‘People treat fat people incredibly poorly’: Social group pushing fat liberation in Boston

BOSTON — A growing social group called “Bigger Bodies Boston” is creating a welcoming community for plus-sized people while pushing for protections against discrimination.

One thing they are not doing is apologizing for who they are.

“Essentially Bigger Bodies Boston is a community group. We’re a fat liberation group,” said founder Samantha Powers.

On a recent Saturday, they had one of their events: board games and beers at the Roundhead Brewery in Hyde Park.

As Powers has shared her idea for this group on social media, more people have flocked to their events.

“I started it because I didn’t have any other fat people in my life,” Powers explained. “I didn’t have fat friends or family and I was really looking for a sympathetic ear. Someone who could understand my everyday life.”

Their biggest splash so far was a pool party that attracted dozens of participants.

“Our first event as Bigger Bodies Boston was a fat pool party last year and we had more than one person openly crying and being very emotional,” said Powers. “It was the first time that they could be in a space without any judgment.”

Group members like Rachel Rae Estapa and Morgan Fuller are finding strength in numbers while having a lot of fun.

“We understand some of the struggles and also we’re really motived to help other people feel inspired to just live the life they want to live,” Estapa said. “Go to that party. Wear that dress. Wear that out to a pool party, a bikini, whatever it is.”

Fuller added, “It’s a lot of realizing that discrimination and assumptions around fatness are so normalized in our society and it’s a form of discrimination and marginalization that doesn’t get a lot of attention.”

Changing that mindset, and the law, is part of the group’s mission.

They’re supporting a bill pending on Beacon Hill that would add height and weight to the list of protected classes that currently includes race, religion, and gender.

Powers said, “I think a lot of people assume that there are not many discriminations that are still acceptable, but being fat teaches you otherwise.”

She said she knows friends who have lost jobs because they didn’t fit the image their company wanted to present.

Passing laws and adjusting attitudes takes time, however.

For now, making friends and creating fellowship is a powerful magnet that brings this group together and gives them strength.

“People treat fat people incredibly poorly, so having others to reach out to in these times and who understand what you’re going thru is great,” added Powers.

Bigger Bodies Boston’s next event is a clothing swap on Saturday November 2nd from 4pm-7pm at the First Parish Unitarian Church in Malden.

Group leaders say large sized clothing is limited and tends to be more expensive, so this gives members a chance to freshen up their wardrobe and save some money while having a good time.

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