Analyzing The Emotional Power Fat Women Give Slim Women

I was in college when I was employed part-time at Victoria’s Secret. At my time there I got to know Gillian, the strict Christian store manager who held impossible, Christlike standards for everyone, including herself. This standard showed up in her relationship with her body, and in turn this affected our working relationship.

While she was my boss I was the one she reported to when it came to her weight and size.

I did not apply for this position. I did not do anything to earn this position, either. All I did was exist in the slim body she wanted.

Because our culture as a whole is anti-fat, fatphobia and body discrimination exists within some larger-bodied women, especially when it comes to themselves.

But I get it, though.

Fat people have had their entire lives scrutinized for pretty much the majority of their existence. From strangers, peers, and loved ones alike, everyone demands that the fat woman or man account for their weight by reciting how many calories they eat, what they’ve had for breakfast, how often they exercise, and the activities they partake in when they are not working or sleeping.

This can possibly explain why my fault-finding manager subconsciously believed my slim body held some power over her, which…