[This show originally broadcast on March 20th, 2024]

In her latest book, Unshrinking: How to Face Fatphobia author Kate Manne uses intimate stories and sharp analysis to explain why anti-fatness has become a vital social justice issue. She joins host Richelle Wilson on today’s A Public Affair to discuss the harms caused by both blatant and subtle fatphobia.

“Between two thirds and three quarters of us by some measures are fat; and yet, we often regard ourselves as really a thin person waiting to emerge victorious after the next diet or exercise program,” Manne tells us. The feminist moral philosopher goes on to say that because of this perception, we don’t stand together in solidarity, instead  “we try to change ourselves rather than work on changing the systemic oppression that I argue is really what’s plaguing us.”

Kate Manne is an associate professor of philosophy at Cornell University, where she’s been teaching since 2013. Before that, she was a junior fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows. Manne did her graduate work in philosophy at MIT. Her previous books are Down Girl and Entitled.

Photo by Diana Polekhina on Unsplash

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