People Want Facebook To Get Rid Of The “Feeling Fat” Emoticon Because Apparently It’s Offensive

We live in a world where people are offended unless you look and think just like them.

She’s skinny and you’re not? Well, then she must not eat. I’m offended that she’s so small.
She’s a binge eater and thinks she has a problem? Ha! That’s not a real disorder. She just can’t put down the ice cream. I’m offended by her size.
She eats fast food and you’re gluten-free? She’ll probably be a horrible mother and only allow her children to eat McDonald’s. I’m offended by her choices..
She posts long blog posts about loving her plus-size figure? She’s probably never worked out a day in her life. I’m offended by her laziness.
She thinks bulimia is a real disease? No. Try not eating anything, bitch. Then talk to me about sickness. I’m offended by her “struggle.”
She obsessively works out? She’s probably a control freak or something. Like, put down the weights and grab a Xanax, amirite? I’m offended by her dedication.

Ridiculous, right? It gets to a point where you almost want to say, “Well, I’m offended that YOU’RE offended,” though we all know that would solve nothing. But between the fat shaming and the skinny shaming and the #MindTheGap movement and the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty and the Instagram celebs and the CrossFit junkies and the…well, the list could go on forever — we are constantly being inundated with different ideas of what beauty actually is. Beauty is curves. Beauty is bones. Beauty is muscle. Beauty is thighs that touch. Beauty is only eating kale. Beauty is…something that will never be agreed upon. So then why are we constantly trying to prove that our belief is the real belief? That only people who agree with us are good or pretty or decent human beings? It’s silly.

Weight in this country has become so divisive that we will fight about anything having to do with it. We’re offended by skinny people, we’re offended by fat people, we’re offended when skinny people call fat people fat and we’re offended when fat people call skinny people skinny. It. Is. Insane.

And now? Well, now we’re offended by emoticons. Yes. Emoticons.

Endangered Bodies, a group that represents the plights of overweight people, has taken issue with a Facebook emoji saying that it discriminates against people who are fat. Catherine Weingarten, a member of the group, stated that the emoji is offensive because being fat isn’t a “feeling” but rather a state of being.

“When Facebook users set their status to ‘feeling fat,’ they are making fun of people who consider themselves to be overweight, which can include many people with eating disorders. That is not ok.”

What’s next? Cancer patients becoming angry over the “feeling sick” emoji? Anorexics being offended by the “feeling hungry” one? Where does it end? Obviously eating disorders are no laughing matter, but at some point, you have to be able to take a step back and rationally decide whether something is truly offensive. In this case, I’m sorry, Endangered Bodies, but a Facebook emoji is simply not worth it. It’s a cartoon smiley face — and it is certainly not worth waging a war over..

[via CNN Money]

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