I'm a bit mind-boggled after reading about a new course offered by the University of Maryland.
"Intro to Fat Studies: Fatness, Blackness and Their Intersections," is being offered as a General Education course to students for the spring semester. The three-credit course can be taken to fulfill the university's Distributive Studies or Diversity course requirements to graduate, according to the university website.
The course description says it "examines fatness as an area of human difference subject to privilege and discrimination that intersects with other systems of oppression based on gender, race, class, sexual orientation, and ability."
"Though we will look at fatness as intersectional, this course will particularly highlight the relationship between fatness and Blackness," the description continues. "We approach this area of study through an interdisciplinary humanities and social-science lens which emphasizes fatness as a social justice issue. The course closes with an examination of fat liberation as liberation for all bodies with a particular emphasis on performing arts and activism as a vehicle for liberation and challenging fatmisia."
There's more at the link.
"Fat liberation"? "Fatmisia"? Ye Gods and little fishes . . .
This is so stupid it's almost beyond parody. If fatness is "a vehicle for liberation", why not call it "eating your way to freedom"? And, of course, we'll have to forbid courses on healthy eating and dieting, because by definition they would reduce the amount of fatness out there, thus discriminating against the "fatly enabled" (or should that be disabled?). As for "blackness" and its association with "fatness" . . . isn't it automatically discriminatory to even think about linking them? Next thing you know, Lizzo will be iconic for all the wrong reasons!
Of course, the students will have to be highly motivated - indefatigable, in fact . . .
As it happens, I'm fat, but I'm not black. Am I merely melanin-challenged, or am I politically incorrect for being the wrong skin color for my avoirdupois?
Peter
8 comments:
Funnily enough, you identify as 'african-american'...
True dat! Caucasian, but born and raised in Africa. I daresay I'm more African than 90%+ of black Americans!
So they are trying to 'normalize' another issue with a large mental health component for most obese people? As a morbidly obese person, that's just as stupid as the gender thing!
What's even more amusing, Peter, is that you are Sub-Saharan African.
Look here! I think you are guilty of cultural fat appropriation but I am confused about the African bit. I must consult with my woke friends. Heh heh
You and Elon.
After The Revolushin'™ the only fat folks will be the Politburo, the Nomenklatura and the Apparatchiks.
Stefan v.
As Godfrey Cambridge, a black comedian said, "If you think I'm fat, you're prejudiced!"
Off topic entirely.
I've always wondered about the origins of "Ye Gods and little fishes". So I went looking.
The closest I found was a footnote (21) on page 294 of "Cyclops", one of the Tragedies of Euripides.
In it Silenus says to Ulysses, "By Neptune, who begat thee, O Cyclops, by the great Triton and Nereus, by Calypso and the daughters of Nereus, by the sacred waves and all the race of fishes, I swear, O dearest one, O little Cyclops, O dear little master, that I never sold thy goods to the strangers. Or evilly may perish these evil children mine, whom I most love."
Right or wrong, you can see it here:
https://archive.org/details/tragediesofeurip0002euri/page/294/mode/1up
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