Voting While Fat
Vote | Kate Marolf (IG: @kate.marolf) | Digital Illustration Commissioned by Culture Surge. Image description: The word VOTE in large white letters on a textured blue background is followed by the words, MAIL IN | EARLY VOTING | IN PERSON. Three clenched illustrated fists below are shown in various shades of the same blue color, each holding a piece of paper with a check mark.
by Amanda Cooper
As fat people, we understand all too well what it’s like to be left out of people’s vision of community. Whether it’s as important as how health care professionals are trained, or as frivolous as fitting on a ride at an amusement park, we are constantly reminded the world is not built for us. Issues that affect fat people because of our size are not even part of the current political discourse, so it can be easy to feel like voting is not essential to the fight for fat rights.
But nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, many of the problems that we face—access to healthcare, affordable insurance, respect on the job—are also tied to systems designed to keep other groups down. That’s no accident. We have been pitted against each other on purpose. It’s our job—especially if we are fat white people—to recognize this and rebel against it.
No matter where we come from or what we look like, we all want our families and communities to be safe, healthy and vibrant. For generations, wealth hoarders and the politicians they pay for have tried to tell us that we can’t all have these basic human rights. That somehow if one group thrives, another must suffer. But this is just not true. It’s not how an economy works, and it's definitely not how a society works. When there is more respect and justice for one group, there is more respect and justice for all. More safety makes us all safer.
In my community in the heart of the “progressive” Bay Area, I am frustrated by the number of folks who have Black Lives Matter signs on their lawns right next to signs for politicians and referendums that are not supporting Black lives. Particularly around education, housing and policing. If you believe that Black Lives Matter you must vote that into reality. That means researching the candidates for Sheriff, District Attorney and Judges in your county and voting for the candidates who support less incarceration, oppose money bail, and talk explicitly about racism in the justice system. That means studying the propositions, seeking the opinions of BIPOC leaders, and voting for what’s right, even if it means raising your taxes or potential impacts on traffic. Want to do even more? Volunteer on behalf of one of these campaigns. Otherwise your sign is nothing more than a broken promise.
The bottom line is that voting while fat should look a lot like voting while queer or voting while BIPOC. Because all of our identities--shared, overlapping or unique--are actually threatened by many of the same things and all of the same people. So vote, donate and volunteer like your fat body depends on it. Even though fat rights aren’t on the ballot, a lot of other things are. And when we turn out for all of us, we are paving the way to a more abundant future that benefits us all.
It’s not too late! Register now. Or if you are already registered, it’s not too early! Join us for Vote Early Day.
Pic is of Amanda Cooper, a young Caucasian woman with short brown hair, wearing translucent-framed glasses and a smoke-blue top with ruffles at the sleeves; she is standing in front of a white wall.
Amanda Cooper (she/her) - Amanda joined the Board of Directors in 2020. She is an activist, organizer and Senior Partner at the LightBox Collaborative, a communication consulting firm. Amanda has more than twenty years of experience working with organizations throughout our social justice movements, including organized labor, civil rights, and reproductive health and justice.
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