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By Leyah Shanks

Fat-activist Instagrammer Kaitlin Hutchison has co-founded a new movement called Body Positive Scotland to showcase the country’s diversity.

The main ethos of the Body Positive Scotland Instagram account according to Hutchison, is “acceptance, acceptance, acceptance.” She told me that she and her co-creator Jordyn MacLean also from Glasgow, wanted to create a space where “people of all shapes, sizes, religions, skin colours, gender identities and sexualities can come together and encourage each other to love the skin they’re in.

The 22-year-old from Glasgow who goes by the username @prettyflyfatgal, has been involved in the body positive (or bopo) community for just over a year and thinks that Scotland needs to step its game up. She said: “As a country we still aren’t quite there in terms of self-love and acceptance so we really want to change that.””

Prior to getting involved, Hutchison followed the bopo conversation on Instagram for 3 years. She thinks that a lot has changed since then, and not for the better.

“When I first became aware of the movement it was fat women and men who were leading the narrative. Now, it’s being taken over by thin, white women who are trying to use it as a way to sell things.”

Hutchison who loves Elton John, thinks that the heart of body positivity is now missing. She told me: “The #bodypositive tag is used so liberally now and as you scroll through the feed, you’ll see endless pictures of fitness models and thin women manipulating their bodies so they have small stomach rolls.”

She points out the commercialised watering down of bopo and remains faithful to its true spirit: “I’m not saying these women should not love their bodies. They absolutely should and deserve to flaunt that love. But the movement was created to give voices to marginalised bodies who are constantly belittled. There is nothing marginalised about being thin, white and conventionally beautiful.”

 

 

Hutchison thinks that fat activism is a retaliated response to this shift in the movement: “Body positivity and fat activism stem from the same place and by definition are very similar. But I think that fat activism is the response to the watering down of the once very radical bopo conversation.”

She told me she thinks falsification is the biggest contributor to fat shame culture: “It comes from people being misinformed. They think all fat people are lazy, greedy, and have no self-control. Which just isn’t true at all.”

Hutchison also thinks that the media industry is largely responsible for this deception. She told me: “We see the media portraying fat as the worst thing someone could possibly be all the time. Fat people are reduced to headless figures in news stories, shamed in magazines and we constantly have weight loss methods forced down our throats.”

The result is a sinister vicious cycle which is seemingly impossible to break. She explains: “I think it boils down to people being scared to be fat or scared to become fat, so they think that by shaming others for being that way it won’t happen to them.”

Hutchison doesn’t buy into the ‘health concern’ debate, either: “People like to say that being fat is unhealthy therefore it shouldn’t be accepted. But the fact is, you can never determine someone’s health by looking at them. There are plenty of fat people who are healthy and plenty of thin people who are unhealthy. Besides, health should never be a factor in whether someone should be accepted by society.”

Most fat activists repeatedly find themselves confronted with the argument that they are ‘normalising obesity’. Hutchison debunks this notion: “If I’m honest, the term obese means very little to me. Obesity is measured by BMI and that’s not an accurate way to determine someone’s health or well-being. The concept of ‘glorifying’ or ‘normalising’ obesity is bullshit.”

 

 

She continues: “A fat person living their life and demanding respect is not trying to glorify being fat or trying to encourage others to become fat. It’s just a term used to make us feel badly about loving ourselves in the same way those with conventionally acceptable bodies do.”

The connection between body positivity and feminism is something that many influencers are vocal about on a daily basis. Hutchison agrees that it is hugely important.

“I think if you call yourself a feminist but don’t support the bopo and fat community, you really don’t deserve the title of a feminist.”

Hutchison told me that her activism has been very rewarding: “Mostly I get some amazing feedback from people all over the world. People tell me I’ve helped them overcome some of their own body image issues. Which is amazing to hear.”

She explained that simultaneously, it’s not an easy task: “I also have a lot of people who hate what I do and shame me for living life in my fat body. I face negativity every day. I get called names, sent abusive messages and told I’m going to die.”

The positivity outweighs the negativity for her, though. She said: “It can be really difficult but I know I help people. That really does motivate me to continue. One kind message saying I’ve helped someone is worth 1000x more than any negative comment from somebody hiding behind their private profile.”

She told me she never envisioned the kind of success she’s experienced: “When I started my account and began sharing my journey to self-love, I really hoped to inspire those closest to me to learn to love themselves a little more. I never saw my page growing into something that would help people across the world, but I’m so glad it has.”

 

 

So, what’s next for Body Positive Scotland? Hutchison says that although the movement is still in its infancy, it has been well received: “So far the reception has been great! We’ve had some positive feedback and have already established a great group of people who share the same hopes as us. We’ve already had one meetup which went really well and we have another in the works for early next year. We’re hoping to make it bigger and better than the last.”

“We’re hoping to achieve a lot of self-love here in Scotland!”

 

Do you have a body positive tale to tell? We’d love to hear from you! Head to our Your Stories page to find out more.

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