Fat Shaming

This post is a little off-topic in relation to fandoms, but I need to expose this farce for what it really is.

A YouTube comedienne, who will remain nameless in this post (because I have no patience to look up names of people who are ignorant), has recently come under fire for speaking out against overweight people. As someone who is plus size herself, I need to (pardon the pun) weigh in on this bullshit filled travesty known as "fat shaming".

Shaming someone for their body type is not only rude and disrespectful, but it also cuts to the quick and tells the person it is directed towards that they are second rate because they don't have a perfectly sculpted body. I don't shame slim people for being too skinny and I don't shame morbidly obese people for being too big. God didn't create us all to be cookie-cutter replicas.

I, myself, was a victim of fat shaming today. I wanted to get a navel piercing done today at Dragon FX Kingsway. It was my go-to place for getting my tattoos, so I decided to go there first. In the past, I had been treated with nothing but kindness and respect when I got my ink done. Today was a whole, different story.

Piercings are done on a walk-in basis only. I went to reception and requested my navel piercing. The girl who I spoke with told me that it was an "anatomical" procedure and I had to have my navel examined first. I thought, "no big deal.". I had done extensive research on the procedure and knew that my navel wouldn't pose a problem. (Yes, I looked into what could and could not be pierced. I have a deep navel with enough skin to pierce.). I naturally assumed that I would be taken into a separate room and be examined properly by a professional.

WRONG!!!

I was told to show my navel at reception, in front of other people who were waiting for their piercings. And, after a quick glance that lasted a millisecond, the kid at the counter refused to do my piercing, saying it could only be done on a "flat surface". How humiliating! It didn't help that all the other girls there were super skinny. I was mortified.

The girl I spoke with then asked me if I wanted anything else pierced. Yeah right! Even if I wanted another place pierced, I wasn't going to let them do it. I walked away, dejected.

Thing is, if they had given me an explanation and just warned me of any consequences, I would have understood and been fine with the rejection. If there were liability issues that they didn't want to deal with, that's valid too. To be given a mere glance and then be turned away because I am not slim and skinny like everyone else is different. It is fat shaming.

I know of many plus sized ladies, who are larger than I am, that have navel piercings like the one I wanted. I am well aware of any resulting consequences from such piercings and was prepared to deal with them.

The treatment at Dragon FX was terrible. There is no way that I will ever spend my money there again. They lost my business for good.

I will never sugarcoat it. I am fat...that's a fact. I'm not deluded enough to think that I can traipse around in bikinis and super-tight clothing that showcase the fat and the stretch marks resulting from pregnancy. But if I want to do something to my body, it should be my choice. So what if my body isn't perfect? It has survived things most girls don't even consider. It's survived bullying. It's gone through pregnancy and has given life to my daughter. It survives anxiety and depression to this day. And now, some snot nosed kid tells me my body isn't good enough to get a piercing and that only skinny people should get it? FUCK THAT!!!

Don't judge a book by its cover. Fat doesn't mean you can't get a piercing or a tattoo. Fat shouldn't be a limit for anyone. Love yourself and love your body for what it is.

As for me, I am not giving up. I will find a place who will do the piercing for me.