I could write an entire post about slacktivism, especially the economics of it. If you think the editors of Buzzfeed, Upworthy, or Elite Daily give two shits about you or believe anything they write, you may want to consider that every time you visit these websites, they make more money. Seriously. Look it up. It's a great little system. They get money and you get to feel self-righteous and share an opinion you know no one will disagree with on your Facebook wall so you can show all your friends how forward thinking you are - all without leaving your couch. Isn't the Internet great?
The without leaving your couch aspect is important, because it ties in with one particular piece of clickbait I keep seeing, over and over again. I've seen it for months and I saw it yet again today and it itself isn't really better or worse than any other trite little piece you'd see written up on these very very for-profit "activism" sites. What bugs me, then, isn't the piece itself. It's the discussions that follow it.
The article is here.
The article is here.
So what's the problem with this? Well, actually, I tend to agree with almost all of it. I'm not going to judge someone for the overwhelming majority of these things. In fact, I agree completely with the point the artist is trying to make: most people should try to have self-esteem, regardless of what society thinks of them. So what's the problem?
The problem is "Whitney." Whitney is probably going to die at age 60, if not sooner.
I'm all for tolerance. I think anyone that knows me knows that. But there's a point at which we, as a society, have to draw a line and say, some things are not ok. Being overweight is a health issue. There's simply no way around that. If you are overweight, you are at a higher risk for related health issues, many of which are life-threatening, than someone who is not. Period. End of story.
At this point, I want to make clear what I am not saying. I am not saying that being overweight is always a choice (though it can be). I am not saying that being a healthy weight isn't harder for some people than it is for others. I am not saying that overweight people are, as a rule, lazy, stupid, or anything else. What I am saying is simply this: it is not good to be severely overweight and if you are, you should not just be ok with it.
I'm also going to put out a disclaimer right here and now: I've never struggled with my weight and I'm extremely lucky that my health problems are super minor and pretty much just extend to bad eyes and some nighttime teeth grinding.
That being said, if you have a health problem, a problem of any kind, you take steps to deal with it. I wear contacts and a mouth guard. I'm lucky because that's all I have to do. However, some people aren't. Some people have major issues with their body, and they take medication or do therapy for it. Some people have mental issues, and they take medication or do therapy for it. The issues aren't their fault, but they handle them to the best of their ability. If being overweight is just another health issue and isn't the fault of the overweight person (and like I said, I fully admit that that can be exactly the case) why should we treat it differently?
My problem is that we're telling overweight people that it's totally ok to not deal with a problem that may literally kill them.
Think about that. We sure as hell don't tell people who have cancer to be ok with their tumors. We don't tell people with depression that they should just deal with it instead of seeking help. Why are we telling overweight people to do nothing about their health issue? That's kind of messed up, when you stop and think about it.
Of course, one might say that all this article is saying is that overweight people shouldn't hate themselves. Ok, well I agree with that. But that's not quite it, is it? There's an implication here and that implication is that trying to lose weight doesn't matter, that being overweight doesn't really make a difference to your personal well-being, and that society should act like being overweight is pretty much the same as not being overweight. There's a belligerent tone against those who would say otherwise; the word 'discriminating,' in the sense of discrimination on the level of racism, sexism, or homophobia is implied.
No one's saying that overweight men and women should hate themselves, but let's draw a line here: being overweight isn't the same as being a certain race, gender, or sexual orientation. To claim it is is beyond offensive. Being black (or white, Hispanic, Asian, etc.), a woman (or man), or gay (or bi or straight) isn't a health problem. It is not bad for you to be those things in any way, shape, or form. If we equate, say, being over 500 pounds with being black, for example, we're comparing health to race, and as someone who has spent the last six years studying race and has a Master's degree in the history of slavery and race, let me tell you that that is some backwards movement on society's part in a big big way.
Let me reiterate so that there's no confusion here: if you're claiming that weight and race/gender/sexual orientation are the same, you're either equating race/gender/sexual orientation with a health problem, in which case you are a bigot, or you're saying being overweight isn't a health problem, in which case you're denying scientific evidence to the same degree as, say, those who deny evolution or global warming.
And let's not forget that belligerent tone, either. Yeah, I'm in pretty good shape. Am I supposed to pretend that I'm not? Fun fact: I run a lot, and those who know me well know that because I talk about it a lot, because, you know what? I'm kind of proud of it.
Again, I'm not saying that my weight has everything to do with running (though it helps). In fact, I have some weirdly good genetics that mean I've just never struggled with weight. I admit that. But in some of the threads this article has spawned I have seen the claim, and I'm not kidding, that overweight people are just as healthy as I am, and that is, if I may use the term (and I can, because it's my blog) bullshit.
Let me tell you something right now: I am not in phenomenal shape, but I am damn well in better shape than a lot of people and part of that is because I exercise and I eat ok. Again, I'm not saying that I'm a health nut or a workout freak, because I'm not. I eat bacon on occasion and I don't run as often as I should. That being said, I do eat a fairly balanced and healthy diet for the most part and I do work out regularly. And it pays off. Yes, I enjoy running, so maybe it's not always a huge chore for me, but if you don't exercise particularly regularly and you want to tell me that you're as healthy as I am, let's go for a five mile run right now.
Again, I'm not saying, at all, that overweight people don't exercise. Some do, and some don't - just like non-overweight people. What I am saying is that I work towards my health, it's not easy, and, yes, actually, I do think I have a right to claim that my being in shape is something to be proud of. So feel free to tell me that overweight people shouldn't hate themselves, because I totally agree. But don't tell me that it doesn't matter if I exercise or not, because it does, and don't tell me that making an effort towards a healthy lifestyle is the same as not making that effort, because it isn't.
We, as a society, have to draw the line somewhere. Yes, we have to be more tolerant, as a nation and a people. Yes, we have to start teaching people that it's ok to have self-esteem and to be proud of their accomplishments. But there is something very very wrong with a society that deems health to be unimportant or tells unhealthy people that they should make no effort to better their condition. A society that wants its citizens to be content with their health problems is sinister. Instead, as a society, perhaps we should be telling people that health problems are, well, a problem and helping those with illnesses, including obesity, to overcome them.
As a country, we suck at treating illness, but we try. We try to help people with cancer, or depression. We don't tell those who suffer from those illnesses to just live with it. We try and solve those issues through science on a mass level and through support of those we know with those issues on a personal level. If obesity is truly a disease-based problem, why are we treating it like a race or gender issue? Shouldn't we be trying to solve it as a health issue?
And what about obesity that isn't purely the result of genetics? It's not exactly a secret that kids don't get enough exercise. It's not exactly a rare gem of knowledge that eating fast or frozen food every day is bad for you. When we tell people that being overweight is the same as being in shape, or that exercise and diet don't matter anyway, what exactly are we doing to combat lifestyle based obesity? Again, I'm not saying that some people don't have a legitimate problem losing weight, but there are other people who are overweight simply because of their habits. You don't need to say that smoking is ok in order to make it clear that you don't hate people with lung cancer, and you can certainly differentiate between people who gave themselves lung cancer by smoking a pack a day vs. those who got lung cancer despite not doing so.
So, yes, America, let's be more tolerant as a people. Let's respect people who have illnesses of any kind. But let's also be tolerant of people who are in shape. I would even go so far as to say, if I might be so bold, that we should admire those who are in shape because they made the decision to be. In fact, let's also, perhaps even more, admire those who aren't in shape but who have made the same decision to eat healthy and exercise in an effort to keep their genetic health issues under control. Let's not tell people who are actively trying to handle their illness to stop doing so. Let's not tell them that their efforts are pointless and that they shouldn't even try. Instead of saying it's ok to be overweight, let's instead tell "Whitney" that the 10 years she spent trying to lose weight were, in fact, honorable and never to give up. That, I think, is a little more human and a little more humane then simply encouraging those with legitimate health problems to give up, stop trying, and live a shorter and ultimately less pleasant life.
