i see that #/1000lbSisters is trending in the US, and it just has me thinking so much about the commodification not only of fatness but also of *anti*-fatness. not a new thought by any means, but absolutely a recurring one for me this morning.

entire tv networks like TLC are able to stay alive only because of the subjugation of the fat body; that subjugation (& objectification) is only possible through the anti-Black, capitalist production that is anti-fatness.

so many people volunteer to be on these types of shows, i imagine, not because they care to “lose” weight—though i’ve no doubt that that’s a major driving force—but because their bodies don’t allow them to find employment which means they can’t pay bills or afford healthcare.

if in 49 states across the country, fat people struggle to find or maintain employment, that only means we’re forced into using our bodies, our molds of flesh, as a product for other people’s amusement, entertainment, and punching bag.

i don’t imagine that nearly as many fat people as there have been would subject themselves to being on shows like 1000 LB Sisters, My 600LB Life, etc. if they had the same access to the money, attention, and perhaps even perceived care outside of those shows.

but that’s how capitalism works. and even though those sisters are white, and many of the people on those shows are too, this also can’t be divorced from anti-Blackness. because anti-fatness can only be a coherent ideology for as long as the Black fat exists.

or, in other words, anti/fatness is rendered a commodity because Blackness exists. but Blackness exists as the Slave exists. and the Slave exists as the capital that maintains this structure. to end this shit, we must also destroy anti/Blackness.

folks shouldn’t have to subject themselves to this violence to be able to feed themselves, house their families, or get “proper” medical treatment (whatever that means in an anti-Black anti-fat world). and yet, folks will continue to have to until we destroy this shit.

and i’m ready for that to happen now because i wish y’all would stop watching those bullshit ass shoes. they really fucking suck.

*shows