THE SHAME GAME

“Is 'fat’ really the worst thing a human being can be? Is 'fat' worse than 'vindictive', 'jealous', 'shallow', 'vain', 'boring' or 'cruel'? Not to me.”
            -- J.K. Rowling

I recently conducted a survey online and in the physical world, where I asked people two simple questions: “Have you ever been called fat?” and “Were you offended when you were called so?” Out of the 52 people who answered my questions, 48 replied with a “yes” to the first question, while 39 out of the 48 replied that they were indeed offended or sad for being labeled as “fat”.
The remarkable part of the survey was that those to answer were of various “body types,” as the internet would put it; meaning, they were in various positions on the weighing scale.
“Being fat is a bad thing because it is bad for your health,” said Tanim Zunaid. That's how I saw it. I ended up teasing and mocking people for being fat because I found it amusing. But honestly, I didn't give much thought to why I was doing that. Do I think it actually motivates people to lose weight? Well, now I know it doesn't. I didn't know why I would give into fat-shaming. I never realised how rude or cruel I was being to people.”
It's not too rare for kids in schools to get picked on for being “fat” or otherwise made to feel ashamed for their body-type or weight. And after having conducted another survey, similar to the one I initially mentioned, most people answered with a stern “no” when asked whether their peers or families pressuring/shaming them ever motivated them towards losing weight.

“I've been overweight for most of my life and it didn't bother me all that much when people called me fat,” said Nafisa Naomi, “because I was fat. What bothered me was how they used it against me; they mocked and taunted me as if carrying extra weight is the worst a person can do. When I did start to work towards losing weight, it was due to some health issues and I wanted to be 'hot' for a certain person, and I knew the definition of 'hot' for most people is someone thin with a slim waist.”
Whether or not the case in point is true, people often criticise those who don't fit into the paradigm of the ideal body type, which has been relayed in the media as women with slim figures and men who are muscular; resulting in a lot of people beginning to develop a negative self-image. Outside forces asserting the feeling of humiliation upon them through fat-shaming do not help that self-image at all.
“I was offended when I was called fat was because I was going through this awkward teenage phase,” said Rawnok Jahan Kabir. “All my friends were stick-thin and I felt so out of place with them.”

“Sometimes I'd call someone fat because I wanted to assert that there was someone fatter than me,” said Samiha Hossain. “The one who does the act of bullying, his or her self-esteem plays into the whole system of fat-shaming as well. Sometimes, people just call someone fat because they want to feel better about themselves, and fat has become this Scarlet Letter -- easy to slap on anyone with extra meat on their bones.”
We are all too used to seeing the thin girl get the hot boy or the hot boy himself being a lean, muscular figure in the movies. There seems to be this concept [no, belief] that the level of your appeal is determined by the number that is displayed on your weighing scale.

In recent times there have been movements toward acceptance of larger bodies, with the increase in number of plus-sized models. But even then there has been a public fat-shaming scandal centring one of the most popular international clothing bands, Abercrombie & Fitch [that focuses on casual wear for consumers aged 18 to 22], as CEO Mike Jeffries refused to cater to the needs of larger women as he in his words felt, “they didn't belong.”
But is obesity/ being overweight always a personal choice, as people make it out to be? Not exactly. Studies by various universities show that in the recent decades, not just humans but also other animals are carrying more weight than before. The basic idea of these researches suggest that being “fat” can actually run in the family, and fat cells can amass due to the industrial chemicals which may be altering the cells.
“I've been fat all my life. I've come to a point where I've become used to being called names and made fun of for being slow at basketball,” said Aawatef Rahman Khan. “When I was young, the word 'fat' would bother me. Because I am a foodie, I love to cook and eat, but people just assume that I'm a foodie because of my shape and that really bugs me.”

Another medium of fat-shaming would be to ascribe traits to those that are heavier, to just assume the rationale for their weight is overeating, even though there may be various reasons as mentioned above. Bullies often abuse the overweight/those they consider fat to such a point where the latter feel dehumanized.
“They don't often realise that is hurts, it hurts quite a lot,” said Shaheli Tahsin. “I feel ashamed of my own weight and of myself. There's a lot of pressure from my family too. It's not like I don't try; some days I don't even eat.”
Pressure from the media, and peer pressure are difficult enough to deal with but when one's family, who are supposed to be the people one falls back on, begin to show a lack of empathy, it all often cumulates toward development of unhealthy practices like eating disorders and depression.
“You feel worst when even your own mother finds you disgusting to look at,” Shaheli Tahsin said.
Eating disorders are the irregular habits of eating, without full consciousness of the person, often caused by self-hatred and shame. Eating disorders range from binge eating to not eating at all, like anorexia nervosa. Some even develop depression and self-hatred and a permanent loss of self esteem.
Increase in fat cells is what causes the “fatness” or “obesity”, but at the end of the day, we all have these fat cells. Fat cells are a part of all of us. Weight is temporary, but the effects of shaming someone for their weight can be permanent due to its psychological effects. But it's not only fat-shaming that's the issue here; the woman who was named “World's Ugliest Woman” has a disorder that won't let her gain any weight. Body-shaming is not only limited to those who are heavier in weight. Appeal and attractiveness are purely subjective and rarely have much to do with someone's weight.
It's not just the issue of fat-shaming, but body-shaming in general that causes people to abuse one another and generates self-hatred and self-doubt in many. We all have fat cells and different body types, and if weight is an issue for someone's health, they should certainly address that. That's easier than recovering from the psychological effects of feeling ashamed of themselves, and their bodies.