Acceptance
I believe that Emme’s claim of fatness being the “last acceptable prejudice� is somewhat truthful, yet slightly inaccurate. Fatness certainly is an accepted prejudice, but the same people who make fun of/judge fat people are likely to be the same people who use the word “retarded� when referring to something stupid and are the same people who call others “fags� or “girls.�
I think we have to examine the definition of acceptance. Not everyone appreciates fat jokes, just like not everyone finds racist remarks intolerable. Perhaps fatness is the MOST accepted prejudice, but it is definitely not the LAST. While it is crucial that we examine the prejudice surrounding fat people, we can’t forget about the other prejudices.
I imagine that the reason why fat jokes and other negative connotations surrounding fatness are so “accepted� is because many people see fat people as being lazy, which is an attribute that (in the eyes of someone who isn’t fat) could be seen as a personal choice; something that could easily be changed (whereas skin color cannot be changed). I’ve heard people say things like “how could they do that to themselves� or “that’s disgusting.� Most of us dislike at least one part of our bodies, so it’s possible that people make fun of others’ weight as a reflection on their own self-image. Like Emme says: “You see other women look at a very thin woman and say nasty things. Maybe it's because our collective self-esteem isn't good. Why can't we support other women? We have to work on that.�