Body Acceptance, Positivity, and Liberation – The 3 Different Faces Of The Body Movements
There seems to be some confusion about the difference between the various body movements in some of the forums I visit. In particular, between body acceptance, body positivity, and body liberation. They all sound very similar, so that’s probably understandable. A key component of all three is for everyone to feel comfortable within their own bodies. They each have their pros and cons, and while I personally love body liberation, I can see what draws people to the others.
Let’s go…
Body Acceptance
This is probably the easiest of the three to understand. This is your gateway to self-love, if you see what I mean. Some people struggle a lot with full-on body positivity. They’ve been told for so long that fat is ugly, seen so many thin people on billboards, in movies and magazines, and assimilated so much fatphobia that they genuinely can’t love their body the way it is. It seems impossible.
So, the place to start is body acceptance. Don’t try to love your body; just accept it the way it is right now. The key is to view your body from a non-judgemental stance.
Pros
- It’s an easier first step. Unpacking years, possibly decades, or self-loathing and hating your body is not an easy task. You can’t just hop joyfully from crying when you look in a mirror to blowing yourself a kiss and thinking your body is gorgeous
- People seem not to have the same hatred of body acceptance as they do of the other two. It makes you less of a target which is a factor if you feel vulnerable to online trolls
Cons
- Body acceptance is great, but I suspect many might accept their bodies but still think “for now”. The plan is still to lose weight rather than to strive for self-love. There’s nothing wrong with this of itself, and I am in no position to tell anyone how to live. I wish that these people could learn to love themselves before taking action
- Acceptance doesn’t address all the other intersecting types of discrimination
- The focus is on the individual doing the work, not making things better for all fat people
- Men don’t get much representation
Body Positivity
Body positivity is the next step. You actually feel positive or happy with your body. Hopefully, at the ultimate end of body positivity, you love your body, yourself and see your worth as more than a body. You see your worth as a beautiful person, body included.
Pros
- It encourages you to love your body and make complete peace with it. To value it for all it does for you. To understand that you don’t have to be a certain weight or have a certain shape to be beautiful
- It encourages members to strive for equal representation and access for all fat people. To dismantle the systems that oppress fat folx and treat them differently to standard size people. For example, inclusive sizing in clothes stores and accessible seating in restaurants, theatres, etc.
Cons
- Although body positivity was created by black, queer, women the body positivity hashtag has moved a long way from its roots. Now, most images displayed on social media with the body positivity hashtag show white women who are either standard size or a little larger. Even when larger bodies are displayed, they are the same shape as those shown in magazines and ads, just a bit bigger
- Again, body positivity often does nothing to address the other forms of injustice that directly intersect with fatphobia, including racism, social class, gender and sexuality
- Men and non-binary folx don’t get much representation
- There is a small but vocal minority that attacks anyone wanting to lose weight for any reason as a traitor and fatphobic
Body Liberation
I’ll be honest, I’ve been a part of all three of these communities at one time, but I’m happiest in the body liberation space. This movement stresses that there is no liberation until everyone is completely free to do whatever they wish with their bodies. If any person still faces oppression for anything they choose to do with their body, then none of us is truly liberated.
Pros
- It teaches you your body is perfect the way it is, and there is no reason to change it to please others
- It fights for liberation on all grounds – the fight to be treated equally as a fat person, against gender bias, a woman’s right to an abortion, trans rights, LGBTQIA rights, the right to be tattooed, to wear whatever clothes you wish. Your body, your choice
- It appears to me to be a more diverse and inclusive space
Cons
- I’ve seen more men and non-binary folx here than the other two, but it’s still nowhere near equal
- There can be judgement if you appear just to be working on yourself and not fighting to advance the interests of everyone
My Take
I want to stress that everything I’ve written here is my take on the three movements based on what I found when I was a member of them. It is not my intention to misrepresent these movements, so if you feel I have, please pop your view in the comments.
While I’m happiest aligning with body liberation, it has to come down to what you feel the most drawn to. Any movement that helps you make peace with your body and feel happier is worth it 🙂
