A must-read
Dec. 9th, 2004 21:00![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
torquillAbsolutely one of the things that must be read.
Fatima Mernissi and the Size 6 Harem
I was nodding as I read this piece. Anyone who has met me in person knows I can relate; I've muttered many times about the hassle of never being able to find clothes that fit. And at that, I've never been in a store that carries only up to size 6 -- I can't even imagine.
I realize, of course, that I am an unusual size. Most ladies I know of can't fit a size 6, but many will fit a 12 or 14 fine, and they look... well, average, perhaps more trim than the typical overweight American. To say that size 4 is average... On a deep level, this article made me very angry. Because I know the agonizing such pressure creates in women, most especially those whose genetics or even simply their bone structure makes sizes 4 and 6 impossible. I've felt it daily at times, and only the knowledge that my skeleton itself, without any flesh on it, could never fit into anything less than a 16 keeps me from going crazy and trying to take weight off that isn't meant to come off. Many women do not have that assurance.
How many times have I sneered at the Body Mass Index, which says that for a 5'5" woman I am grossly obese? They used to have three different body types on that index... now there is only one. I am such an extreme example that I have made at least one doctor double-take before visibly discarding the BMI in his mind (I hope the lesson stuck) -- but how many others have listened to doctors, nutritionists, fitness instructors who are convinced of the sacred nature of the infallible BMI, who tell them that, say, 170 pounds for 5'6" is too heavy? How many have tortured themselves emotionally and physically to try to conform?
And don't get me started about fat-based discrimination in the medical field. Fat people (I say that without intended insult) have their own set of problems, as bad or more so than the ones I encounter myself. I'll leave it to someone who knows those issues more intimately to rant about them, but I do feel sympathy.
For my part, I am (mostly) resigned to the fact that I can rarely, if ever, buy womens' clothing. It's a hassle to find what I need, though; men's clothes do all right for everyday use, and it's handy to be able to go by measurement rather than by arbitrary size... I know my inseam and sleeve length, my collar size, my size in men's shoes. That doesn't help when I need a dress, or a fancy blouse, or dressy shoes. I'm pretty sure that the muscle I've put in across the shoulders alone eliminates most tops, and Goddess knows what I'm going to do next time I need flats or heels.
The mention of age discrimination in the workplace applies to body type, too. Seanan was once turned down for a secretary job because she's round rather than tall and photogenic; I have a slightly better build than she does, but I still never get whistled at unless I'm at RenFair. I know how much "soft discrimination" goes on in hiring practices, and if I ever apply for anything other than a back-office job I could be in for it.
So I can relate to this entry, written by someone who comes from a sufficiently different culture to see what's really going on. It's insidious, and horribly effective, partly because the bra-burning days ended with the hippies, and few since have ever stepped back to realize that we really are restricted by society's image. Some people have been wringing their hands about supermodels and teenage anorexia for years now, but we need to understand that it's not just the role models applying pressure. It's the clothing industry, the powerful people, the medical establishment, making it nearly impossible to be different. It's not just the carrot of approval, there's also a very large stick.
More of us need to speak up from the margins -- pump up our self-esteem and start demanding respect. And respect doesn't just mean saying "fat is OK, in fact, let's stop calling people fat altogether"... it means understanding that people come tall, short, and wide as well as skinny. Accept that obesity is a separate, though still pressing issue, from the simple genetics that make me 42-36-44 or make another woman 6'2". The obese need respect too, but for once I would like someone to look at my height and my weight on a chart and not think that I need to go on a diet just because society says that I should weigh 140 pounds.
I guess when that happens I can fantasize about how best to take them out. Having the shoulders of a linebacker and weighing more than many men does have its advantages.
Fatima Mernissi and the Size 6 Harem
I was nodding as I read this piece. Anyone who has met me in person knows I can relate; I've muttered many times about the hassle of never being able to find clothes that fit. And at that, I've never been in a store that carries only up to size 6 -- I can't even imagine.
I realize, of course, that I am an unusual size. Most ladies I know of can't fit a size 6, but many will fit a 12 or 14 fine, and they look... well, average, perhaps more trim than the typical overweight American. To say that size 4 is average... On a deep level, this article made me very angry. Because I know the agonizing such pressure creates in women, most especially those whose genetics or even simply their bone structure makes sizes 4 and 6 impossible. I've felt it daily at times, and only the knowledge that my skeleton itself, without any flesh on it, could never fit into anything less than a 16 keeps me from going crazy and trying to take weight off that isn't meant to come off. Many women do not have that assurance.
How many times have I sneered at the Body Mass Index, which says that for a 5'5" woman I am grossly obese? They used to have three different body types on that index... now there is only one. I am such an extreme example that I have made at least one doctor double-take before visibly discarding the BMI in his mind (I hope the lesson stuck) -- but how many others have listened to doctors, nutritionists, fitness instructors who are convinced of the sacred nature of the infallible BMI, who tell them that, say, 170 pounds for 5'6" is too heavy? How many have tortured themselves emotionally and physically to try to conform?
And don't get me started about fat-based discrimination in the medical field. Fat people (I say that without intended insult) have their own set of problems, as bad or more so than the ones I encounter myself. I'll leave it to someone who knows those issues more intimately to rant about them, but I do feel sympathy.
For my part, I am (mostly) resigned to the fact that I can rarely, if ever, buy womens' clothing. It's a hassle to find what I need, though; men's clothes do all right for everyday use, and it's handy to be able to go by measurement rather than by arbitrary size... I know my inseam and sleeve length, my collar size, my size in men's shoes. That doesn't help when I need a dress, or a fancy blouse, or dressy shoes. I'm pretty sure that the muscle I've put in across the shoulders alone eliminates most tops, and Goddess knows what I'm going to do next time I need flats or heels.
The mention of age discrimination in the workplace applies to body type, too. Seanan was once turned down for a secretary job because she's round rather than tall and photogenic; I have a slightly better build than she does, but I still never get whistled at unless I'm at RenFair. I know how much "soft discrimination" goes on in hiring practices, and if I ever apply for anything other than a back-office job I could be in for it.
So I can relate to this entry, written by someone who comes from a sufficiently different culture to see what's really going on. It's insidious, and horribly effective, partly because the bra-burning days ended with the hippies, and few since have ever stepped back to realize that we really are restricted by society's image. Some people have been wringing their hands about supermodels and teenage anorexia for years now, but we need to understand that it's not just the role models applying pressure. It's the clothing industry, the powerful people, the medical establishment, making it nearly impossible to be different. It's not just the carrot of approval, there's also a very large stick.
More of us need to speak up from the margins -- pump up our self-esteem and start demanding respect. And respect doesn't just mean saying "fat is OK, in fact, let's stop calling people fat altogether"... it means understanding that people come tall, short, and wide as well as skinny. Accept that obesity is a separate, though still pressing issue, from the simple genetics that make me 42-36-44 or make another woman 6'2". The obese need respect too, but for once I would like someone to look at my height and my weight on a chart and not think that I need to go on a diet just because society says that I should weigh 140 pounds.
I guess when that happens I can fantasize about how best to take them out. Having the shoulders of a linebacker and weighing more than many men does have its advantages.
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Say on, sistah!
Date: 2004-12-10 16:28 (UTC)I also can't find good blouses as a rule. They don't fit my shoulders. Shoes are laughable, as I wear a size 9 in men's.
I still recall the girl I let crash on my couch for six months while she was supposed to hunt for a new apartment. Around this time, she came back all excited that she had found an outfit that fit her. She's a size 0. "It's just sooooo hard to find clothes my size."
I just about smacked her. She looks like she should still be in grade school.