What is Thin Privilege?

Fat people are not granted the same freedom to move through the world that thin people. This double standard extends into every aspect of our lives, and often goes unnoticed. In order to tackle this issue, we must first recognize thin privilege for what it is and learn methods to acknowledge and deal with it.

‘Thin privilege is being able to go through life without having to think twice about the ways that your body [size] is interacting with others and not being instantly judged [negatively] on what your body looks like,’ explains Natalie Sanders, a Health at Every Size informed Barre instructor. This privilege is found in the financial, practical and social benefits a person receives when they are thin. Like most privileges, when you have it, it may not be something you’ve spent much time thinking about. As we’re all wrapped up in our own struggles, it’s natural that a thin, able-bodied person wouldn’t recognize the hidden advantages that they have. Having privilege doesn’t mean that your life is easy. It means you might have certain traits that you were either born with, or that come naturally to you and give you advantages in society that others don’t have.

If you are straight-sized, you can forget to pack your swimsuit on that vacation to the beach, and easily pop into a shop to purchase a new one, because you know they’ll have your size. You can go into any clothing store and know that it will have options for you in styles and colors in your size.

If you are straight-sized, you can enjoy a meal while not being anxious that people will stare at you in disapproval for eating in public.

When you meet for a meal with friends, you don’t have to worry or do research into the restaurant to be sure that it will have seats that you can sit in and enough space to be seated at the table. You can walk into restaurants, classrooms, theatres, stadiums and bars, knowing that you will be able to have a seat that fits you. When you eat out, you can enjoy a meal while not being anxious that people will stare at you in disapproval for eating in public. You can eat whatever you want, as much as you want in public, without being judged or ridiculed.

You can go to the gym, work out and not worry that someone is going to take a picture of you to mock you on social media. You can use dating apps knowing you’ll find matches. On an airplane you don’t have to worry that the seats will be too small, that you’ll be forced to purchase an extra seat or go through the task of asking for a seatbelt extender.

Thin Privilege and Fat Oppression

It’s impossible to talk about thin privilege without talking about fatphobia. We’ve all heard the arguments, ‘fat people don’t make the right choices to lose weight’, ‘fat people don’t take care of themselves’, ‘fat people are lazy’. Thanks to culture and the media, fat is seen as a bad thing.

The opposite of thin privilege is fat oppression. Therefore, thin people go through life receiving unearned favors and opportunities, while people who are fat are punished and judged for their outward appearance.

Already you might be thinking: ‘Fat people are at risk of many diseases, and being thin is clearly healthier.’ Many medical professionals and researchers still haven’t come to any consensus regarding many issues concerning weight and health. Being fat doesn’t automatically mean someone is unhealthy. There are thin-bodied people who are healthy, and there are thin-bodied people who are unhealthy. The same applies to fat bodies.

Most fat patients leave their GP’s office feeling that their primary concern was overlooked because of the misplaced focus on their weight.

We are taught from a very young age to compliment people if they’ve lost weight, upholding the idea that thin bodies are sought after without ever considering what’s going on beyond surface levels. Peoples’ weight can change due to a number of factors, including health problems, miscarriages, and eating disorders. Just because a person has lost weight does not mean that they lost it due to pleasant circumstances. As Aubrey Gordon says in What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat: ‘Complimenting perceived weight loss may mean you are complimenting someone’s eating disorder, their grief, their depression/mental illness, their trauma and more. Weight loss isn’t always desired, and it can be the result of really tough times.’

The word “overweight” is not a nice way of saying “fat”. It’s a way of determining that a person is over the weight that they should be, and this is not your call to make. No one knows a person’s health or bodily journey and has no right to comment or pass judgement on someone they know nothing about. However, subjects regarding health and fitness are not the main focus here. What we’re talking about is bodily discrimination.

Workplace Discrimination

Fat oppression shows up in many forms, and the workplace is full of it. Problems begin at the hiring process. A common problem for fat job seekers is going to a job interview and not getting a call back, because our appearance instantly excludes us from being offered the position. Many employers hold negative stereotypes about their fat employees, which leads to workplace discrimination. In a study held in the USA (Occupational Characteristics and the Obesity Wage Penalty by Jennifer Bennett Shinall in 2014), 93% of professionals in human resources admitted they were likely to hire someone they perceived to be thin over someone who is fat, even if both people had the exact same qualifications.

Those with power and influence have pivoted over time to placing the emphasis on physical fitness above all else, turning it into a way to gauge ‘productive’ members of society. This creates pigeonholes for categorization and hegemony. In this way, we are deemed ‘worthy’ for neatly fitting into the workforce while we are young and able-bodied. Then, as we age, and our health or physical capabilities wane, we become decreasingly meaningful to the wheels of commerce, until all of us are deemed obsolete.

Thin Privilege in the Medical Sphere

Thin people don’t have to question the medical care they’ll receive, or have to cancel a doctor’s appointment because they’re afraid of being fat-shamed. They don’t have to worry about being misdiagnosed because of their size. Fat people receive less quality care than thin people. Often, doctors try to address a health problem by recommending that a patient lose weight. However, research shows that most of the time the health problem has nothing to do with the patient’s weight. Most fat patients leave their GP’s office feeling that their primary concern was overlooked because of the misplaced focus on their weight.

Listen and believe fat people when they talk about fatphobia and anti-fat aggression. Let fat people lead the dialogue.

We’re supposed to trust our medical professionals to take care of us, and any degree of discrimination in this field could be a matter of life and death. When it comes to cancer screenings, fat people often can’t fit into the machines used in the screening process. The medical world itself dismisses the right of different-sized bodies to have access to the very machines that could help save a person’s life.

How We Can Achieve Bodily Equality

What the gatekeepers don’t want is for us to collectively reimagine an alternative narrative – one in which all bodies deserve respect and equality. This is where those who have thin privilege can assert themselves as allies in the body liberation movement.

• The first step is to acknowledge that fatphobia exists. It’s natural to not be aware of the advantages of being thin. A good start is becoming aware of the casual ways having a thin body helps you navigate you through the world, and paying attention to the ways fat oppression shows itself.

• Call out fatphobia. This takes speaking up for others, even if they’re not in the room. Like calling out homophobia, transphobia, sexism, and racism it is essential that we all make a conscious effort to denounce these things even if no one else is there to back us up. It’s scary, but it’s vital.

• Listen and believe fat people when they talk about fatphobia and anti-fat aggression. Let fat people lead the dialogue. Learn, listen and read what fat activists, allied scientists, and doctors have to say in order to understand what changes need to be made.

• Follow and support fat activist content creators on social media. Elevate their voices and share what they have to say in order to reach others.

• Question invasive fatphobic thoughts. Why are you judging the fat person sitting next to you eating the same fast food meal that you’re also eating? Why do you blame the fat person sitting next to you on the brand new metro seats that are half as big as the old ones? Why not blame the designers, who neglected to think of all the passengers who feel cramped – either fat or thin?

• Don’t comment on other peoples’ bodies. Bringing up someone’s weight is invasive and highly personal. No one should be obliged to have their weight commented upon.

Having anti-fat bias comes from years of learned behavior, so you shouldn’t feel bad for not being aware of the thin privilege you might unwittingly possess. Ultimately, it takes questioning your own learned beliefs as to why you are so afraid of being fat, and why you associate it negatively.

Thin privilege hurts everyone. Prejudice, bias, and discrimination against fat bodies is real and the impacts are far-reaching. In order to create a more just, equitable world that holds space for all bodies it takes all of us – fat or thin, able-bodied or disabled, male, female, cis, trans and/or gender queer - to do our part.