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» The Fat Vegan, or OH HELL NO YOU DID NOT.

Vegan guru/purveyor of meals in a cup Dr. McDougall recently published an article in his newsletter titled “The Fat Vegan.” GREAT. Yet another thing to shame fat people into being embarrassed about their weight but this time from a vegan perspective. Fuck, this shit is enough to make me move to a nudist colony with Bruce Vilanch and have little Pizza The Hut babies together.

I have a few questions: How many “extremely obese” vegans do you know? Are they really such a problem that we need to focus our energy on them? Or is this just another case of fat intolerance? Shouldn’t the focus be on health, not weight, anyway? There are plenty of skinny vegans who eat junk food diets but just because they are “trim,” they get a free pass? Whereas a vegan who eats well and exercises regularly and has a naturally higher set-point weight is crucified for not being a skinny enough face for the movement—is that what being a vegan is about, not accepting fat people because they’re um, too fat? Regardless of whether they have the drive, energy and determination to help end animal suffering? Honestly, if it is, we’re going to lose a lot of great activists and would-be activists.

At the SF Pride Parade this year, there was a float from the folks at SF Bay Vegetarians, and it made me so proud to see such a diverse group of vegans, not just the stereotypical sallow honkies. We need people of all sizes, shapes and colors to fight against animal cruelty. Also, think about what the majority of America looks like, you think taking information from a condescending emaciated white chick is more appealing to them than talking to someone they can relate to? It makes veganism seem attainable and not like a fad diet, a fad diet that, when they try it and don’t lose buckets of weight, they dump for the next one! And guess what? This time it’s The Zone!

Touting veganism as a great way to lose weight is just low. There is already enough information out there to make women hate themselves, we don’t need Mr. Tamale Soup In a Cup adding to it.

I think Dr. McDougall is fantastic, and for the most part, he has an excellent message. But I don’t agree with shaming anyone because of their physical appearance. This isn’t about health, it’s about not being fat, and if you think differently, go back and re-read the article. It’s ignorant, harmful, could lead to destructive eating behavior, and worst of all, discourage others from becoming vegan. Trust me, fat people shame themselves enough; we don’t need yet another person jumping on our backs. You think that if fat people could be skinny, they wouldn’t? That’s why dieting is a billion-dollar industry. By buying into this mentality, you’re supporting Atkins, the pharmaceutical companies who test on animals to come up with diet pills, and centuries of misogyny.

What we should support is eating nutritious vegan foods, getting some exercise, and being comfortable with the weight that you land at. Everything else is bullshit.

The force we have to fight is out there, not within our own community. The mythological “damage” done to the movement by fat vegans pales in comparison to, say, the damage done by the dairy industry. By seeding division within our community, you weaken us for the actual battles we need to fight.