(Size Acceptance) Ragen Chastain's "Better Than The Bullies" Project
This response by a Wisconsin news anchor has been making the rounds on FB and elsewhere:
http://jezebel.com/5948276/the-best-thing-youll-see-all-day-local-news-anchor-has-on+air-message-for-man-who-called-her-fat
Inspired by a powerful phrase Jennifer Livingston used above, Dances With Fat blogger / activist Ragen Chastain has begun setting up a website for similar, empowerment-focused videos titled "Better Than The Bullies", details here: http://danceswithfat.wordpress.com/2012/10/03/better-than-the-bullies-thank-you-jennifer-livingston/
I just finished a script for my own Declaration of Independence / PSA, working title "You Don't Know Me and You're Not My Friend", which follows below. I don't know how soon I'll be able to make this, but I'm starting to collect "messages" now, for the pile referenced in the script. Contributions from magazines / newspapers / printouts welcome.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm Dyanna Flynn. I'm a nurse, and I'm an entertainer. I've also been a target for bullying about my weight and my size since my first day of school, when I smiled at some girl on the bus and she responded with "YOU'VE GOT FAT CHEEKS!".
Unfortunately, it didn't stop there, and I'm not alone. Every day, fat people receive up to 1000 messages from TV, radio, the Internet, possibly well-meaning friends and family, possibly well-meaning doctors, nurses and technicians, First Lady Michelle Obama, and God's Little Helper, the random stranger. These messages all say the same, bullying thing: "Your fat body is unacceptable, and if you want us to stop ridiculing, shaming and abusing you, your only choice is to try to shrink your body, so you can "pass". THIS :::show pile of "messages"::: is what a thousand negative messages about your body looks like.
On behalf of all the fat people in America, I would like to inform the bullies and the hucksters: WE GOT THE MESSAGE :::throw pile up and backwards:::, Y'ALL CAN STOP NOW. I can state without fear of contradiction that every single blessed fat person in America is painfully aware of how repulsive you find our natural state and how eager you are to part us from our hard-earned coin in a futile bid for some acceptance and peace.
For a few of the bullies whose company I've "enjoyed" over the years, I have some special messages:
To Dr. Oz ::::show picture::::, I say ::::talk to picture:::: "I watched you talk to a woman whose husband wanted to quit smoking. You emphasized her husband's need for her support and her compassion, by extension revealing your own support and compassion. I then watched you turn around and berate a woman who was fatter than her twin sister with belittling, patronizing words like "No more excuses." Did you really think she needed to hate her body more than she already might? She deserved better than your contempt on national television. You could be telling millions of people every day that healthy habits can lead to a healthier future for people of every size, and every. Single. Day. you blow it. :::::crumple picture and toss it::::: You don't know me. You are not my friend."
To Weight Watchers, who has never stopped mailing ads to me although I never gave you my address :::::show logo::::: I say, "You oughta be ashamed of yourselves, for making a woman who won a Grammy award and an Oscar say that her proudest achievement involved her giving you money, time and attention. ::::::crumple logo and toss::::: You knew nothing about her. You're not her friend and you're certainly not mine."
Last but not least, I have a special message for one of God's Little Helpers who accosted me at a bus stop. You handed me a little booklet ::::::show booklet (I):::::: titled "Little Ways To Lose A Lot Of Weight", but you didn't have the stones to just give it to me. You tucked it inside another booklet, :::::show booklet (II) :::::: titled "Surviving Traumatic Experiences." :::::drop (I), "twist" it underfoot::::: I want to thank you. Being bullied about my size by strangers IS a traumatic experience. I've had to survive it many times, and I'm grateful to you for "acknowledging" that. ::::::big smile:::::: But you're still not my friend.
In closing, I would like to share one of my favorite quotes, from "The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis. The character Professer Kirke tells two of the children, "There is one plan which no one has yet suggested and which is well worth trying…We might all try minding our own business."
::::::place (II) front and center, dance off into the sunset:::::: (music: "Americano"?-"Don't you try to catch me…")
Tech Notes:
Need camera, need medium-sized room, need to manufacture / print picture, logo, "booklet" and "1000 messages" (might be therapeutic to actually collect 1000 messages rather than "pad" a stack of 1000 papers. It won't be that much harder than I think, more's the pity.), need to plan dress, hair, makeup, need to use iPod and speakers.