodies. This focus on the regulation, discipline and representation of fat bodies make it critically invaluable to the advancement of scholarship on embodiment.

This edited collection seeks to publish recent scholarship that embraces ‘queering’ as a mode of critical engagement in examining fat embodiment. Queer is a heterogeneous and multidisciplinary practice aimed at ‘bringing forth’ and thus denaturalising the taken for granted, the invisible, the normalized. This collection seeks to challenge and destabilise existing ideas of fat and fat embodiment both outside of and within the emerging field of Fat Studies. This volume will bring together scholarship from various disciplines in order to examine the ways in which fat embodiment is lived, experienced, regulated and (re)produced across a range of cultural sites and contexts. In queering established ideas about fat bodies, and presenting challenging inquiries/inqueeries into these notions, this collection will represent an innovative and critically invaluable contribution to the advancement of scholarship on fatness, and indeed on embodiment more generally.

Topics may include but are not limited to:

• fat activism and embodiment

• fat mental and physical health

• queer(y)ing ‘hard data’ on fatness/obesity science

• queer(y)ing health policies related to fat

• cross-cultural or global constructions of fat bodies

• cultural, historical, or philosophical meanings of fat and fat bodies

• fat embodiment in literature, film, music, nonfiction, and the visual arts

• fat as queering sex, beauty, gender, and other embodied performances

• fat sexuality

• fat materialities

• fat and space

• fat and biopolitics

• fat and citizenship

• fat and neoliberalism

• fatness and consumption

Please note that we are already in the process of completing a proposal to submit to publishers, which we will complete based on the submissions we receive. We have had some preliminary interest from publishers, but as yet, we have not secured a contract.

Full paper submissions are due January 15, 2012. Articles should range between 15 and 20 double-spaced pages. Please send submissions, along with an abstract of your paper and a brief biographical sketch, directly to Samantha.murray@mq.edu.au.

Popular & American Culture Associations conference (2012) - Fat Studies area - call for papers

My partner Julia McCrossin co-chairs the Fat Studies area of the Popular & American Culture Associations with Lesleigh Owen. Here's their CFP (call for papers) for next year's national conference (April 2012, Boston -- Julia should be living here with me by then, and I plan to attend the con for the first time; I'm also hoping to present).

PCA/ACA Fat Studies 2012 Call for Papers

Fat Studies is becoming an interdisciplinary, cross-disciplinary field of study that confronts and critiques cultural constraints against notions of “fatness” and “the fat body”; explores fat bodies as they live in, are shaped by, and remake the world; and creates paradigms for the development of fat acceptance or celebration within mass culture. Fat Studies uses body size as the starting part for a wide-ranging theorization and explication of how societies and cultures, past and present, have conceptualized all bodies and the political/cultural meanings ascribed to every body. Fat Studies reminds us that all bodies are inscribed with the fears and hopes of the particular culture they reside in, and these emotions often are mislabeled as objective “facts” of health and biology. More importantly, perhaps, Fat Studies insists on the recognition that fat identity can be as fundamental and world-shaping as other identity constructs analyzed within the academy and represented in media.

Proposals in the area of Fat Studies are being accepted for the 2012 PCA /ACA (Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association) National Conference in Boston, MA (April 11-14, 2011, meeting after, not before, Easter Sunday), at the Marriott Boston Copley Place. We welcome papers and performances from academics, researchers, intellectuals, activists, artists, and others, in any field of study, and at any stage in their career. We also welcome panels and roundtables on a variety of topics under the heading “Fat Studies.”

Topics may include but are not limited to:

- representations of fat people in literature, film, music, nonfiction, and the visual arts

- cross-cultural or global constructions of fatness and fat bodies

- cultural, historical, inter/intrapersonal, or philosophical meanings of fat and fat bodies

- the geography and lived experience of fatness and fat bodies

- portrayals of fat individuals and groups in news, media, magazines

- fatness as a social or political identity

- fat acceptance, activism, and/or pride movements and tactics

- approaches to fat and body image in philosophy, psychology, religion, sociology

- fat children in literature, media, and/or pedagogy

- fat as it intersects with race, ethnicity, class, religion, ability, gender, and/or sexuality

- history and/or critique of diet books and scams

- functions of fatphobia or fat oppression in economic and political systems

By December 15, 2011, please send an abstract of 100 - 250 words or a completed

paper to Fat Studies Area Co-Chairs Julia McCrossin (jmccross@gwmail.gwu.edu)

and Lesleigh Owen (goddess_les@yahoo.com).

Please include your complete contact information and a CV and/or 50 word bio, along with anticipated A/V needs. All submissions are welcome, but please use the information above to ensure your paper fits within the academic and political scopes of Fat Studies. Please also be mindful that Fat Studies is a political project and not merely an umbrella term for all discussions of larger bodies. Also, we encourage submitters to rethink using words like “obesity” and “overweight” in their presentations unless they are used ironically, within quotes, or accompanied by a political analysis.

Presenters must become members of the Popular Culture Association. Find more information on the conference and organization at

http://pcaaca.org/conference/national.php.

The 5th annual Transgender Religious Leaders Summit is November 3rd through 5th, in Berkeley California!

The 5th annual Transgender Religious Leaders Summit is November 3rd through 5th, in Berkeley California!

UPCOMING EVENT

Fifth Annual Transgender Religious Leaders Summit 2011

Hosted by CLGS, The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry

Pacific School of Religion, 1798 Scenic Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94709

November 3rd to November 5th, 2011

The 2011 Transgender Religious Leaders Summit is an ecumenical meeting of faith leaders who identify as transgender, gender-queer and inter-sexed, and their allies. It is an opportunity to connect with leaders of all faith communities and, through sharing, to celebrate our common heritage while learning to appreciate and respect our differences. This year’s Summit is a retreat-style meeting of transgender faith leaders from across the United States and Canada.

For Information and to Register with EventBrite, log onto the www.CLGS.org Site:

http://trans-religious-summit.eventbrite.com/

Complete Information at CLGS:

http://www.clgs.org/events/transgender-religious-leaders-summit-2011

The 2010 Summit was an very fulfilling and enlightening time. This year should be even better yet! If you missed last year, don't miss this year's event!

Hope to see you there!

Randall Klein Bernie Schlager
Light in the Closet Ministry CLGS

FOR INFORMATION CALL: 925-586-4651

Email: rklein@lightinthecloset.org

Light in the Closet Ministry, PO BOX 1208, Oakley CA 94561

www.lightinthecloset.org

MTPC - 10th anniversary event - October 6th

MTPC's 10th anniversary event "eXtatic (Growing On 10 Years)" is Thursday, October 6th!

Website page:

http://www.masstpc.org/events/10year/

Facebook event:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=210033755711887

Today's e-newsletter:

http://community.icontact.com/p/masstpc/newsletters/mtpc/posts/its-mtpcs-10-year-anniversary-party-youre-invited

Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition

Did you know... MTPC is turning 10 year's old and we are having a partyto celebrate!

Join us on Thursday, October 6, 2011 7-11 pm at Club Oberon 2 Arrow St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq) Refreshments will be served; Cash bar Featuring performances from: Lorelei Erisis - is not just Miss Trans New England 2009 but is a Professional TransWoman, Second City Trained Improviser, Performer and Filmmaker. Maggie Cee - is the artistic director of the Femme Show and is an artist, activist, and teacher committed to community, social change, and sequins. Johnny Blazes - was named “one of Boston’s rising stars” by Stuff Magazine, Johnny Blazes is known for hir genre-bending, gender-blending, tongue-in-cheek performances. Ze regularly performs at TraniWreck. Lakia Mondale - is one of Boston's Legendary Performers, she is the 2010 Boston Pride Queen, regularly performs at Jaques Caberat and for many community events and fundraisers. There will also be a special showing of I AM: Trans People Speak videos and dancing to follow with DJ Tre'Andre of Two Trans Guys and an iPod! Ticket Pricing: $15 Student/Activist $35 Individual $50 Pair Buy your tickets in advance at www.masstpc.org/10. Tickets will also be available at the door. No one turned away for lack of funds. Thank you to our sponsors: Angel: Patron: Marcia Garber Promoter: Joan M. Fund, Esq. Kathleen Henry If you are interested in becoming an event sponsor, please contact theadora@masstpc.org or visit our webpage. DONATE NOW

Our Mission MTPC is dedicated to ending discrimination on the basis gender identity and gender expression We envision a world where persons of all genders are treated with respect and fully participate in all areas of society, free from fear of prohibition, harassment or violence based on their gender identity and/or expression. To that end we educate the public, advocate with state, local, and federal government, engage in political activism, and encourage empowerment of community members through collective action. LEARN MORE » Come Join Us Become A Donor Be a part of MTPC and our work in making Massachusetts a state that has equal rights for all transgender youth and adults. Join us today by donating what you can to keep us going in fighting for your friends, your family, your neighbors, and for yourself. You can make a one-time donation, become a monthly donor, or join our new Movement Builder Circle. Which every way you give, you will be helping us to change how transgender youth, adults, and their families are treated in Massachusetts. LEARN MORE »

Follow us on and see what we are tweeting about on @masstpc MTPC | PO Box 301897, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130 | (617) 778-0519 info@masstpc.org

National NAAFA convention - today through Monday!

The national NAAFA convention starts today, and continues through Monday! (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance.) I’m sad that I’m not going. But I’m happy that my partner -- Julia McCrossin, the Fat Studies scholar -- gets to see some of her favorite fat community members because they’ll be in Washington DC for the con.

http://www.naafaonline.com/convention2011//index.html

• About Us
• Vendors
• Schedule
• Registration
• Home

Welcome to The NAAFA 2011 Convention Site!!

NAAFA is the world's oldest, largest civil rights organization working to improve the lives of people of size. We would love for you to come celebrate with us in the beautiful Washington DC Area at our annual fund-raising convention.
It will be held August 4 - August 8, 2011 at the The Westin Washington Dulles Airport

Quicklinks

• Buy Your Convention Package
• Book Your Room
• NAAFA Fashion Show
• Fashion Design Scholarship
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Join NAAFA

---

• Contact Us
• Donate
• Join
• User Agreement

Copyright NAAFA Inc. 2011

Massachusetts anti-discrimination bill would add weight & height!

Here in Massachusetts, a weight and height anti-discrimination bill has been reintroduced! An Act Making Discrimination On The Basis Of Weight And Height Unlawful -- House Bill 539 (http://www.malegislature.gov/Bills/187/House/H00539). It would amend state laws prohibiting discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or ancestry -- by adding height and weight to the unlawful forms of discrimination.

The bill is having a public hearing before the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development TODAY! I can’t attend; I submitted my testimony in writing. Please call and write your legislators, and spread the word! Too many people are ignorant about the issues, especially the weight-based ones – or are supportive but assume weight and height are already included in MA law (as they should be). And there’s been too little local support since the death of the primary local anti-weight discrimination leader a few years ago. This bill is one of the projects my partner (Julia McCrossin, Fat Studies scholar) and I plan to work on after she moves here this fall.

Submit your supportive testimony as a letter to:

Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

State House -- Room 39

Boston, MA 02133

And to:

Rep. Byron Rushing's (bill sponsor) Legislative Aide -- Tracy Choi

Tracy.Choi@state.ma.us | 617.722.2006

She is also the contact person for more information about the bill.

If you are a constituent of a committee member, call or email them -- tell them you support this bill and ask them to support it.

If you are a constituent of a sponsor of the bill, call or email them – thank them for sponsoring the bill.

Ask others to do all of the above – please feel free to use this post.

Here are my previous posts:

http://masadarts.blogspot.com/2010/01/massachusetts-height-weight-anti.html

http://masadarts.blogspot.com/2010/01/my-testimony-re-massachusetts-height.html

Here’s my testimony that I submitted today:

July 14, 2011

Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

State House -- Room 39

Boston, MA 02133

Dear Committee,

My name is Mycroft Holmes, and I live and work in greater Boston, where I was born and have always lived. I love Boston and the rest of Massachusetts; this great city and state have always been my home and I hope they always will be.

I’m an interfaith leader, and have been for many years. I’m Chair of the Interfaith Coalition for Transgender Equality (ICTE), a member of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition’s (MTPC) Steering Committee and Chair of MTPC’s Faith Committee, and the Emeritus Founding Chair of Keshet’s Transgender Working Group (TWiG); I’m also a board member of Congregation Am Tikva (Brookline).

I write to you in support of An Act Making Discrimination On The Basis Of Weight And Height Unlawful -- House Bill 539. I testified before you in person in support of this bill (then House Bill 1850) at its hearing during the last legislative session (last January 27th). I also read the testimony of attorney Sondra Solovay, who could not attend as she lives and works in California. I regret that I am unable to attend today’s hearing, largely due to the extremely short notice.

This bill would amend current state laws prohibiting discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or ancestry -- by adding height and weight to the list of unlawful forms of discrimination. In all but one state and three cities in this country, weight is not included in anti-discrimination or hate crimes laws. How can Massachusetts still not be one of those states? How can we not change this during this legislative session?

My faiths teach that like Adam, the first human being, all people are made btzelem Elohim – in the image of God -- people of all sizes, shapes, weights and heights. Our infinite diversity of bodies and their changes over our lifetimes are gifts and blessings -- meant to be realized, expressed, and enjoyed. God created and loves us all. We are all created equal, and should be equally protected by the law.

In my personal and professional life, I have experienced, witnessed and researched a great deal of discrimination – especially in employment. Much of it has been based on physical appearance and information, particularly height and weight. This discrimination is wrong, terribly damaging to everyone involved, and occurs many times every day in every part of our state. It must be ended as soon as possible, and HB 539 will help end it. The bill is also an important educational tool – its implementation process will help dispel the overwhelming and growing ignorance and misinformation about height and weight. I won’t go into detail, as you will be given expert testimony about these issues from my colleagues – ample evidence of the significant and urgent need for this legislation.

My wonderful life partner and I are the same height, 5’7”, and she weighs more than twice what I do – I am 135, she more than 300; I have always been thin, she has always been fat. Despite a lifetime of discrimination and other mistreatment, much of it based on her weight, she remains happy and healthy, mentally and physically, and a good and productive citizen. She is a published academic who is very active in her field of English. She works as a entry associate at the National Cathedral and is a member of other faith communities, and gives time and money to social justice organizations. She has been and is a tremendous blessing to her family, friends, colleagues, teachers, students, and all those who have been fortunate enough to know her, or indeed know of her.

She is a native and lifelong resident of Maryland and Washington DC -- where height and weight are protected classes in the Human Rights Laws. She has been visiting me here in Massachusetts for two years; in May she graduated from George Washington University with her second Master’s degree, and plans to move to Boston this fall so that we can find our first home and begin the next part of our life together. We have much to offer my great state. But we are both challenged by employment discrimination, and we fear discrimination in credit, housing, public accommodations and public education. We need An Act Making Discrimination On The Basis Of Weight And Height Unlawful to pass into law.

I want my partner to have full civil rights whenever she’s here. I want her to be able to continue to live, work and play as well even better than she has done, contributing even more to my home state than to her own. I want this for all residents and visitors of Massachusetts. I don’t want anyone to experience discrimination – but I know that some will, and I want them to be able to take appropriate action. I urge you to do everything you can to pass this vital and long overdue legislation during this session.

Thank you,

Mycroft Holmes

{address and email}

"Fat Studies: A Journal Of Research" - call for papers

"Fat Studies: A Journal Of Research" is calling for papers! The deadline for the first issue was Friday, July 1st. The deadline for the second issue is Tuesday, November 1st. The first issue will be published next year, 2012. Pricing information for subscriptions is not available yet. There will be institutional pricing and pricing for individuals. My partner Julia McCrossin is on the editorial board, and we are so looking forward to the first issue.

Here's the flyer:

http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/57308795?access_key=key-yvsfmmd25u56zmyb495

And here's the flyer's text:

CALL FOR PAPERS

FAT STUDIES

A Journal of Research

New for 2012

Editor: Esther Rothblum, PhD

Women’s Studies Department, MC 6030

San Diego State University

5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego, CA 92182

Email: erothblu@mail.sdsu.edu

Fat Studies: A Journal of Research is the first academic journal in the field of scholarship that critically examines theory, research, and societal attitudes about body weight and appearance, and that advocates equality for all people with respect to body size. The focus of the journal is on why fat people are oppressed and who benefits from that oppression. In that regard, the journal is similar to journals from other academic disciplines that focus on race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, or age.

Content will include original research and overviews exploring the intersection of gender, race/ethnicity, sexuality, age, ability, and socioeconomic status on nutrition and the Health at Every Size model, legal issues, the pharmaceutical industry, psychology, sociology, cultural studies, literature, pedagogy, art, theatre, popular culture, media studies and activism.

WHAT IS FAT STUDIES?

Fat Studies is a field of scholarship that critically examines societal attitudes about body weight and appearance, and that advocates equality for all people with respect to body size. Fat studies seeks to remove the negative associations that society has about fat and the fat body. It regards weight, like height, as a human characteristic that varies widely across any population. Fat studies is similar to academic disciplines that focus on race, ethnicity, gender, or age.

CALL FOR PAPERS

Volume 1, 2012, 2 Issues

Fat Studies: A Journal of Research is looking for manuscripts for its inaugural issue.

Manuscripts should be submitted to the Editor, Esther D. Rothblum, PhD at erothblu@mail.sdsu.edu.

All editorial inquiries should be directed to the Editor. Books and other materials for review purposes should be submitted to the Editor. Authors must complete a Manuscript Submission & Limited Copyright Transfer Form.

All parts of the manuscript should be typewritten, double-spaced, with margins of at least one inch on all sides. Number manuscript pages consecutively throughout the paper. Each article should be summarized in an abstract of not more than 100 words. Avoid abbreviations, diagrams, and reference to the text in the abstract.

EDITORIAL BOARD

Fat Studies: A Journal of Research seeks to be a truly multidisciplinary and international journal. The Editorial Board represents this goal and is comprised of a variety of experts in the field of fat studies.

Elena Andrea Escalera ~ William J. Fabrey ~ Fall Ferguson ~ Janna Fikkan ~ Jacqui Gingras ~ Joyce L. Huff ~ JuliaGrace Jester ~ Susan Koppelman ~ Kathleen LeBesco ~ Lucy Aphramor ~ Linda Bacon ~ Natalie Boero ~ Deb Burgard ~ Charlotte Cooper ~ Joan Chrisler ~ Sheana Director ~ Elana Dykewomon ~ Paul Ernsberger ~ Michael I. Loewy ~ Julia McCrossin ~ Samantha Murray ~ Lily O’Hara ~ Lesleigh Owen ~ Fatima Parker ~ Cat Pausé ~ Abigail Saguy ~ Friedrich Schorb ~ Stefanie Snider ~ Sondra Solovay ~ Lisa Tealer ~ Corinna Tomrley ~ Stephanie von Liebenstein ~ Marilyn Wann ~ Bianca Wilson

Routledge

Taylor & Francis Group

[Publisher]

"Trans Forming Faith" service - First Parish Milton (UU) - this Sunday

As seen in The List: Boston's Queer Agenda (http://www.queeragenda.org/). I met Jamez in April, when we were two of the panelists at Harvard Hillel's event "Transforming Faith: Experiencing Religion and Gender Identity" (http://interfaithcoalition.blogspot.com/2011/04/interfaith-transgender-panel-harvard.html). I've seen Johnny perform, and I know Melsen through his social justice and custom t-shirts (http://melsenink.com/).

Trans Forming Faith

[Sunday, July 17th, 2011]

10:30 am

First Parish Milton (Unitarian Universalist)

535 Canton Ave

Milton, MA

First Parish in Milton will host a special worship service that explores the intersections of transgender identity and religious faith. Worship will be led by Jamez Terry, founder and organizer of the nationally touring Tranny Roadshow, as well as a student at Harvard Divinity School. Guest musicians include Johnny Blazes and Melsen Carlsen.

The service begins at 10:30 am, and all are welcome.

TransFaith Peer Support Networks -- for seminarians & clergy

TransFaith

On-line

Chris Paige at TransFaith Online (http://www.transfaithonline.org/) is working on creating TransFaith Peer Support Networks for seminarians and clergy. Please fill out the needs assessments (anonymously if needed) and/or spread the word. Here's Chris' message:

Hello all,

In the last few weeks (esp at HRC Clergy Call and at the Philly Trans-Health Conference), we have launched initial conversations about starting a couple of TransFaith Support Networks. Specifically a TransFaith Seminarian Support Network and a TransFaith Clergy Support Network.

Could you spread the following two surveys around your networks so we can draw in input from a variety of perspectives?

Needs Assessment: TransFaith Seminarian Support Network
http://network.transfaithonline.org/more/surveys/seminarian_needs/

Needs Assessment: TransFaith Clergy Support Network
http://network.transfaithonline.org/more/surveys/clergy_needs/

The needs assessment surveys can be filled out anonymously, if desired. They are hosted on the TransFaith Network, but a log-in is not required.

Please spread the word among transgender folks in your network, as well as allies who might know people...

Thank you!

Chris Paige

Help the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition win $25,000!

The Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition could win $25,000 for our "I AM: Trans People Speak" project -- our public education campaign about transgender people! But we need your help -- please vote for us and spread the word! Here's how (http://community.icontact.com/p/masstpc/newsletters/mtpc/posts/help-mtpc-win-25k):

Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition

Did you know... MTPC has the chance to win $25,000 in the Pepsi Refresh Project and You Can Help!

This 25K would help us fund I AM: Trans People Speak with Bus and Subway Ads Across the State You can vote everyday from July 1 – July 31 at least 2x and we hope that you will Vote once a day everyday on the website:http://www.refresheverything.com/transpeoplespeak for our idea: Build support and acceptance of transgender people through education Also vote once a day via text message: Text* 107338 to Pepsi (73774) to vote from your mobile. *Standard text messaging rates apply. Help Us Spread the Word On Facebook Example posting: Let’s win $25,000 for trans rights & MTPC vote for Build support and acceptance of transgender people through education at Pepsi Refreshhttp://www.refresheverything.com/transpeoplespeak @Mass Trans Political Coalition On Twitter Example: Vote MTPC for 25K: build support & acceptance of transgender people through education http://pep.si/ivdaSo #MTPCPepsi #pepsirefresh E-Blasts Example: I am helping MTPC to win $25,000 in the Pepsi Refresh Contest. Join me in voting everyday for MTPC’s idea: Build support and acceptance of transgender people through education. This $25,000 would help us to fund the I AM: Trans People Speak Campaign and get our transgender participants onto subway and bus ads across the state, this would the be the first campaign of its kind in the country! You can vote everyday at least 2x and we hope that you will from July 1 – July 31. Vote once a day on the websitehttp://www.refresheverything.com/transpeoplespeak and also once a day via text message: Text* 107338 to Pepsi (73774) to vote from your mobile. *Standard text messaging rates apply. Look for specially marked pepsi products to get a code that equal 100 votes! Thanks and with your help we can win this! VOTE NOW

Spread the Word

MTPC is holding our own contest to help us get votes!

The person who facebook and tweets out to the most number of people and to get us votes will win an MTPC T-shirt and Gourmet Gift Basket
2 Runner ups will win an MTPC t-shirt each

LEARN MORE »

"Fat Shame (Stigma & the Fat Body in American Culture)" - Amy Farrell's new book

Amy Farrell is Professor of American Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. She is also the author of Yours in Sisterhood: Ms. Magazine and the Promise of Popular Feminism. She lives in Carlisle with her husband and two children.

Her new book is "Fat Shame (Stigma and the Fat Body in American Culture)". My partner (Julia McCrossin, Fat Studies scholar) and I are looking forward to reading it.

Here's the book's publisher's (NYU Press) page:

http://nyupress.org/books/book-details.aspx?bookId=1613

Here's Amy on "The Colbert Report" (May 4th episode):

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/383684/may-04-2011/amy-farrell

And here's the book's description:

"To be fat hasn’t always occasioned the level of hysteria that this condition receives today and indeed was once considered an admirable trait. Fat Shame: Stigma and the Fat Body in American Culture explores this arc, from veneration to shame, examining the historic roots of our contemporary anxiety about fatness. Tracing the cultural denigration of fatness to the mid 19th century, Amy Farrell argues that the stigma associated with a fat body preceded any health concerns about a large body size. Firmly in place by the time the diet industry began to flourish in the 1920s, the development of fat stigma was related not only to cultural anxieties that emerged during the modern period related to consumer excess, but, even more profoundly, to prevailing ideas about race, civilization and evolution. For 19th and early 20th century thinkers, fatness was a key marker of inferiority, of an uncivilized, barbaric, and primitive body. This idea—that fatness is a sign of a primitive person—endures today, fueling both our $60 billion “war on fat” and our cultural distress over the “obesity epidemic.”

Farrell draws on a wide array of sources, including political cartoons, popular literature, postcards, advertisements, and physicians’ manuals, to explore the link between our historic denigration of fatness and our contemporary concern over obesity. Her work sheds particular light on feminisms’ fraught relationship to fatness. From the white suffragists of the early 20th century to contemporary public figures like Oprah Winfrey, Monica Lewinsky, and even the Obama family, Farrell explores the ways that those who seek to shed stigmatized identities—whether of gender, race, ethnicity or class—often take part in weight reduction schemes and fat mockery in order to validate themselves as “civilized.” In sharp contrast to these narratives of fat shame are the ideas of contemporary fat activists, whose articulation of a new vision of the body Farrell explores in depth. This book is significant for anyone concerned about the contemporary “war on fat” and the ways that notions of the “civilized body” continue to legitimate discrimination and cultural oppression."

ASDAH -- the Association for Size Diversity And Health

Have you heard about ASDAH, the Association for Size Diversity And Health? Founded the year I finally came out as a Fat Admirer and fat ally. My partner -- Julia McCrossin, Fat Studies scholar -- is a member and I donate; they're one of the organizations she asked for donations to instead of other Winter holiday gifts.

ASDAH is an international professional organization started in 2003; an all-volunteer not-for-profit organization,whose members and leaders are committed to the principles of Health At Every Size (HAES). ASDAH's mission is to promote education, research, and the provision of services which enhance health and well-being, and which are free from weight-based assumptions and weight discrimination.

The HAES movement is a continuously evolving alternative to the weight-centered approach to treating clients and patients of all sizes. It is also a movement working to promote size acceptance, to end weight discrimination, and to lessen the cultural obsession with weight loss and thinness.

Website --

http://www.sizediversityandhealth.org/

Blog --

http://healthateverysizeblog.wordpress.com/

Facebook --

http://www.facebook.com/pages/ASDAH/111760986801

Twitter --

https://twitter.com/asdah

And ASDAH is having their next conference in August in San Francisco -- "No BODY Left Behind — The HAES(SM) Approach: Ensuring an Inclusive Approach to Health and Wellness"; the early registration deadline has been extended to next Saturday June 25th:

http://www.sizediversityandhealth.org/content.asp?id=148