Jessamyn Stanley has built her entire brand around the labels she navigates, and how those labels have made her a target of unwanted attention. She’s a fat, queer, black woman who has disrupted the yoga industry simply by being a part of it. 

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On this episode of The Bodcast, we’re talking to Ally Bruener, a comic with congenital muscular dystrophy. Ally is confined to a wheelchair, and can’t live independently. However, she’s become a part of her local comedy scene in Kentucky — unfortunately, her access to home health aide, in the wake of changes to Medicaid, could threaten her ability to perform.

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Weight loss transformation is a powerful idea for many people. It’s not surprising: Media constantly inundates us with the idea that weight loss will dramatically improve our lives. This week on The Bodcast, host Amanda Richards shares her own experience with weight loss transformation (or the idea of it, anyways). We also talk to Ariel Woodson, a fat activist and host of the popular radical fat acceptance podcast, Bad Fat Broads, about the drastic decision she made in pursuit of her own transformation — and why it didn’t work out as she planned.

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This week, we’re talking to Elijah, a trans teenager bringing change to his school in Massachusetts. He’ll tell us all about the unique challenges of growing up trans, and what it's like to live in a body that's not necessarily like any of his classmates. His mom will also tell us about the unique, and often endearing, elements of raising a trans kid.

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Amanda sat down with Dima, a Syrian immigrant and former human rights attorney that left her home country in the midst of war. You’ll also hear from Natasha Hall, a former immigration officer with first-hand experience vetting immigrants and refugees from countries around the world.

Sources:

1:12 https://goo.gl/8jtq72

3:40 https://goo.gl/vxQp03 | https://goo.gl/gFOZTi

10:13 https://goo.gl/hCu3Es

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We hit the ground running by discussing abortion with three different women: someone who performs abortions, someone who helps people get them, and someone who’s actually had one.

Guests:

Dr. Colleen McNicholas: https://goo.gl/d7Igid

Anita Yandle: https://goo.gl/xCs3BM

Brittany Mostiller: https://goo.gl/AyIfVZ

Resources:

https://www.guttmacher.org/united-states/abortion/state-policies-abortion

https://www.guttmacher.org/journals/psrh/2017/01/abortion-incidence-and-service-availability-united-states-2014

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In recent years, burlesque dancer Lillian Bustle — a self-identified fat babe — has been everywhere: The stage, Tedx, and a ton of YouTube. In this episode, she joins The BodCast to talk about the importance of fat nudity, burlesque's role in her own self-love journey, and what it's really like to take your clothes off in front of a room full of people when you have a VBO and unapologetic cellulite.

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Author, activist, and researcher Virgie Tovar joins The BodCast to dissect the meaning of fat liberation versus body positivity, all the while tackling how to change the narrative and educate the masses on some simple truths: Your fat can be beautiful. Your fat is not an inherent flaw. Heck, your fat can even save your life. Listen to Virgie analyze the most recent "fat pos" episode of 'This American Life' and explain how we can do better.

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Ever had a question about body positivity or fat acceptance that you were afraid to ask? Suzanne Samin, Social Media Editor at Romper.com, advocate for size acceptance, and total fat babe, joins us today to do just that. Marie and Suzanne are talking everything from skinny shaming vs. fat shaming to misconceptions about health. Going off anonymous crowd-sourced questions they received, it's time to get real.

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Whitney Way Thore is one of the few fat people on television at the moment, and undoubtedly one of the only fat people on reality TV. But what's it like to balance one foot in mainstream America and the other in the fat activist pool? And can you really cater to both communities?

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