It’s Not Just Fat Shaming — It’s Violence

In June, curve model and TikTok influencer Remi Bader posted a viral video claiming she was turned away from participating in a horse riding activity on an influencer trip because of her weight. Bader, who is known for tackling weight discrimination in her content, was met with severe online harassment. Just one of many disparaging comments stated, “when you’re not a fat b---- you can ride at Deep Hollow Ranch.”

Body shaming, especially “fat shaming,” is not a new problem. I could spend hours naming countless victims of weight-based harassment because I am one of the millions of young women that grew up surrounded by it. I will never forget the comments I read about the body of my favorite Disney Channel star, Raven Simone, in a magazine at 8 years old or the comments I heard on TV in my teens about Khloé Kardashian.

While fat shaming is commonly acknowledged as a form of bullying, it is often left out of the conversation on gender-based violence. Harassing women because of their bodies is not just “some mean comments”' that can be ignored, but a tactical use of verbal abuse. People who body shame women often do so to belittle, humiliate, and even manipulate them. Fat shaming is not about someone’s concern for women’s health, an excuse commonly used by perpetrators, but it is a way to exert societal power. We know this because it is often coupled with other forms of discrimination and harassment — BIPOC and LGBTQ+ women experience it in tandem with comments about their race and sexuality.

I know women who have relayed horrific stories about being followed while men shout obscenities related to their body weight, leaving them humiliated or sometimes in fear for their safety. Online abuse is just as severe; model Tess Holliday reports that she even at times receives threats of physical abuse, including death threats, for existing as a plus-sized woman.

While men also face body shaming, and their experiences are valid, women’s entire worth is disproportionately measured by strict and unrealistic beauty standards often tied to their weight. Fat shaming is a method to break down their self-esteem and make them feel unworthy of safety, comfort, or love. An anonymous participant in a campaign at Duke University even said that when she was raped, people told her that she should be “thankful her rapist had sex with her” because she is a fat woman.

While it is not a crime, those who have been body shamed often face some of the same devastating effects as victims of other forms of gender-based violence, like depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and isolation. It affects not only the individual but also those who witness it; I have personally struggled with disordered eating for fear of possibly becoming a target myself.

There is little being done to hold people responsible for body shaming women; those who have been shamed are expected to tolerate it and move on. While social media is currently a major vessel for fat shaming, major platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram barely hold online harassers accountable. In a study of social media users, Pew Research found that just 18% say social media companies are doing a good job in addressing online harassment or bullying on their platforms. Conversations on mechanisms to prevent fat shaming online as a form of gender-based violence are essentially nonexistent.

Ending fat shaming against women will require breaking down deeply ingrained standards for women’s bodies, but we have to start somewhere. Seeing the issue as one to be tackled, rather than one for women to learn to accept and ignore, is a crucial first step. Adding fat shaming to the conversation on gender-based violence is crucial if we want to work toward a world that is safe and inclusive to all women.