Are weight loss drugs feminist?
Remember the 2010s, when “Is X feminist?” was a common essay headline on sites like Jezebel? I miss those days.
So today I’m going to bring this format out of retirement to discuss whether, how, and to what extent, I think GLP-1 drugs contribute to the project of eliminating sexism.
Let’s start with the “pro” side.
Weight loss is feminist
Losing weight is girlbossing. And girlboss feminism, while problematic, is still feminism.
Fatphobia and misogyny go together like peanut butter and jelly. We live in a culture that hates women, hates fat people, and hates fat women most of all.
We all stigmatize a fat woman far more than a fat man. For example, fat women earn less money, but not fat men. Women on television have to be thin. Men don’t. Women are much more likely to be harassed by strangers about their weight than men are. I could go on.
In this fucked-up reality, losing weight is literal girl power. Living with less stigma means more money, influence, and everything else we want more of (except, you know, food).
Weight loss is not feminist
On the other hand, losing weight is girlbossing.
And girlboss feminism, while feminism, is still problematic.
Synthesis
It doesn’t really matter what you do.
As an individual, your choice of fatness level will have almost zero impact on misogyny or fatphobia at the societal level. (This is true unless you’re unusually influential, in which case, let’s collab!)
Call me a dirty individualist, but when it comes to choices with a massive impact on your personal experience and a negligible impact on the wider world, do whatever you want!
As far as I know, no feminist collective will pay you the average wage difference between a fat and thin woman.
Ideally, us feminists would walk and chew gum at the same time. We’d do whatever is best for us in our unique circumstances while acknowledging that forces like misogyny and fatphobia impact what we want and what’s best for us.
There are many ways to challenge misogyny and fatphobia. You can read about it, write about it, talk about it, organize around it, vote according to it, etc.
The only thing that doesn’t really help, and hurts you along the way, is refusing to do the patriarchy’s bidding. Because, ironically, either way you’re letting patriarchy dictate your choices. And that might be the least-feminist move of all.
GLP-1 drugs have a special place in my heart for having helped me lose 70 pounds over the course of just 6 months. Was that a healthy pace? Probably not, but the end result is that I'm a lot healthier today than I was before I started.
I also get bragging rights because I was a GLP-1 hipster who totally used them before most even had heard of it.
Anyways... Can't pretend I can comment on feminism of it all. That said, I really dislike the broader commentary of folks criticizing GLP-1s as somehow bad for society. It's a drug. It's between the patient and the doctor, and it's honestly no one else's business. Women have already had to go through the experience of having to deal with societal commentary in the same vein with regards to birth control. All it is, is one group's desire to inflict their own personal views of morality on someone else. "Weight loss is only for people who can inflict suffering on themselves. Any other ways is cheating." The same as "abstinence is the only real way you should prevent pregnancy" , because somehow limiting your sexual satisfaction is virtuous.
Idk maybe it's wildly inappropriate for me, as a man, to make this comparison, but I feel like I can finally relate to the stupidity women have had to deal with for decades.
And I say, if anyone, man, woman, gender non-binary, wants to feel hot and improve their confidence through weight loss, go for it! It's not like we are pushing unhealthy eating disorders. There's a safe and effective medical treatment available to you.
Personally I think a lot of glp 1 hate is just a variation on fat phobia. Fat people are supposed to work hard to become acceptable to others' eyes. Also, we're Jay supposed to suffer. Glp1s are an attack on privilege.
(Glp1s didn't work for me, but phentermine and naloxone have helped. )