NAAFA Community Connect - Providence, RI

Saturday, September 27, 2025

10:00am

Womxn’s Project A-R-T Lab

301 Harris Ave, Unit C, Providence, RI 02909

Duration: 1 hour

[Accessibility description: This flyer for the NAAFA Community Connect Durham event includes slides with pink background, logos for NAAFA, the Campaign for Size Freedom, Fat Babes Rhode Island, and A|R|T Lab, as well as polaroid-style photos of Tigress Osborn and Krista Hadfield, and a small image of a KN94 face mask. Text on the flyer is printed in blue, white, and black. Slide 1's text reads: “NAAFA Community Connect Providence. Hosted by Tigress Osborn (she/her) @naafaofficial. Special Guest Krista Hadfield (she/her). Learn about NAAFA, fat liberation, and the Campaign for Size Freedom. Hear from weight neutral healthcare expert & advocate Krista Handfield. Make new fat and fat-positive friends! Womxn’s Project A-R-T Lab, 301 Harris Ave, Unit C, Providence, RI 02909. Free! Please mask. (KN94 masks provided) Register at NAAFA.org/events. Accommodation requests by 9/25. naafa.org/events.”

Attention fat folks and friends in Providence, Rhode Island!

It’s time for our next Community Connect, and this time we’re heading to Rhode Island! Whether you’re brand new to fat liberation or a seasoned advocate who wants to connect with local community, join us on Saturday, September 27th at 10am at the Womxn’s Project A-R-T Lab in Providence, Rhode Island. Our executive director, Tigress Osborn, will give a short presentation on NAAFA’s historical and current role in the fat rights movement, including updates on the Campaign for Size Freedom and a dialogue with renowned weight neutral healthcare advocate Krista Handfield. Stay after to hang out with local rad community members and learn more about @thewomxnsprojecthq and @fatbabesri.

See you there!

GUEST BIOS:

[Accessibility Description: Headshot of Krista Handfield]

Krista Handfield (she/her), LICSW is clinical social worker and Director of Size Inclusive Health Care at Thundermist Health Center, which addresses the impact of weight stigma on a person's health using a weight neutral approach. Her areas of expertise include weight stigma, size-inclusive practices, trauma-informed care, and Body Trust®. Krista is a national speaker, consultant, and educator, and sits on the advisory board for Medical Students for Size-Inclusivity, the education committee for Association for Size and Weight Inclusive Medicine and is an Adjunct Professor at Rhode Island College School of Social Work. Previously, Krista was Adjunct Faculty at Warren Alpert Medical School and served as a Commissioner for Rhode Island's Commission for Health Advocacy and Equity.

[Accessibility Description: Headshot of Tigress Osborn]

Tigress Osborn (she/her) is the Executive Director of NAAFA. She previously volunteered as NAAFA’s Board Chair and Director of Community Outreach. In addition to overseeing NAAFA’s day-to-day operations, Tigress hosts and produces the NAAFA Webinar Series, which features a wide variety of activists, scholars, and artists from fat community. Tigress has been featured on CNN, ABC News, and NPR. She is the co-editor of Weight and Wisdom: Reflections on Decades of Working for Body Liberation. In 2024, Tigress was named to the Time Health100 list for her civil rights work with NAAFA and the Campaign for Size Freedom. Prior to working with NAAFA, Tigress founded Full Figure Entertainment in Oakland, CA, and co-founded the PHX Fat Force in Arizona. She is a two-time women's college graduate with degrees from Smith College and Mills College. She lives near Phoenix with her awesome mom. Follow Tigress @iofthetigress on your favorite social media.

Fat Babes Rhode Island (@fatbabesri) is a community of local fat women and enbies who support and encourage each other in a welcoming space. They host in person and online events, including a clothing swap at the Bimbo Factory on September 28. They also provide a forum for conversation, promotion, and trade. Learn more and sign up for the Fat Babes Rhode Island newsletter at www.fatbabesri.org.

The Womxn’s Project A-R-T Lab (@thewomxnsprojecthq)

NAAFA is thrilled to host our first Rhode Island Community Connect at A|R|T Lab, a multi-purpose space which hosts the offices of The Womxn Project and includes an exhibition space, lecture room, and community maker's events to build a culture of more art activists in Rhode Island (+ beyond).

A|R|T Lab = Artivism + Research + Tactics in Community.

Join Fat Babes RI at our Fall Clothing Swap!

Sunday, September 28th at 1pm at The Bimbo Factory - 1005 Main St, Unit #2130, Pawtucket, RI.

Click here to check out other events!