4 0 J " * 1 OMI ’ October 5 .200t
CULTURE
▼
Bigger isn't always better
"Best of the West”
Sunset Magazine Dec. 1998
Dept. 56 Villages
Christopher Radko
Margaret Furlong
Charming Tails
Ornaments
Nutcrackers
Santas — Angels
United Designs
Five Star Santa Rating
Health concerns for big-boned gals
(8oo) 8 2 7 -6 1 89
by
Harvest Festival Weekend
in Hood River!
Oct. 19th, 20th, 21st
R efre sh m en ts
(?
G ood ies
SEE IT TO BELIEVE IT!
IT'S CHRISTMAS! ALL YEAR 'ROUND!
4 140 Westcliff Drive • Hood River, Oregon 97031
(at Exit
62
on
I-8 4 )
Next to the Columbia Gorge Hotel
When you are just Out and about/
visit the contemplative Japanese
Garden west of the International
Rose Test Gardens in Washington
Park. Enjoy peace and tranquility
seven days a week ioam - 7pm
/"Mondays Noon - 7 p m )
For more information call 503-223-1321
Metropolitan Community Church of ftrtland Presents
U T en E rc a d w a
In Celebration of National Coming Out Day
-
Benefiting Esther’s Pantry & MCC-Portland -
THE
dick S aunders
B and
w ith V o c a l is t
J ulianne J ohnson
G rethe
Featuring the
Music o f Broadway
C ammermeyer
B arry M orse
Jt. QvuvU V TV*
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“Smmtmf Im SiUnct"
With Presentation of the 2001 Shepherds Award
and Farewell Tribute to Rev. Ron Cole
Thursday, October 11,2001
World Trade Center Theater
SW Salmon, Portland
Doors Open at 6 pm with Silent Auction • Show pm
Tickets
- includes Post Show Reception
Tickets thru FASTIXX & QaiPied • www.outonbroadwau.com
1 2 1
7
$ 4 5
.WADDELL
REBECCA WEBB
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P aula M artinac
ne great thing about the lesbian commu
nity is it is generally accepting of many
different female fxxly shapes and sizes.
Women large and small usually can find
sex and love in dykcdom. But even though les
bians’ positive approach to weight and body
image is admirable, our community should he
discussing health-related questions about
“women of size.”
Fat is a feminist issue, to use the phrase Susie
Orbach coined in her groundbreaking 1978
book. It’s rare to meet a woman who hasn’t been
negatively affected by body image at some point
in her life. Many girls and women literally have
starved themselves, developing health-endan
gering eating disorders such as anorexia and
bulimia in order to match the Ally McBcal
archetype that the media like to portray and
that straight men supposedly prefer.
Gay men, too, have been adversely affected
by body image, often enduring cultural pressure
to conform to a standardized, sculpted image of
male beauty.
Lesbians, however, don’t have to care about
visually pleasing men. As a result, we can dress
comfortably, wear our
hair short even if long
hair is fashionable and
refuse to conform to a
socially prescribed
image of beauty.
Indeed, many of us
never would dream of
pairing the words
“weight” and “prob
lem." T hat freedom
can he empowering.
Moreover, dykes
have been at the fore
front of the fight
against size oppres
sion. That doesn’t
mean simply demand
ing roomier seats in
public accommoda
tions or large-size
paper gowns in doc
tors’ offices.
Studies suggest
overweight people
often face workplace
discrimination in hir
ing and promotions.
Fat, some employers
think, automatically
means lazy and sloppy.
In recent years,
lesbians of size have been getting more organ
ized against weight-based discrimination. A
handful of zines and other publications are
geared to larger lesbians, and this m onth the
National Organization for Lesbians of Size, or
NOLOSE, will sponsor its annual conference
in Parsippany, N.J. It probably will he an
inspiring event for its attendees, with hundreds
of big-honed gals gathered in one spot, literally
throwing their weight around.
A t the same time, however, the lesbian
community faces serious health-related ques
tions that don’t appear to he a major focus of
the conference even though many of these
issues affect women of size. A study published
last spring in the American Journal o f Public
Health found a larger percentage of lesbians
are obese than women in general. The
researchers suggested that being so much less
concerned about weight actually might work
against lesbians, placing us at risk for diseases
th at could have a relationship to obesity, such
as heart disease.
A nother such disease is adult-onset dia
betes. About 85 percent of Type II diabetics are
overweight when they receive their diagnoses.
The disease is spreading at an alarming rate
in the U nited States. Late last year, the C en
ters for Disease Control and Prevention
released statistics indicating diagnosed cases of
diabetes increased by one-third during the
1990s. Although Type II used to strike primari
ly middle-aged people, it increasingly is affect
ing younger adults in their 20s and 30s.
Diabetes is an insidious disease. You won’t
die of it, just as you won’t die of AIDS; rather,
the complications are what’ll kill you.
My father, who has lived with Type II dia
betes for more than 20 years, has faced a host
of these complications, including heart disease,
plummeting white blood cell counts, circulato
ry problems and partial blindness. A dtKtor of
mine— who, by the way, is rated a “fat-friendly
physician” by anti-discrimination groups—
advised me that the
best way to avoid
developing diabetes is
to exercise, eat well
and not gain weight.
Given what we
know about the con
nections between
obesity and disease, it
worries me that asser
tions of “fat is beauti
ful” by some lesbians
might backfire on our
community. The truth
is, endorsing obesity
as a beautiful way of
life is problematic.
Lesbians need to
take weight issues
m uch more seriously
th an we do, hut
unfortunately, being
critical of obesity
rem ains taboo. T he
silence around les
bian obesity reminds
me of the hesitancy
in the gay male com
m unity to speak up
against bareback sex;
in both cases, there’s
fear th a t raising co n
cerns will inhibit people’s freedom of person
al expression.
How could lesbians address the issue of
weight? Research suggests diets are pretty use
less, because people often gain hack whatever
weight they’ve lost.
Interestingly, some studies indicate it’s bet
ter to he overweight and exercise regularly
than to he slender and a couch potato. It
would he life-affirming if the community took
up the challenge of preventive health and
found ways to sponsor workshops such as low-
impact aerobics (the NOLOSE conference had
one last year) specifically geared to the physical
needs of lesbians of size. j n
P aula M artinac is a Lambda Uterary Award-wi n-
nmg author of seven books and the column "Lesbian
Notions" She can be reached at LNcolumn@aol.com.