I am black but I’m not overweight. In fact a few friends from home (the midwest) are threatening to send me food because they saw my birthday pics and they think I’m not eating. Hey – I EAT! EVERY DAY! Get off my back!!
Sorry, got off message for a moment.
ANYway, in no one’s rational mind am I anything close to obese. Sure, there is always that 5 to 10 lbs I might want to lose (because I live in Los Angeles and you’re supposed to be like a size -2 at all times, like for real) BUT I have never had a health concern associated with my weight so I can’t say that I fully understand what it’s like to be “a certain size” but I do know that I’m a little tired of “US”, generally speaking, being singled out like specimens.
Alice Randall contributed an opinion piece to the NYTimes the other day entitled “Black Women and Fat” – one glance at the headline and I was annoyed. ‘Here we go again’ I thought to myself. Black women so nuf got lots o problems. They just can’t catch a break – EVER!
FOUR out of five black women are seriously overweight. One out of four middle-aged black women has diabetes. With $174 billion a year spent on diabetes-related illness in America and obesity quickly overtaking smoking as a cause of cancer deaths, it is past time to try something new.
What we need is a body-culture revolution in black America. Why? Because too many experts who are involved in the discussion of obesity don’t understand something crucial about black women and fat: many black women are fat because we want to be.
“Because we want to be”?? Sigh. Look I don’t have stats and as a casual observer I will agree that “we” as a people could benefit tremendously from altering our eating habits and engaging in even a moderate amount of exercise on a weekly basis but damn if I think that it is strictly a BLACK WOMAN ISSUE! Look around, obesity is a growing AMERICAN concern.
By 2030, roughly 42 percent of Americans will be obese, researchers announced today to kick off the “Weight of the Nation” obesity conference in Washington, D.C. That staggering rise will contribute to a rise in major health care costs, so much so that the researchers behind the study say keeping obesity rates level over the next 20 years could save nearly $550 billion.
Currently about a third of U.S. adults are obese. The Weight of the Nation meeting is part of a nationwide awareness campaign that involves experts from numerous organizations discussing strategies for the prevention and control of obesity.
A study earlier this year in January found the obesity epidemic was reaching a plateau, with numbers remaining the same as they were in 2003. But the researchers behind the new study created new projections, and one said on a conference call that obesity prevalence is “increasing at a decreasing rate,” and those increases will add up over time.
For the new study, Duke University researchers used a new statistical model of projecting obesity rates from examining different sets of CDC data on hundreds of thousands of Americans. They predict that by 2030, 11 percent of people will be severely obese, as defined by a Body Mass Index (BMI) over 40 or being roughly 100 pounds or more overweight. That 11 percent rate would double today’s rate. The findings suggest the U.S. health care system will be saddled with 32 million additional obese people within two decades. (CBSNews)
Although those predictions sound dire, WebMD reported that “Only a 1 percent decrease in this predicted trend would mean 2.9 million fewer obese adults in 2030, saving $4.7 billion yearly health care costs…” Clearly something to strongly take into consideration.
Another aggravating factor of the NYT article is an issue I alluded to in the beginning – this “woe is us” downtrodden surface observation of why black people ____ is getting old.
Guess what? I’m not alone. As I don’t have a lot time today to delve too deeply into this issue I was quite pleased to find a rebuttal article that honed in on some of my frustration. Ebony’s Jamilah Lemieu responded with: “Your Blackness Ain’t Like Mine – Enough with the op-eds explaining why ‘Black Women are Fat’ or anything else that makes it seem like we’re all the same” - Right on Sis!
“Why are Black women fat? Why are Black men in jail? Why can’t Black women find “good Black men?” Why did I get married, too?”
Miserable questions that provide no path to answers—but offer broad sweeping generalizations in their stead—have put a lot of money in the pockets of writers, bloggers (that’s not redundant; not every member of the latter group can rightly be described as the former), and anyone else who profits off the lucrative “Inherent Deficiency Industry.” Yes, I just made that up. Yes, it is is a real thing. (Ebony)
Inherent Deficiency Industry. Perfect.
Lemieux elaborates:
The IDI refers to those who bank off of the notion that X group of people is forever doomed to suffer Y problem. They respond to the need for solutions with magic beans and bothersome hypotheses and rom-coms and books and many, many microscopes under which groups of people (Blacks, poor folks, gays, fat people…pretty much anyone except for able-bodied, healthy, straight and upwardly mobile White men) are miserably scrutinized.
Specifically addressing Randall’s article:
The aughts and early ’10s have been filled with writings designed to help The World understand just what in the hell is wrong with Black Women. Because, you see, we sisters are an entirely separate entity from the rest of civilization. Our problems are always tied to the unique condition that is being Black and female and we are so fascinating, so curious to The World, that they just can’t help but to grab the popcorn and the Dasani and peer closely into the cage that separates us from them.
Umm yeah, she goes in. She examines Randall’s TWO explanations of black woman fatness: “Our men like us big and we are resisting the fitness that was imposed upon us during slavery.” One is simplistic, the other academic and to me, even if true, they are both ridiculous and are definitely NOT the entire story. Sigh.
I do also wish that if we must hold up a mirror to Blackness constantly in the audience of others so that they may observe us (or so they can observe us observing ourselves), that we made these displays a bit more productive and beneficial to the community-at-large. Instead of speaking out on the dating woes of Black women or why we can’t just lose that last 115 extra pounds, why not talk about the systematic challenges that make it difficult for Black women to access health care—a huge factor in our obesity crisis—or how to combat our lack of easy access to healthy options in the “food deserts” many of us call home? (Ebony)
Exactly. Again, sigh.
*The photo and caption are from Lemieux’s article.
First…if you lose “another” 10 or 5 pounds…there WILL be an intervention of the MIDWEST KIND! Geez lady. Second…I was just telling my dad that I’m over racism and race based proposed theories and all the like. OVER IT. It’s comical at this point. Didn’t the Post have an op about Jay-Z’s ownership of the Nets…didnt Psych Today have an op about why “we” aint as pretty? Blah…blah…blah. OVER IT. THIS IS NOT BY ACCIDENT! Black man owns a franchise…there’s an article…black woman named most beautiful woman…there’s an article. As I told Otis…whenever a position of status – social or otherwise is invaded by someone of color…nonsense and op eds and firings follow (holla back Imus). OVER. IT. Now…go eat some donuts please
I love that you comment regularly. THANK YOU. Re the donut eating – No.
Did the NYT really say that our men like us fat? ha ha ha! That’s a good one! They obviously don’t know the black men in LA! Plus, I think it’s more that black men like a nice rounded butt…not fat! They like a Halle butt not a Paris Hilton’s..and both those ladies are small! Anyway, I’m also torn…Crescent are you mad that they are talking about this subject in public and that the reasoning behind their research it is stupid? Cause I do have a concern for black women and weight. Now, don’t get me wrong…American’s of all races are getting fat! I was just in Vegas where there are American’s from all over and I was amazed at the over weightness (yes i made that up) of them all! But, since I am a black woman, I worry about my fellow sisters weight. What do we do? Just go to Atlanta and you will see what I’m talking about! A lot of them look unhealthy and you know they don’t see it cause a lot of them wear tight revealing outfits that don’t hide NOTHING! lol! I guess my question is….what do we do?
ANGELA!! Yes the author of the article actually did say that one of the reasons black women are fat is because our men like us that way and we just grin and help ourselves to another slice of pie (I added the grinning and pie part). And yes you are correct regarding that way of thinking does NOT exist in Los Angeles (or NY or on South Beach). And yes I would also agree that black men are known for loving them a big ole healthy backside (“more bounce to the ounce”) and if you allow yourself to listen to current hip hop (*side-eye*) it’s yes have a healthy behind, yes have big ta-tas and yes have a skinny waist. Quoting Big Sean: “How your waist anorexic and then your a$$ is colossal” – yeeeeaaaaaahhhh.
Anyway, I also agree that clearly a significant number of Americans have a weight problem and according to the stats the author presented, 4 out of 5 black women are overweight, so it would seem as though our community is suffering more. My primary issue with the article is the cursory information she provided. 4 out 5 black women are overweight – what exactly does that mean? Also, not to split hairs but being overweight is not obese which suggests that we a few but significant changes in diet and exercise we could potentially address the issue.
Also I am just waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay over being singled out as “a problem” – granted I personally do not have a weight issue but as a black woman I was supremely aggravated to see a headline that was worded “Black Women and Fat” – I mean REALLY??? Geez. Honestly I think she may have turned off a lot of people who she was honestly trying to reach with that headline alone.
Also those explanations she provided… I mean come on. I’ll grant her the possibility of some truth to the idea that our men like us “plump” so we have less incentive to stay focused on losing the weight but then doesn’t that say something larger about our men’s understanding of health concerns? And what about their fat asses??? See, now I’m getting mad again. ANYway at the end of the day I think it is important to examine REAL reasons behind the issue so that legitimate solutions can be presented.
To her credit, I’m glad she embarked on her own personal journey and it sounds like she has been able to reach out to other women and educate them as well. Great. Let’s continue with that trend – just stop with the wack ass inflammatory woe is me always the target BS headlines.
Now you see why it took me so long to respond… geez I’m long winded! LOVE YA!!!
I love how you dissected the op-ed and responded to the general tact of Negritude-as-Problem. It’s like the mainstream media wants to write the Moynihan Report about blackness as pathology over and over again ad infinitum. (Of course, it doesn’t just stop with blackness; I read, with a surplus of bemusement, a recent New York Times story about the “trend” of Asian American women marrying Asian American men rather than white men.)
I am a fat black woman. Everyone’s obesity is complex and arises out of a complicated intersection of factors that are genetic, environmental, cultural, situational and personal. There are commonalities and themes, to be sure, but if obesity were a black pathology or deficiency, America and the West would not be experiencing a surge of BMI and syndromes of caloric excess and nutritional deficiency. Obesity is sometimes a manifestation of a physical issue; sometimes it is a manifestation of a psychological reliance upon food; sometimes it is a personal choice; sometimes it is about lack of choices or lack of education; sometimes it is problematic; sometimes it is not. Black women –our souls, our selves and our bodies– are not peculiar, inadequate.
Hi Alexis – please accept my sincere apology for the delayed response, terrible terrible terrible behavior on my end. I’m very glad you liked my post. Yeaaahh, I am beyond tired of the “blackness as pathology” thesis – just ovah it. Interesting tidbit indeed about the “trend” of Asian American women marrying Asian American men – no really, were they serious with that piece? Good grief. Media outlets have gone crazy with trying to come up with content. To them I say – dig deeper!! Lol
Regarding “Black women –our souls, our selves and our bodies– are not peculiar, inadequate” – I wholeheartedly agree!