Ms. Jamie Keiles: complicated feelings →
i’ve been on a lil diet since the beginning of the summer. i’m not the kind of person who talks about calories or losing weight all the time or with a lot of people, but in the few instances in which it has come up people have been HORRIFIED.
i’m sort of tied up philosophically about this…
(Click the link above to read the rest of Jamie’s post.)
I think one of the coolest parts of feminism is when you know you’re right about something, letting the world know it, and not giving a shit if they think you’re wrong… BECAUSE YOU KNOW YOU’RE RIGHT. As hard as it is to come to terms with the fact that you can’t change someone’s opinion (to the right one), at least you can walk away, time and again, knowing that you shared your (right) opinion with the world. (Yes, I know this is insanely self-indulgent, but EQUALITY IS THE WAY, PEOPLE.)
For example, supporting gay marriage as a feminist (and hello, a human being) is something I pride myself on. I frown upon those who think the union of two men or two women is a sacrilegious act that will cause our society to crumble from top to bottom, but I also feel sorry for them. The angst these people feel day in and day out is something that weighs so heavily upon them. For those of us who encourage others to do what they please when it comes to relationships and marriage… we don’t have that angst. That soul-crushing, pray until there are holes in the knees of your pants kind of angst that burrows deep into the hearts of people who fight against gay marriage. Even though we can’t change the minds of some of those people, it’s important to keep speaking up, because equality is what’s right, and eventually, things will change. You walk away from interactions with people like that feeling good about spreading the truth, even if they couldn’t hear you.
When it comes to weight (yes, this is a complicated issue because women’s bodies are so heavily scrutinized in today’s society), it really matters what YOU, as an individual, think. Sure, there is a ton of bullshit that affects the way women think about their bodies, and peeling the lies away from the truths can often lead to tangled mess of mixed-up philosophies, circus mirror distortions, and all-consuming doubt about one’s body. But Jamie, girl, as long as you’re confident in your view of yourself… as long as your self-image is not distorted and you KNOW in the deepest corners of your brain and your heart that you are doing this for YOU and for no one else, you can do whatever you want with your body. Whatever you want is right. Whatever you do is right and there is no feminist or otherwise who can tell you what to do… you walk away from any conversation knowing that you are doing this for you, and for you, it is right.
