CW: Health concern trolling

The NAAFA Chronicles reflect a piece of fat acceptance/fat activist history. In the April 1987 issue you will find: 1987 Convention updates, Matrix Woman's Newsmagazine devotes an issue to fat liberation, outrage in activism, media and publicity information, health concern trolling, and more!

Content Warning: Some references to fat shaming in medical offices and movies

For the latest information and research on fatness, check out the Media & Research Roundup. This issue features: Comedian Sofie Hagen writes about her fat liberation journey, fat shaming by medical staff, research on fat’s connection to the brain, a new fat black-latino gay hero in the comic book series "Black Vans", the use of a fat suit in the movie, The Whale.

Content Warning: discussion of suicidal ideation.

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. In the past, I haven’t acknowledged the cause. In fact, I stayed as far away from any mention of the word “suicide” as possible. I felt like being in mere proximity to the word would cast a light on a part of me I tried to keep hidden. The part of me that not only has attempted it in the past, but still thinks about it more frequently than I would like.

I’ve always felt such shame about my attempted suicide when I was younger, and even more shame that I still live with suicidal ideations. I wish I could say that it’s all behind me and I never have those thoughts anymore, but that simply isn’t true. Unfortunately, thanks to the stigma that still exists around mental health and mental illness, some of the shame still lives on, too.

In a time when so many people are dealing with difficult things, why do we all still try to deny that we’re struggling? If we were all honest with ourselves and each other maybe we would see more empathy being practiced.

The NAAFA Chronicles reflect a piece of fat acceptance/fat activist history. In the March 1987 issue you will find: a prominent health writer taking a stand against dieting, activism letter writing campaign, an update on the 1987 Convention planning, and an invitation to volunteer with NAAFA.

Each month, we will be featuring educational resources in the NAAFA Newsletter and on the NAAFA Community Voices Blog. Some resources will be historic information about systemic racism. Others will be resources on doing the internal work of understanding ourselves and how we play a part in that system. There may also be actions that can be taken to directly oppose racism.

In honor of Latinx Heritage Month, we are looking at racism both against and amongst Latinx people.

For the latest information and research on fatness, check out the Media & Research Roundup. This issue features: disordered eating in children, socio-economic impact on weight and health, open comment period on FAA seat safety, and weight-bias in healthcare.

During #fatliberationmonth, NAAFA invited Anna Chapman (@iamannachapman) as a guest on the NAAFA Webinar Series. During Anna’s episode, Self Care for Fat Bodies (From Practical to Pampering), we promised to create a blog post compiling the resources, suggestions, and information crowd-sourced from Anna and webinar participants. This is that post!

Fatshion (the term currently being used for fat fashion) and fatshionistas (those that love fat fashion) are something we see on social media every day. But what do we know of the history of women’s fat fashion?

This is part 2 of a 2-part review of the history of fat fashion visibility.

For the latest information and research on fatness, check out the Media & Research Roundup. This issue features: looking at the credibility of studies, issues in getting accurate blood pressure reading for fat folx, and other medical issues.

Fatshion (the term currently being used for fat fashion) and fatshionistas (those that love fat fashion) are something we see on social media every day. But what do we know of the history of women’s fat fashion?

This is part 1 or a 2-part review of the history of fat fashion visibility.

Each month, we will be featuring educational resources in the NAAFA Newsletter and on the NAAFA Community Voices Blog. Some resources will be historic information about systemic racism. Others will be resources on doing the internal work of understanding ourselves and how we play a part in that system. There may also be actions that can be taken to directly oppose racism.

Swim/pool parties in fat community is a long tradition that hasn’t been recognized by the general public. With the airing of Shrill’s pool episode in 2019, suddenly everyone was saying, “What a great idea!” So we’ve taken a look at the history of fat swim parties and are sharing this piece of history with you.

The annual Weight Stigma Conference (WSC) is an international interdisciplinary gathering of scholars, advocates, community leaders, and others whose work addresses weight stigma (bias against people who are considered “overweight” in their cultures). Founded by British scholar and activist Dr. Angela Meadows in 2013, the conference has been held in Birmingham (UK), Canterbury (UK), Reykjavik (Iceland), Vancouver (Canada), Prague (Czchek Republic), Leeds (UK), and London (UK). Although the conference was founded in 2013, COVID-related delays made this year the 8th offering of the in-person conference, with a commitment to adding more virtual elements in 2023 and a fully hybrid conference in 2024. 2023 and 2024 locations are yet to be announced.

NAAFA has supported the conference as a sponsor for many years. This year, for the first time, we sent an official delegation. Board Chair Tigress Osborn and Board Member-at-Large Elaine Lee traveled to Berlin in July to represent NAAFA at the conference and learn from fat community leaders from sixteen countries.

I love all the programs aimed at rounder bodies, directed toward the needs of fat people, and created for the various identities of the fat community (we are a diverse community!). Also, people who are fat allies, those who have an attraction to fat people, and those who simply want to understand fat issues are able to learn about the fat community through NAAFA’s literature and online resources. That is the reason that I think NAAFA is truly needed for anyone who is able to see wonderful fat bodies of various sizes of fatness as worthy of respect and love.

This a Fat History Flashback that explores the events surrounding an issue that effected fat community. It is a feature of Fat Liberation Month and is created by NAAFA.

Bats Langley is a popular artist and illustrator, best known for his adorable children’s books about a very friendly monster called Groggle, his fine art work, his work for kids’ publications like Cricket and Scholastic magazines, and of course, his character Gus. Gus is a whimsical guy, a character who is “an exploration in bigness,” and whose adventures “reveal a freedom of being big, without the societal constraints or expectations of being a bigger person.”

When Bats set about creating the 2022 Fat Liberation Month logo, he first reflected on how the word “fat” is empowering to so many but is also loaded and challenging for people, especially those new to fat liberation concepts. Bats admitted that, even for him as someone who embraces his own body and creates art representing bodies of all shapes and sizes, it was hard to hear “fat” without remembering all of its negative connotations. So he wanted to make sure the word “fat” looked friendly and inviting in his logo design, with the word “liberation” looking strong and supportive. Bats started with a focus on the a, which could represent both acceptance and activism. “Fat Liberation Month is about both being accepting of your body and yourself and who you are, but also about this activism, making a movement to change the world.”

The NAAFA Chronicles reflect a piece of fat acceptance/fat activist history. In the February 1987 issue, you will find: discussion about a study on how size affect salary for executives, compulsory dieting in institutions, use of the word "thin" and "fat" on everyday language and more!⁠

July is Disability Pride Month! Multiple marginalizations can equate to not being seen and recognized on one hand and the potential of hate and violence on the other. This month’s resources look specifically at the intersection of BIPOC and disability.

For the latest information and research on fatness, check out the Media & Research Roundup. This issue features: 14-year old Zeke Sanchez and how he is changing body expectations, memories of activist Dr. Cat Pause and discussion of the numerous weight loss drugs that the FDA is approving, and more!

NAAFA is introducing RESEARCH SURVEY OPPORTUNITIES, a new monthly feature in the NAAFA Newsletter and on the NAAFA Community Voices Blog,.

The purpose of this feature is to share the opportunity to participate in surveys or studies that directly affect fat community. These research participation opportunities have been presented to NAAFA for possible sharing by the individuals or organizations that are leading the research. They were not created by nor are they sponsored by NAAFA.