Big fat inequalities, thin privilege: An intersectional perspective on ‘body size’

1. Noortje van Amsterdam, Department of Pedagogical and Educational Sciences/School of Governance, Utrecht University, Bijhouwerstraat 6, 3511 ZC, Utrecht, The Netherlands. Email: N.vanAmsterdam@uu.nl

Abstract

This article aims to claim ‘body size’ as an increasingly important axis of signification. It draws on research from various disciplines to present an exploratory overview of the different ways in which body size categorizations – being (considered) fat or slender – intersect with other axes, such as gender, race, sexuality, social class and age. The article argues that an intersectional perspective on body size adds to our understanding of the layeredness and complexity of power differentials, normativities and identity formations that co-produce inequalities. Furthermore, it attempts to show how processes of exclusion and marginalization based on body size categorizations are similar to racist, ableist and misogynist logics and practices. Hereby the article intends to demonstrate the vast (negative) impact of body size categorizations, specifically but not exclusively on the lives of those who occupy the marked position in relation to this axis: the ‘fat’. It argues that an intersectional perspective helps us to see body size discrimination more clearly and can help disrupt dominant discourses about the body in order to create a truly ‘healthy’ environment in which bodies of all sizes, shapes, colours and abilities can be celebrated.