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Depending on your personality and life commitments, the turning of the year may be a time for deep peace and reflection or a wild whirl of parties and celebrations. But as New Year’s Day approaches, many of us are becoming more aware of the day’s ever-present accompaniment: Resolutions. New Year’s resolutions are by their very…
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Hi friend, I’m taking a little time off this week, so no main letter from me. Next week, I’ll send you my guide for setting boundaries over the holidays. In the meantime: 1. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to present on race, body image and sexuality at the Seattle Erotic Art Festival, or SEAF….
Hi friend, Last week was kind of wild over here. A windstorm hit the Seattle area that left half a million people without power and did widespread damage. We were without power for a few days and have some tree damage to our deck, but we’re safe and back home and I’m thankful. This week,…
Hi friend, This weekend is my last set of events of the year, and I have offerings for you on both days! Fat Trauma: Healing though Community and Fat Joy How to attend: Buy access to this event or subscribe for all Blanket Fort events On Saturday, fat-positive therapist Kayla Stansberry is speaking to my Blanket Fort members about…
Let’s dig into the trauma we accumulate as fat people in a thin-obsessed world, and do some collective healing. Fat-positive therapist Kayla Stansberry will walk us through: Fat Trauma: Healing though Community and Fat Joy Saturday, November 94 pm Eastern/2 Central/1 Pacific Join us for this event only, or support the Fort for access to…
Hi friend, I spent last weekend on a gorgeous island outside Vancouver, British Columbia, eating pastries and photographing this adorable couple. I can’t wait to show you more of the finished images! Now, to this week’s letter: You are worthy of rest. Up until a few years ago, I was forever getting sick, mostly colds…
Hi friend, A quick note about a known issue on the website: There was a bug that was preventing customers from being able to view all parts of the My Account page. It’s been fixed, so now you can set your payment options, view saved addresses and reset your password. Also, I had the pleasure of…
Hi friend, We’re trying something new this week. I’m adding writings like these to a new collection in the Body Liberation Blanket Fort Patreon, and buying access to the collection will give you access to this and every other piece that’s added to that collection in the future. (Or, subscribe to the Patreon and get…
Hi friend, I am freaking delighted to share this new Body Liberation Stock collection with you: a set of original, exclusive images from artist Kat Max. Kat (who you may have known in the past as Kathryn Hack) is one of the fat-positive artists whose work I admire most, and it’s such an honor to collaborate with her….
Hi friend, Project Heal asked me to weigh in (pun intended) for Weight Stigma Awareness Week on a topic I’d been meaning to revisit: body positivity versus body liberation. What’s the difference, and why does it matter? Here’s a short excerpt: After centuries of racism-driven weight stigma, 75 years of diet culture telling us that…
Hi friend, This month, we’re having a pretty special event in the Body Liberation Blanket Fort. Dalia Kinsey, author of Decolonizing Wellness, will be leading a discussion circle on Saturday, September 28 for healthcare providers to: Our experiences with our own bodies are reflected in the way we interact with patients and clients, so show up…
Hi friend, There’s a new supporter reward in the Blanket Fort this week – Resources & Recs: Healthcare Providers! This is an ongoing reference of existing weight-neutral and Health at Every Size®-aligned healthcare provider directories, as well as specific recommendations for doctors and other healthcare pros. It’s very US-heavy right now, but I’d love to see…
Hi friend, Today’s letter is the third in a four-part series (here are parts one and two). Bodies as business cards When our bodies are our business cards, the more those bodies are outside our cultural aspirations, the fewer people will want to buy. (And of course no business is going to appeal to everyone; how on earth…
Hi friend, The website is back up, and should be faster! There were a few different issues I spent part of the week fixing, but it has a nice new look and speed now. It’s not perfect**, but for a one-person business, I’m so proud of it. Now to this week’s letter: In last week’s letter, I talked…
Hi friend, There’s a quote that I keep coming back to over time: stop breaking yourself into bite size pieces for someone; stay whole and let them choke It’s useful as a reminder that my whole self has worth and value, no matter whether other people find me palatable or useful in a capitalist world. But…
Hi friend, A quick note on the BLP website: The work that I thought would take me a week has dragged on, and on, and on. Insert someone who was supposed to be fixing the WordPress theme erasing chunks of the site entirely, days of the site being down altogether, and endless screaming. I hope…
Hi friend, The website maintenance continues, so expect the site to be extra quirky this week. And on Friday, over in the Body Liberation Blanket Fort we’ll be watching the Your Fat Friend documentary together and having a discussion afterward. Now, to this week’s letter, an interview with fat artist Angelica Dred! Tell me about you! What’s your name?…
Hi friend, I have lots of updates for you this week! First, it’s such a cool opportunity and honor to be included in The Future is Fat issue of Womanly Mag! Pre-order your print issue here and support fat-positive media. Second, I’m working with a model next week to create new photographs for Body Liberation Stock. This time I’m…
My first podcast guest appearance was on Christy Harrison’s podcast Food Psych, back in 2018. And I was terrified.
Hi friend, If you recall, back in April I did an art tour for the Seattle Erotic Art Festival called Aspirational Erotic: Body Size, Shame and Aesthetics. I thought you might be interested in how it went. This was my first time at both the festival and giving a talk of this sort, so afterward I was both proud…
Hi friend, I know we’re slightly out of Mermay now, but mythical creatures are forever, so I want to talk some more about fat merfolk. Through the kind service of Mermaid Chè Monique and the Society of Fat Mermaids, I was able to add the voices of lots of fat merfolk to An Ocean of Fat Merfolk. I also…
Hi friend, The initial lineup of events for the summer in the Body Liberation Blanket Fort is up! June 6: Movie Night with Silas June 15: Silent Reading Party with Lindley July 2: Discussion Group with Lindley July 25: Crafty Hangout August 4: Pacific Northwest In-Person (COVID Cautious) Meetup You can click on the tent graphic below to get access to…
Hi friend, When I was more active in the Health at Every Size® community, and constantly speaking up for fat people and fat patients in healthcare provider groups, people would often message me privately and tell me how grateful they were that I was fighting for them. The private support was nice, but years of…
Welcome to the fat MerMay roundup! This month we’re celebrating fat merfolk — amazing fat humans who choose to dress as merpeople for fun and sometimes profit. Below you’ll find: A very grateful thanks to Mermaid Chè Monique and her community for their input and support! An Ocean of Fat Merfolk Tips from a Real…
Hi friend, There are a couple of updates to the Blanket Fort this week that I’m really excited about! Our Fort member Sage (he/him) has started a really cool channel called Fat Masculinity. Here’s Sage’s introduction to the channel: Hello friends! I asked if we could have a channel for conversations about how fatphobia interacts…
Hi friend, I’ll be giving an art tour at the Seattle Erotic Art Festival this Friday, April 26 at 8:30 pm! Come hang out with me for an hour for: Aspirational Erotic: Body Size, Shame and Aesthetics Join photographer and body liberation activist Lindley Ashline to explore the origins and history of body image and weight stigma, and which…
Hi friend, How do you like the new look for the newsletter? I attended an email design webinar right before I traveled earlier this month, and it got me all excited about design again. Also, you have till Wednesday to enter the drawing for the Pan Eros Film Festival tickets! As someone deeply committed to…
Hi friend, Today I’m thinking about the expression “take a load off.” It’s generally used to mean taking the metaphorical weight, the load, of daily burdens and cares off your shoulders and relax. Not all burdens can be set aside like that, though. The cognitive load of existing as a fat person is one of…
» Food Psych #185: How Diet Culture Hurts Your Relationships Health At Every Size® life coach Kristina Bruce joins us to discuss how diet culture can affect relationships, how to find self-trust and self-acceptance in recovering from disordered eating, how diet culture shows up in spiritual communities, why health and well-being is about so much more…
This is news I am so freaking excited to share — the launch of the project I’ve been working on behind the scenes for the last six months. It’s called SEEN., and there are limited spots, so I want to make sure you have time to grab one before this goes out to my big…
I’ve been thinking so much about the cost of things lately, and how they interact with cost of living and marginalization and capitalism and labor and psychology. Last week, I had the privilege of a behind-the-scenes chat with the organizer of Seattle Fat Con (affiliate link), an event happening in January here in town. I’d…
I’m so excited to bring you a guest piece from Marilyn freakin’ Wann this week! Marilyn is one of the fat activists I admire the most, who’s been fighting for fat justice and rights since I was knee-high. She’s also the author of the book Fat!So?, and you can learn more about her here. Marilyn recently shared…
What is Juneteenth? Why do we celebrate it? And how can white people help Black people on this day without taking over? Juneteenth is on Wednesday, June 19, 2024. Since as of 2021, Juneteenth is now a U.S. federal holiday, more white people are aware of its existence, and thus more white people need to…
With the major and still-growing popularity of crowdfunding subscriptions in supporting creators — from Patreon to Ko-fi to Instagram and Youtube subscriptions — it seems like everyone is offering one. That includes lots of your favorite body-positive, fat-positive, Health at Every Size® and body liberation creators. In fact, there are lots of reasons to financially…
It was a pleasure to appear on the Mindful Miri podcast! In this episode, we discuss issues of race, weight, and systems of oppression. Other themes: » Embracing our true selves » #bodypositivity for larger bodies » How systems are not built for all sizes » weightstigma as an offshoot of #racism Transcript Excerpt “It’s…
Sometimes a stray comment or post on social media will spark something in my mind, and suddenly I have an opinion on it. This time it was a comment on a fat activist’s Instagram post informing the activist that they shouldn’t be using the term “fatphobia” because “people aren’t afraid of fat people, so it’s…
Maybe you remember the advent of (mainstream anyway) period panties from a few years back? For a long time, there were no options to speak of for fat bodies, but no more! Here are nine options to choose from, carrying a range of sizes up to a U.S. 48W. In case you’re wondering, period panties…
The experiences of larger fat people are very, very different from those of smaller fat people and average-sized people. If you’ve never experienced, seen or heard of a particular type of weight stigma or an experience a fat person is describing, there’s a good chance you’re simply not fat enough to be treated that way….
I’ve just met (virtually — we live across the U.S. from each other) Dani of Fat Girl Media, and they’re super cool! I’ve been admiring their artwork for years and it was an honor to get to talk to them. Here are a few of their designs, shared with permission. One of the things we…
This piece originally appeared over at the NAAFA blog. Loving, admiring, and respecting fat bodies can be really hard for people to grasp. We as a culture have been trained by: Centuries of sexism and racism that women are sexual objects 75 years of diet culture that thin is beautiful and sexy And decades of…
![[Image: A fat white woman with pink hair stands on the shore of a wooded lake in a purple sleeveless dress, with a wing-print scarf blowing in the wing behind her outstretched arms.]](https://bodyliberationphotos.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2016-09-10_1015_x1200-768x512.jpg)
I want to follow up on my earlier piece about AI-generated artwork. People who are into AI art are telling me that this is a chance for fat people to see themselves represented and change their body image. But there’s a problem: exploitation will not create liberation. Here’s just one of the images that was…
“Belly, companion, digester of snacks, you wobble when I laugh, rise and fall as I breathe, rollick, tingle, give me signals when someone around me is a liar or a danger or a friend, the site of my hunger (my aliveness), receiver of rubs and kisses from mother and lovers, layer of warmth, inspirer of…
As we consider the concept of size contrition, let’s look at the “fuck flattering” trend that’s been sweeping the body positivity movement. On its face, “fuck flattering” is a rejection of size contrition and the forbearance it can generate. There’s a great article by Alysse D’alessandro at The Body is Not An Apology that talks…
Today I’m thinking about a concept I’m calling size contrition. Size contrition is what we fat folks perform in order to win small amounts of forbearance from thin people. In essence, it allows us to temporarily access aspects of thin privilege in return for our public recognition of and apology for our fatness. For instance,…
My humanity gives me inherent worth. My body is worthy because it’s mine. My body deserves love, attention, and care no matter what. My body is worthy no matter its health status. My body is worthy no matter its age. My body can “pull off” anything I want to put on it. My body and…
We know how heavy and exhausting existing in this world can be. We all carry the weight of holding boundaries, managing others’ entitlement, navigating systems of oppression, and all the other burdens fat folks are made to hold on a daily basis. We are tired! In a culture that has commodified self-care down to bubble…
Some days, caring for our fat bodies looks exactly like caring for any human body. On other days, we may need a little extra something to carry on. When it comes to chronic health conditions, though, caring for a fat body can be very different. Why? Because fat bodies are subject to weight stigma: discrimination…
