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Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness

Da'Shaun L. Harrison

Kiese Laymon

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**The 2022 Lammy Award Winner in Transgender Nonfiction**

Exploring the intersections of Blackness, gender, fatness, health, and the violence of policing. To live in a body both fat and Black is to exist at the margins of a society that creates the conditions for anti-fatness as anti-Blackness. Hyper-policed by state and society, passed over for housing and jobs, and derided and misdiagnosed by medical professionals, fat Black people in the United States are subject to sociopolitically sanctioned discrimination, abuse, condescension, and trauma.

Da’Shaun Harrison—a fat, Black, disabled, and nonbinary trans writer—offers an incisive, fresh, and precise exploration of anti-fatness as anti-Blackness, foregrounding the state-sanctioned murders of fat Black men and trans and nonbinary masculine people in historical analysis. Policing, disenfranchisement, and invisibilizing of fat Black men and trans and nonbinary masculine people are pervasive, insidious ways that anti-fat anti-Blackness shows up in everyday life.

Fat people can be legally fired in 49 states for being fat; they’re more likely to be houseless. Fat people die at higher rates from misdiagnosis or nontreatment; fat women are more likely to be sexually assaulted. And at the intersections of fatness, Blackness, disability, and gender, these abuses are exacerbated.

Taking on desirability politics, the limitations of gender, the connection between anti-fatness and carcerality, and the incongruity of “health” and “healthiness” for the Black fat, Harrison viscerally and vividly illustrates the myriad harms of anti-fat anti-Blackness. They offer strategies for dismantling denial, unlearning the cultural programming that tells us “fat is bad,” and destroying the world as we know it, so the Black fat can inhabit a place not built on their subjugation.

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• Jun 21](https://celestial.binderybooks.com/)

[makeup and books tag! \| GRWM and chat about reading](https://celestial.binderybooks.com/item/aA5GsIodrIuC6ra86EXM/)

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[Celestial\\
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• Mar 9 2025](https://celestial.binderybooks.com/)

[30+ trans & nonbinary book recs \| trans rights readathon 2025 prep!](https://celestial.binderybooks.com/item/2R9lRBsd146BIun8UfBo/)

feel free to recommend your favorite trans book in the comment section (or pitch your own if you're an author)!!

let's fill these comments with love so this video doesn't end up on the scary side of the algorithm.

☆ featured links ☆
official trans rights readathon website (with TONS of resources): https://transrightsreadathon.carrd.co/
PLEASE sign up here to be included in the data: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/2025-trans-rights-readathon
💫 join me on bindery (celestial - exclusive content, discord, book club, and more): https://celestial.binderybooks.com/

☆ everything I mentioned (in order) ↓
\- Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi
\- Dear Senthuran by Akwaeke Emezi
\- Pet by Akwaeke Emezi
\- Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi
\- The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi
\- You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi
\- Content Warning: Everything by Akwaeke Emezi
\- Little Rot by Akwaeke Emezi
\- The Deep by Rivers Solomon
\- Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon
\- An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon
\- Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White
\- The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White
\- Compound Fracture by Andrew Joseph White
\- The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros
\- Wrath Becomes Her by Aden Polydoros
\- Bone Weaver by Aden Polydoros
\- Ring of Solomon by Aden Polydoros
\- The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey
\- Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey
\- Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
\- The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
\- Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas
\- Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
\- Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness by Da’Shaun L. Harrison
\- Heavyweight by Solomon J. Brager
\- The Seep by Chana Porter
\- The Devourers by Indra Das
\- The First Bright Thing by J. R. Dawson
\- The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia
\- Feed Them Silence by Lee Mandelo
\- Station Six by S.J. Klapecki
\- Junker Seven by Olive J. Kelley
\- Hammajang Luck by Makana Yamamoto

↓ find me in more places ↓
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☆ resources ☆
🇵🇸 learn more about the history of Palestine: https://decolonizepalestine.com/
🇨🇩 learn more about what's happening in the DRC: https://friendsofthecongo.org/
🇸🇩 Sudan Solidarity Collective: https://sudansolidarity.com/

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Reading non-fiction has literally changed who I am as a human being. Education is power and non-fiction is anything but boring. So, do yourself a favor and pick up a non-fiction book (or two or twenty) this month. #nonfiction #bookrecommendations

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[Fat Forward Books\\
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[Fat Liberation Recommendations](https://fatfwdbooks.binderybooks.com/item/nrt2okg6b8Z3b6xdzFQA/)

If you’re new to fat liberation or want to build your knowledge base around the movement, here are 12 books to get you started!

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[Fat Forward Books: Disability Pride Recommendations](https://fatfwdbooks.binderybooks.com/item/RjSiYw6FgLRfRAxUNipx/)

Happy Disability Pride Month! 🙌 Today marks 35 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law. This year especially, disabled people and our allies are fighting for our rights with everything we have—and as fervid readers and advocates for more and better intersectional disabled representation in media, we know how much of an impact reading disabled stories can make. 📖

In collaboration with author and fellow fat, disabled babe @laurelhollbooks, #FatForwardBooks presents 36 books with intersectional fat and disabled representation! 📚✨

How many of these titles have you read? How many are new to you? Let us know in the comments! For more, tap the 🔗 in the usual place and join FFB on @bindery\_books for fat+ refs all year long.

#DisabilityPrideMonth #ADA35 #DisabledAndCute #ReadFatBooks

\[Image ID: Carousel consists of four images. The first three are 4x3 book grids featuring fat & disabled book recommendations for Disability Pride Month. The last page explains how to follow Fat Forward Books on Bindery, which is also reflected in the caption above.\]

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Happy Pride from Fat Forward Books! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ If you’re looking for fat & LGBTQIA+ books to add to your TBR, we’ve got you covered.

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[Fat Forward Books\\
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[Thanks for checking out Fat Forward Books on Bindery! This post features links to my writing about fatness across the years, from representation of fatness in fiction to how conceive of a fully fat liberationist future. In addition to sharing my new work on social media, I'll also update this list with links each time I publish a new piece about fatness, especially in books!\\
\\
**Fatness in Books** \\
\\
- We're Here, We're Fat and Queer ( _Publishers Weekly_, April 2025) \[Digital Version\]\\
\\
- Review: PLAIN JANE AND THE MERMAID is a fast-paced fairytale with a complex finale ( _The Beat_, May 2024)\\
\\
- Read the full story ‘CADENCE’ from the SHARP WIT anthology ( _The Beat_, May 2024)\\
\\
- 10 Books to Read for Fat Liberation Month ( _The Mary Sue_, August 2023)\\
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- ‘Fat Off, Fat On’ Author Clarkisha Kent on Why Her Younger Self Would Be Scandalized ( _The Mary Sue_, May 2023)\\
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- X-Tremists #3 Proves Blob ISN’T the Best Mutant – But He Could Be ( _Shelfdust_, April 2021)\\
\\
- Book Thoughts: Your Body Is Not an Apology Workbook (Blog, March 2021)\\
\\
- Faith Taking Flight Author Julie Murphy Says She Would Love to Write Comics ( _CBR_, July 2020)\\
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- Review: Julie Murphy's Faith Taking Flight Establishes An Important Superhero Origin ( _CBR_, July 2020)\\
\\
- Young Readers Need Positive Fat Representation in Literature (We Need Diverse Books, June 2020)\\
\\
- Bitch Planet #3 and The Radical Fatness of Penny Rolle ( _Shelfdust_, January 2020)\\
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- Superhero Faith Herbert Gives Me Hope for a Fat-Positive Future ( _The Mary Sue_, November 2018)\\
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- We Need More Fat Heroes in Comics ( _The Mary Sue_, March 2018)\\
\\
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**Fatness in Non-Book Media** \\
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- Fat People Belong in Fantasy, Including TTRPGs ( _Rascal News_, May 2025)\\
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- This Element of ‘Dragon Age: The Veilguard’ Means the World to Me As a Fat, Queer Gamer ( _The Mary Sue_, October 2024)\\
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- Review: ‘Empire Waist’ is the movie I needed as a fat teenager ( _The Mary Sue_, September 2024)\\
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- ‘Your Fat Friend’ Follows Author Aubrey Gordon From Anonymous Icon to Award-Winner & Bestseller ( _The Mary Sue_, December 2023)\\
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- Netflix’s ‘Survival of the Thickest’ Is a Stand-Out Debut Worthy of All the Praise ( _The Mary Sue_, July 2023)\\
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- Netflix’s ‘Dance 100’ Competition Series Does Nothing To Combat Fatphobia in the Dance Industry ( _The Mary Sue_, March 2023)\\
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- Hulu’s Shrill Season 3 Isn’t Perfect, but It Feels Like a Sendoff ( _The Mary Sue_, April 2021)\\
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- Game Thoughts: Little Nightmares (Blog, April 2021)\\
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- Shrill Is a Gift That Proves Why Fat People Should Tell Our Own Stories in Season 2 ( _The Mary Sue_, January 2020)\\
\\
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**More Writing About Fatness** \\
\\
- Response To Viral Advice Column Is a Reminder That Anti-Fat Bias Isn’t Limited To a Specific Gender or Sexuality ( _The Mary Sue_, January 2023)\\
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- When Systemic Fatphobia Works "For" You (Blog, April 2021)\\
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- Fat Liberation Is the Future ( _Autostraddle_, March 2020)\\
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- Cosplaying While Fat Roundtable: Experiences With Community and Cosplay ( _The Mary Sue_, September 2018)\\
\\
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_If you'd like to read a broader selection of my writing about topics including 2sLGBTQIA+ and disability representation in pop culture, visit_ _theverbalthing.com_ _._](https://fatfwdbooks.binderybooks.com/item/c5LNbKWVOKUhu3co9beX/)

[📌 Writing on Fatness](https://fatfwdbooks.binderybooks.com/item/c5LNbKWVOKUhu3co9beX/)

This pinned post features links to my writing about fatness across the years and will be updated with new work as it's published.

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[30+ trans & nonbinary book recs \| trans rights readathon 2025 prep!](https://celestial.binderybooks.com/item/2R9lRBsd146BIun8UfBo/)

feel free to recommend your favorite trans book in the comment section (or pitch your own if you're an author)!!

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Books I’ve discovered through booktok. It’s been real y’all. I hope to continue talking about books with y’all elsewhere on the internet! 🫶🏾 People mentioned in this video: @dakota bossard @Amivi⁷ @Alex @IG/YT: bookbaddiebri ᥫ᭡ @sometimesrobinreads🤎📚 @Torri🌻 @Kennedy Ryan @Nisha Sharma @schizophrenicreads on Substack @aubrei @Mari - booktok + media reviews @ig: vivafalastinleen 🇵🇸 @Hana 🍉 @Viano Oniomoh 💖 #readersoftiktok #bookishthings #bookishtiktok #booktok #bookrecommendations #romancebooktok #nonfictionbooktok #literarytok #blackromance #bookishtok #readersofbooktok

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[Fat Forward Books\\
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• Aug 24 2023](https://fatfwdbooks.binderybooks.com/)

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[Fat Liberation Month: Books to Read Pt. 1](https://fatfwdbooks.binderybooks.com/item/e8QLNPns5drSZy7Ho0Pv/)

#FatLiberationMonth only happens once a year in August, but reading books by and about fat people can be part of your life year-round. Wherever you are in your own relationship to fat liberation, we’ve compiled a ton of book recommendations for you, your book clubs, and your reading groups.

Nonfiction:
📚 Belly of the Beast by Da’Shaun L. Harrison
📚 Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings
📚 “You Just Need to Lose Weight” by Aubrey Gordon
📚 The Body Is Not An Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
📚 Fat Activism by Charlotte Cooper
📚 Fat and Queer: An Anthology of Queer and Trans Bodies and Lives edited by Bruce Owens Grimm, Miguel M. Morales, & Tiff Joshua TJ Ferentini\*
📚 Queering Fat Embodiment edited by Jackie Wykes, Samantha Murray, & Cat Pausé
📚 The (Other) F Word edited by Angie Manfredi
📚 Fat Off, Fat On by Clarkisha Kent
📚 Heavy by Kiese Laymon
📚 Hunger by Roxane Gay
📚 Thick by Tressie McMillan Cottom

Adult Fiction:
📚 Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
📚 One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London\*\*
📚 If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy
📚 Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade
📚 Dietland by Sarai Walker
📚 The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory
📚 I’m Not Hungry But I Could Eat by Christopher Gonzalez
📚 Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

#FatReads #FatBookRecs #QueerAndFat #FatAndTrans

Cover photo by @allgoapp\_
\\* My (Samantha’s) work is published in this anthology
\\*\\* I (Samantha) consulted on fat representation in this book

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