Every now and then, you come across a viral video that crosses the line between satire and bullying.”Dear Fat People” did just that.
On her “quest to make the Internet a better place” through a “revolution” of “being real and laughing at ourselves in sharing mutual life experiences,” YouTuber Nicole Arbour made the Internet a haven for body shamers and unsolicited jokes and hatred targeted at fat people. You’re obviously thinking “Nicole who?” And I don’t blame you. You may have seen one of her videos shared on Facebook where she talks about things Jenna Marbles talked about 5 years ago, like “Why Girls Are Crazy” or “Dear, Instagram Models.” These videos have over 20 Million views on Facebook.Her most recent video “Dear Fat People” is a collection of obnoxious opinions she thinks we’ve all wanted to say to fat people. I won’t be posting a link to the video here for you to watch because the more views she receives, the more money she makes off the video, and I’d rather put a bonfire out with my face than do that. Among her opinions are: “Fat shaming is not a thing. Fat people made that up” and that fat people are “taking their body for granted.” The video is a collection of cliché fat people jokes among frequent hateful jabs harassing a group of people under the guise of “provocative humour” to get people’s attention and gather more views and subscribers. Except here, no one is laughing. The issue was brought to the forefront after several prominent figures spoke out against the kind of bullying and hostility that are encouraged by videos like these that try to criticize, shame, and torment a group of people. Among these names are accomplished plus-size model Tess Holliday and star of TLC’s My Big Fat Fabulous Life, Whitney Way Thore.
Tess Holiday (Facebook):“If you want to know what I think about a certain video going around: NOTHING. I refuse to watch clickbait like that. She doesn’t deserve our clicks or our energy. Our existence doesn’t need to be “proved” or “validated”. We need to continue to hold our heads high. Plus, a life well lived is the best revenge ❤“
@Tess_Holliday (Twitter): “Fat shaming doesn’t save lives, it kills them.”
*Posted Septmeber 6th, 2015
Then there’s Thore’s response video with over 6 Million views and counting, where she eloquently shuts down many of the ignorant claims made against fat people, beginning with the opinion that fat people made up fat shaming as an excuse. Thankfully, Thore prefaces her responses with exerts from Arbour’s video, so you can spare yourself from watching it.
See Thores video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2YYZBrPwwU
Thore points out that you can’t tell a person’s health by just looking at them, and that you can’t attribute their weight to unhealthy eating habits, adding: “You don’t know whether that person has a medical condition that caused them to gain weight. You don’t know if their mother just died. You don’t know if they’re depressed or suicidal or if they just lost 100 pounds. You don’t know.” Thore herself mentions her Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome condition contributed to her weight gain. She finishes off the video by reassuring those targeted by this video that they are loved, worthy, and that a number on a scale cannot quantify their value, success, or worth.
Arbour’s video encouraged hostile remarks and death threats aimed at Thore, but she’s not phased: “When you wake up to a few thousand death threats, but you can’t care because you love yourself, and your family loves you, and your man loves you, and strangers on the Internet are also so SMART & KIND…”
For Arbour, it hasn’t been the best day. Her YouTube account was disabled for violating the user terms. She fired back by tweeting that she was censored for her satire, but there’s a fine line between satire and straight out calling out and shaming an entire group of people.
@NicoleArbour (Twitter):“We literally broke the Internet… With comedy. #censorship“ &”Wow, I’m the first comedian in the history of @YouTube to be #censored There are graphic videos about murder and torture, but satire is”
*Posted Septmeber 6th, 2015