Oh just, shm, really? Valerie Bertinelli responded to body-shaming recently and now critics are saying she fostered body-shaming by being part of the "diet industry." So advocating weight loss is somehow creating a fat-shaming culture? Well I've got news for ya. Diet talk didn't invent body-shaming! You might as well say cancer prevention causes cancer.
Body-shaming isn't new. Many of us have experienced it all our lives. It's part of the reason why we work to lose weight. And I can't speak for Valerie Bertinelli, but I'm just a little bit pissed that it's still happening, in this supposedly "enlightened" world in which we live.
And while I'm ranting, let me just say that I'm sick of being told to grow thicker skin, get over it, and stop taking offense to fat-shaming. When I was a kid, body-shaming was as common on the playground as hopscotch. If you dared to report it, you were told to ignore it. That the bullies just want attention and if you give it to them, you feed it. Like being overweight purposely nailed a target on my back and the bullies would naturally hit it. And being a good girl, I bought that, slunk off and tried to stay out of the bullies' sights.
But now I'm calling body-shaming for the bullshit it is. See, bullying (fat-shaming, thin-shaming, body-shaming, teasing) is predatory and designed to victimize. It has nothing to do with body size, if you're overweight, underweight, or green with purple polka dots. It is viciousness driven by a weak mind. I can "rise above" or "ignore" all I want. That's just a red flag to the bully.
Once, I belonged to a Facebook group devoted to discussing "My 600-lb Life." It touted itself as frank and honest. So I thought we'd be talking about ways to learn from "My 600-lb Life." But turns out, it was just folks with nothing better to do in their pathetic lives than trash-talk and mock obesity. And it wasn't just obesity. They turned on people with other illnesses and conditions. Because that's what sad creeps like that do--kick those who can't kick back. Leopold and Loeb would be so proud.
People don't need to be taught how to "handle" bullies. Bullies need to be taught, in no uncertain terms, that they can't bully. But also, having said that, bullies aren't born, they're grown. Adults and parents need to be the change they wish to see. It's time for body-shamers to straighten the hell up. It's not cute. It's not just greasy kid stuff. Kids behave much more maturely. It's not animalistic. Animals act more civilized. It's pitiful.
But since that will never happen, it's time we set OUR sights on the BS. Bullies don't understand sweet talk or "sir, please don't do that." It's time for bully-shaming with both barrels! Time we point to and laugh at bullying till it slinks off in humiliation. This is not retaliation. Nor revenge. It's self-defense. And you know what they say about offense being the best for that! Let's start offending some bullies!
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