Let's talk about fat bias and thin privilege | Madison A. Krall | TEDxMileHigh

When we talk about discrimination, we usually consider race, gender and age. But what about size? Have you ever considered whether your weight impacts your ability to get a job or get proper treatment in the doctor’s office? Join Madison A. Krall for an in-depth look at the last accepted prejudice: fat.

Madison A. Krall is a twenty-something health and medicine student based in Denver. In addition to academic writing and teaching, she loves finding ways to incorporate wine and cheese into every meal and playing cribbage with her super cool family. As a proud Christian feminist, Madison adamantly believes we live in a world where people are inherently good and where equality is possible.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

When you hear the word fat,
what thoughts and images come to mind?

Some of you might think of fat

as the extra 10 pounds
you are currently trying to lose.

Others might be thinking,
"Hmm, I wonder what the fat content was

in the bag of potato chips
I had for lunch.''

And some of you when you hear
the word fat might think back

to that time in middle school
when someone called you fat

and how it has affected
the rest of your life.

Let's just admit it;

fat can be a pretty loaded word,
no matter who you are.

My own personal experience
with that is not special.

I grew up a swimmer and disliked
my body from an early age.

I was a big girl growing up,

which helped me gain
a lot of success in the pool,

but not so much success
when it came to boys liking me

or girls not targeting me
with their cruel comments.

I made it through middle school
and high school,

and landed at Pepperdine University
on a swimming scholarship

where I endured the body image torment

that you might imagine
for an 18-year-old female swimmer

living in Malibu, California.

(Laughter)

I joined a sorority, Tri Delta,

and we took part in a national
body image campaign

called ''Fat Talk Free Week.''

"Fat talk" is a term
coined by researcher Mimi Nichter

that refers to the disparaging way
that friends talk about their bodies.

Things like, ''Do I look fat in this?''

Or, ''She really shouldn't be
wearing that dress.''

And, ''I can't believe I ate
that last doughnut, I feel so fat.''

Sound familiar?

For many women,
this is a normal part of life,

but fat talk is also occurring

when you compliment a friend
on their weight loss.

How many of you have ever told a friend

that they looked good
after they lost weight?

Yeah. Absolutely.

Unfortunately, this positive affirmation
tells your friend two things:

one, that they didn't look
good beforehand;

and two, that fat is a bad thing.

I realized, then, that while
my intentions were good,

my words could be harmful
and my own body image insecurities

were actually a result of two things:
our culture and the media.

We hear it all the time, "Fat is bad."

"Fat people aren't making
the right choices to lose weight."

"Fat people aren't taking care
of themselves."

"Fat people are so lazy."

It should come as
no surprise to many of you

that a recent Rudd Center
research report found

that almost 50% of adult participants said

they would rather give up
a year of their life than to be obese,

or that children as young
as three years old

already judge those
they perceive to be overweight.

I realized then that I, too, was
so wrapped up in my own desire to be thin

that I didn't recognize
the hidden advantages

that my thin body gives me.

I'm not fat, I can eat whatever I want

and as much as I want in public
without being judged.

I can go into any clothing store
and know that they're going to have

lots of options and styles
and colors in my size.

I can go to the gym and work out

and not worry that someone's going
to take a picture of me.

I can get on dating apps
like Bumble and Tinder,

knowing that I'm going
to have lots of matches.

I can go to restaurants
and classrooms, theaters, stadiums

and know that I'm going
to be comfortable in the seats.

I can go to a movie or watch
a television show, open up a magazine,

and be guaranteed to see characters
and celebrities who look like me.

If I do question my weight,

my friends and family members
are going to remind me

that I have a great body

as opposed to recommending
the latest fad diet or exercise regimen.

Because of my thin size,

all of you are more likely
to listen to what I have to stay

instead of thinking that I'm just up here
trying to justify my weight.

Simply put, there are a lot of advantages
that I receive in my life

just because of my thin body.

I have thin privilege.

Here's the thing about privilege, though.

It's invisible.

So I was receiving all
of these unearned benefits,

which I took for granted,

not knowing the real harm
that fat people endure.

You see, the opposite
of thin privilege is fat oppression.

So, thin people like me go through life

receiving all of these unearned
favors and opportunities,

while people who are fat are punished
and judged for their outward appearances.

It was through the wisdom
of fat acceptance scholars and activists

that I, too, became a fat studies scholar

to fight against this prejudice
bias and discrimination.

Now, I know what many of you
are probably thinking,

"Fat people are at risk
for so many diseases,

and thin is clearly healthier."

And I'm here to tell you
that the jury's still out.

Many medical professionals
and researchers still haven't come

to any form of consensus

regarding a lot of issues
concerning weight and health.

So, years from now, we're likely to find

that what we thought we knew about weight
is actually wrong or maybe exaggerated.

So, let's set aside what we think
we know about health and fat,

so we can talk about something
so much more important: discrimination.

Now, what I hope is going
through all of your minds is,

''But I'm not prejudiced

and I don't discriminate against somebody
because of their body size.''

Unfortunately, fat oppression
shows up in many spaces

you probably haven't considered.

So, let's talk about two
that are extremely important:

The workplace and the medical field.

In the workplace, employers have negative
stereotypes about their fat employees,

which leads to workplace discrimination.

Ninety-three percent of professionals
in human resources admitted

they were likely to hire someone
they perceived to be thin

over someone who is fat,

even if both individuals had
the same exact qualifications.

Research shows that fat employees
make 2.5 percent less money

than their normal size colleagues,

a disparity which can mean upwards
of $100,000 less for a fat employee

over the course of a 40-year career.

What's more, Michigan is the only state

with law prohibiting discrimination
on the basis of weight,

which means there's little
preventing employers

from pressuring their fat
employees from resigning

or firing them if they don't
fit the corporate image.

Fat employees are penalized
simply for existing,

while individuals like me, in thin bodies,
we never need consider

the impact our body size can have
on our hiring or promotions.

Those of us in thin bodies
receive even more advantages

when it comes to our medical care.

As a thin person, I've never questioned
the care I've received

or canceled a doctor's appointment
because I was afraid of being fat-shamed.

I've never worried about
being misdiagnosed because of my size.

Now, I'm not trying to speak
to the fat experience, that's not my goal.

As a thin ally, it is deeply troublesome
to me to think that those fat individuals

are receiving a lesser quality of care
just because of their size.

Many fat patients leave
their physicians offices

feeling as though their primary
concern was overlooked

because of the misplaced focus
being put on their weight.

For fat women, going to the gynecologist
can be particularly troubling

as they are often made
to feel ashamed for their weight

or the victims of cruel comments
at the hands of their doctors,

doctors who struggle to believe

that their fat patients could
actually be having sex.

Because of my thin privilege,

I've never been, nor will I likely ever be
a victim of this cruel treatment.

This is a result of the fact
that many medical professionals

are unconsciously or consciously
biased against fat patients.

In one study of doctors, it was discovered

that 40 percent of doctors had
some type of weight prejudice,

with a survey of physicians finding
doctors admitted to using such adjectives

as weak-willed, ugly and awkward
to describe their own obese patients.

In a study of nurses, nurses admitted

that they didn't want to touch
or care for their fat patients,

with another study finding

that 24 percent of nurses were repulsed
by the idea of even having fat patients.

Oftentimes, doctors will try
to address a health problem

by recommending
that a patient lose weight,

only to find out later

that the health problem had nothing to do
with the patient's weight.

Women who are fat are a third less likely
to receive such necessary preventive care

as breast exams and Pap smears.

These studies and statistics are alarming.

We trust our medical professionals
to take care of us,

and any degree
of discrimination in this field

could be the matter of life or death.

Simply put,

fat patients receive a lesser quality
of care than their thin counterparts,

and this is a problem.

Discrimination in the workplace
and medical field speaks

to an important truth
about size privilege: it's invisible.

And like any form of form of privilege,

the first step is simply
acknowledging that it exists.

For many of you,
you may not often consider

the hidden benefits that come
with having a thin body,

but those of us in thin bodies,

whether we worked hard
to create them or not,

need to recognize the ways
that our bodies benefit us,

so that we can visualize
the myriad of ways

that fat oppression
actually occurs all around us.

How awful to think that our fat loved
ones and friends might go through life

feeling as though they've done
something wrong,

or that they were getting shortchanged
simply because of their body size.

If we do not acknowledge
our own thoughts, words and actions,

when it comes to weight,
on a regular basis,

then we perpetuate the problem.

Racial jokes and gay slurs
are no longer tolerated in our society.

So, why do we so readily abide humor
made at a fat person's expense?

Fat is the last accepted prejudice.

We need to check our own inherent biases

against bodies
that aren't slender or slim.

For some of you, your own personal journey
in fat acceptance might begin

when you question why you don't stand up

for your fat co-worker who is the victim
of hushed cruel comments

being made by your colleagues
in the break room.

For others of you, it might begin

when you find yourself silently judging
the fat person sitting next to you

eating the same fast-food meal

that you, yourself,
are currently consuming.

And for many of you, it might start
when you ask yourself

why you are so afraid of being fat
and why you feel so negatively about it.

The important thing to remember here
is that this is a process

and we're trying to undo
years and years of learned behavior,

so we are going to make mistakes.

Here's the bottom line:

prejudice, bias and discrimination
against fat bodies are real

and the impacts are far-reaching.

We're supposed to love our bodies,
and I ask all of you to love your body:

your tall body your, your fat body,
your short body, your round body,

your thin body, whatever body you are in.

You have a mind and the capacity
to use that mind and your body

to work towards a change of perception,

and ultimately, to create a society
where all bodies are treated as equal.

Thank you.

(Applause)