I will not apologise for my body. Part 2.
In my previous post I talked about the fat liberation movement of the 1960's and 70's and how in recent times the body positive movement has watered down the radical message of liberation that came before it.
The accepted view is that fat people cannot be happy with themselves or their bodies. Ergo they must lose weight in order to be happy and accepted by society.
This is where the radical therapy movement steps in. Radical therapy was a movement started by women and it aimed to change the way mental health patients were treated. Without female psychiatrist Dr Phyliss Chesler sexual relationships between male doctors and female patients would not have been ruled unethical. The American Psychiatric Association declared sexual activity with patients unethical in 1973. It was not widely adopted until 1977.
I want to talk more about the important changes women have made to mental health treatment at a later date so I can truly do it justice. For now though what relation does this have to body image?
So what is radical therapy? Dr Charlotte Cooper describes it thus:
Radical Therapy sought to reformulate mental distress as an understandable response to living in oppressive societies. Social justice and social change were understood a means of addressing and healing mental pain. This analysis proposed that people's mental health problems were political and not organic, inevitable, or produced by the individual.
As we now know mental health can be effected by many factors and yes they can be organic/biomedical. Being bipolar is a medical condition and not produced by the individual, so since the radical therapy movement began we now have a wider understanding. However biomedical conditions can be made worse and exasperated by society. Just as the radical therapy movement stated that living in an oppressive society causes mental harm so does the fat liberation movement. It is not the fat person that has the problem but rather society has the problem with not accepting fat bodies. Both movements intersected along with racial struggles, the queer community and those living in poverty.
Victim blaming is a huge part of this. For example 'you're fat because you're lazy or 'you have no self control and can't stop eating'. Fat people are routinely told that losing weight will cure all their problems and society will embrace them with open arms. Unfortunately this is the biggest load of bullshit I've ever come across. Society needs to adapt and change it's view of bodies. Disabled bodies, chronically ill bodies, trans bodies, coloured bodies, fat bodies and also mental health. This oppression causes more harm and illness than eating too much cake ever will do.
So next time you feel like you are the one with problem because a shop only stocks clothes up to a size 14 or your tummy hangs out over your pants remember you are performing a radical act by existing. This makes you incredibly special because by not accepting what society tells you and occupying a space and holding it for others you are a revolutionary. Like those before you who refused to give in to oppression we have a chance to put an end to the constant policing of bodies.
The accepted view is that fat people cannot be happy with themselves or their bodies. Ergo they must lose weight in order to be happy and accepted by society.
This is where the radical therapy movement steps in. Radical therapy was a movement started by women and it aimed to change the way mental health patients were treated. Without female psychiatrist Dr Phyliss Chesler sexual relationships between male doctors and female patients would not have been ruled unethical. The American Psychiatric Association declared sexual activity with patients unethical in 1973. It was not widely adopted until 1977.
I want to talk more about the important changes women have made to mental health treatment at a later date so I can truly do it justice. For now though what relation does this have to body image?
So what is radical therapy? Dr Charlotte Cooper describes it thus:
Radical Therapy sought to reformulate mental distress as an understandable response to living in oppressive societies. Social justice and social change were understood a means of addressing and healing mental pain. This analysis proposed that people's mental health problems were political and not organic, inevitable, or produced by the individual.
As we now know mental health can be effected by many factors and yes they can be organic/biomedical. Being bipolar is a medical condition and not produced by the individual, so since the radical therapy movement began we now have a wider understanding. However biomedical conditions can be made worse and exasperated by society. Just as the radical therapy movement stated that living in an oppressive society causes mental harm so does the fat liberation movement. It is not the fat person that has the problem but rather society has the problem with not accepting fat bodies. Both movements intersected along with racial struggles, the queer community and those living in poverty.
Victim blaming is a huge part of this. For example 'you're fat because you're lazy or 'you have no self control and can't stop eating'. Fat people are routinely told that losing weight will cure all their problems and society will embrace them with open arms. Unfortunately this is the biggest load of bullshit I've ever come across. Society needs to adapt and change it's view of bodies. Disabled bodies, chronically ill bodies, trans bodies, coloured bodies, fat bodies and also mental health. This oppression causes more harm and illness than eating too much cake ever will do.
So next time you feel like you are the one with problem because a shop only stocks clothes up to a size 14 or your tummy hangs out over your pants remember you are performing a radical act by existing. This makes you incredibly special because by not accepting what society tells you and occupying a space and holding it for others you are a revolutionary. Like those before you who refused to give in to oppression we have a chance to put an end to the constant policing of bodies.
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