Let me start by saying that I am fat.  I love myself exactly as I am and I have no desire to lose weight.  I am saying this to you because so many people make the assumption that fat people want to lose weight ... and a whole lot of other assumptions about fat people which are NOT necessarily true -- often false and stereotypical and insulting.

If you are fat, or you love somebody who is fat, or even if you just know somebody who is fat -- you should know about NAAFA.

NAAFA  (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance) was founded in 1969.  It is the preeminent size acceptance/body liberation organization in the world.  And NAAFA needs our support!

    Membership in NAAFA is only $15.00 per year!  You don't have to be fat to join NAAFA.  Joining NAAFA is simply stating that you don't believe that fat people should be discriminated against, shamed or mistreated in any way.  I certainly hope you feel that way!

    It should be clear to everyone by now that diets -- even combined with exercise programs  -- don't work long-term.  Yes, some people lose weight for a short period of time, but over the long-term, over 90% of those people gain back ALL of that weight, plus some more.  It should also be clear that ALL of us have better things to do with our lives than to worry about what size we are.  Fat phobia doesn't just hurt fat people -- it is contributing to levels of eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia, chronic dieting, etc.) in both adults and children in record numbers.  WE can put a stop to this insanity!  Please consider joining NAAFA -- it will make the world a better place for everyone.

Some of the Many Reasons to join NAAFA:

  *Because you believe that All people deserve to be treated with kindness, love, dignity and respect.
  *Because you believe that it is wrong to discriminate against people on the basis of size/shape -- or for any other reason.
  *Because you recognize that fat people are routinely discriminated against, insulted, and treated poorly -- and you believe that should change.
  *Because you know that dieting doesn't work and you are sick of seeing people waste their lives trying to get smaller than they naturally are.
  *Because it is a GOOD thing that you can do.
  *Because you know and love someone who is fat and you don't want to see them mistreated or suffering.
  *Because you are fat and you are ready to stand up for yourself.
  *Because you are disturbed by the level of fat hatred and discrimination against fat people in the world and you want to see that changed.
  *Because you realize that our daughters wouldn't be dying of eating disorders if being fat wasn't such a social stigma -- and you are willing to be part of the cure by ending the stigma.
  *Because you find more value in people than what they look like.
  *Because you don't think fat kids should be bullied, teased, or excluded.
  *Because you don't think that self-esteem should be based on weight.
  *Because you think that everyone should have the opportunity to live full lives, take care of themselves, and make their own choices in how to live.
  *Because you don't think the government should interfere in your choices of how to live.
  *Because you don't believe that losing weight makes anyone a "better" person or that being fat makes anyone less worthy.
  *Because you are sick of Oprah's obsession with the size of her own (and everybody else's) rear end.  (Not that Oprah will change -- but maybe if people stop listening to her weight-obsessed drivel, she will shut up about it).
  *Because you realize that we have important issues to deal with in this world -- and that focusing on the size of our bodies is distracting us from what matters!