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Big Persons, Small Voices:
On Governance, Obesity,
and the Narrative of the Failed Citizen
Charlene D. Elliott
This essay probes the connection between obesity and citizenship In Canada, outlini
the ways in which the fa t body or "failed body project" is equally positioned as that
the "failed citizen." It examines how the personal body has been connected to that of t
citizen, and traces the evolving narrative that explains why the Ideal citizen is, litera
and figuratively, a "fit" citizen. Contradictions emerge, because the figurative concept
citizen "fitness" is often mistakenly conflated with the visible look of leanness. The the
retical and practical implications of framing the larger body as a lesser citizen are th
explored In light of these contradictions. Given that nearly 60% of adult Canadians-
14 million people-are classified as overweight or obese, the framing of the fa t body as t
failed citizen is of considerable significance.
Cet essal, qui analyse le lien entre l'ob6sit6 et la citoyennet6 au Canada, se penche sur
faýons dont le corps ob6se ou le <vprojet physique rat6 , rejoint celui du v citoyen rat6 ,.
examine comment le corps humain est relii Acelul du citoyen et fait le r6cit qui expliq
pourquoi le citoyen idWal est o en forme o, au propre comme au figur6. Le concept de
v bonne condition physique Pdu citoyen, lequel se confond souvent avec le look visi
de ]a minceur, donne lieu Amaintes contradictions. On y explore aussi les implicatio
th6oriques et pratiques qu'entramne l'6tiquetage du corps obse en tant que citoyen mo
dre. ttant donn6 que pr8 de 60 % des adultes canadiens, soit 14 millions de personnont un exc6s de poids ou sont obses, l'tiquetage du corps gros en tant que citoyen r
rev&t une importance considerable.
n March 2006, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a visit to the Canadi
troops in Kandahar. What proved fascinating about the news coverage th
followed was the extent to which the commentary focussed, not on t
political, national, social, or moral implications of the visit, but on the prim
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being prime minister (Taber 2006), the NationalPostobserved the "wide berth"
at the PM O (Smyth 2006), and the VancouverSun's lead was "PM Fights Battle of
the Bulge in War Zone" (Weeks 2006c).1 Days later, the prime minister was backin the spotlight over his refusal to meet with Brigitte Bardot regarding the East
Coast seal hunt-yet, once again, the "news" focussed more on Harper's fat than
the plight of the baby seal. Sue Bailey's CanadianPress article (2006), picked up
by several newspapers, announced, "PM Takes Flak about His Weight ... Denies
Photo Op with Film Star." The article raised the question of whether the prime
minister was setting a good example for Canadians by being so visibly out of
shape, and then ended by discussing animal rights activists and Brigitte Bardot.
What proves interesting about this coverage is the way in which the bodyof the politician is framed as if relevant to the interests of the body politic.
More specifically, this "news" captures some of the central issues surrounding
Canada's preoccupation with fatness and the ways in which the fat body-what
Samantha Murray identifies as the "failed body project" (2005, 155)-is equally
positioned as that of the "failed citizen."
While issues related to health and well-being rank extremely high with
Canadians2 and the problem of obesity receives consistent media coverage, little
focus has been placed on the relationship between obesity and Canadiancitizen-
ship. This article seeks to probe how obese individuals are implicitly and explic-
itly framed as "less equal" citizens, and how the conspicuous body is read as,
not merely the sign of moral failure, but the failure of personal responsibility as
well. To this end, I briefly examine how the personal body has been connected
to that of the Canadian and American citizen, and then trace the evolving nar-
rative that explains why the ideal citizen-one in good health and/or visibly
lean-is figuratively framed as a "fit" citizen. This narrative, I argue, is problem-
atic on various levels, including those pertaining to questions of morality, per-
sonal accountability, and responsibilization. Moreover, the figurative concept
of "fitness" is often (incorrectly) equated with the visible look of leanness. The
discussion of the narrative of the "good" citizen provides the basis for some
theoretical interventions pertaining to the construction of the obese body as a
physically and morally failed body, or what Bahktin (1984) would classify as a
carnivalesque body.
Since this article focusses on the relationship between the body and citizen-ship, the final section explores how the issue of the "citizen consumer" brings
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Charlene D. Elliott
are classified as overweight or obese (Salinas 2006, F10),3 the framing of the fa
body as the failed citizen is of considerable significance.
From Healthfully Fit to Visibly Lean: Tracing Shifts in the Citizen's Body
In their 2002 article entitled "Citizen Bodies," Carol Lee Bacchi and Chris Beas
ley observe that the academic literature on citizenship and the literature on bod
ies (or embodiment) rarely overlap. Connections between body and citizenshi
are infrequent, they argue, because the body is generally "constituted in singula
terms and as quintessentially private," whereas citizenship is framed "as a publi
activity concerned with establishing ... boundaries between people and group
of people" (2002, 328). The fact that academic literature on citizenship generall
fails to connect to bodies, however, does not mean that citizenship and the bod
have not been consistently linked elsewhere. There is a rich literature on th
body and society.4 On the "citizenship" front, recognition of the relationshi
between the individual body and the health of modem democracy traces bac
to de Tocqueville's 1840 tome Democracy in America. De Tocqueville observe
that Americans have a remarkable passion to satisfy "even the least wants o
the body" and that the unique characteristic of this young democracy is tha"everybody"-and every body-works because "work opens a way to everything
(chap. 18). For de Tocqueville, "It is not the ruin of a few individuals ... bu
the inactivity and sloth of the community at large that would be fatal to suc
a people" (chap. 18). In the context of the working body, sloth is not merely
frame of mind but the physical failure to carry out the responsibilities accorde
to a member of the democracy. It is the active body, the working body, the non
slothful body, that makes democracy strong.In the Canadian context, this connection between the healthy body an
the (figuratively) fit citizen was powerfully articulated during the Second Worl
War, when the requirement of physical health became nothing less than a patr
otic duty. In 1942, the federal government created Canada'sOfficialFoodRule
which listed a range of "health protective" foods that would improve the stam
ina of the nation's citizens: "Canada at war cannot afford to ignore the powe
that is obtainable by eating the right foods," affirmed the CanadianPublicHeal
Journal (Pett 1942, 565), essentially echoing de Tocqueville's sentiment abou
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headlines published in the Toronto Star in January 1942 bear this out: "Good
Health Said [a] Vital Victory Tool"; "Keeping Well [is] Now Everyone's Duty";
and "Adequate Nutrition Helps Bolster National Stamina" stand as representa-tive examples. Promotional materials distributed in support of the Official Food
Rules directly stated the social and civic responsibility of proper eating. As a pro-
motional spot published 4 January 1943 in The Globe andMail counselled:
Now we've got to think of more than just flour or tastiness ... because we
must have more strength and energy to do the jobs we have to do to win
this war.
... After all, to eat carefully is an important part of our war effort and we'll
be all the better for it, too ... healthier, happier and better fitted to help ourcountry. (The Globe andMail 1943, 10)
In this context, the media discourse surrounding national nutrition during
the war years clearly reflects Foucault's notion of "biopower," which focusses on
power, "control of the body," and how "the body is viewed as something to be
manipulated" (Welland 2001, 117). Foucault argues that the "inapt body" can
be formed and deliberately constructed:
The classical age discovered the body as object and target of power. It iseasy enough to find signs of the attention then paid to the body-to the
body that is manipulated, shaped, trained, which obeys, responds, becomes
skilful and increases its forces.... The body is docile that may be subjected,
used, transformed and improved. (quoted in Welland 2001, 118)
Improving the personal body, in the war context, was in the best interests of the
nation. Media discourse surrounding national nutrition during the war years
also underscored the proposition that Alan Hyde has observed in the context of
the legal treatment of the body: namely, that "individuals' right to control their
own bodies is not absolute and may be subject to public demands" (Hyde 1997,
242). Again, the public demand here is a national one, in which one's com-
mitment to national duty is physically inscribed on the individual body. The
body, in other words, visibly displays whether one has followed Canada'sOfficial
Food Rules, rules that make the individual-and in aggregate, Canada-strong.
Since rationing of foods such as fats, meat, and sugar was positioned as central
to Canada's war effort, heavier people might be assumed to be undermining
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of health have been dictated and sanctioned by governmental authority for
public purpose. These were not guides for food consumption; rather, they we
labelled "Official ... Rules"--connoting a much more formalized and politicalsanctioned directive for eating.
Victory in the Second World War did not terminate the rhetorical or concep
tual link between war and physical bodies. In fact, the physical war against Hitl
which demanded strong soldiers' bodies and productive bodies as a patriotic dut
has evolved into a conceptual war against the non-productive and slothful bod
which equally weakens our nation but for different reasons. Canada'sOfficialFoo
Rules, introduced in 1942, has softened its language over time, transforming int
Canada'sFoodGuide and reflecting a less militant approach to eating in a postwa
post-rationing context. The language of war is still evident, and particularly fre
zied in the United States, where skyrocketing obesity rates make Canadians appea
positively svelte in comparison.
US Surgeons General C. Everett Koop and David Satcher "respectively launche
Shape Up! America in 1994 and the 'war against obesity' in 2001" (Hemdon 200
128). The Shape Up! America initiative repeatedly called for the need to "comba
obesity, while David Satcher initiated his 2001 "war" by holding a press confe
ence with Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson in whic
they announced that "all Americans-as part of their patriotic duty-[should
lose 10 pounds" (128). Thompson's call for patriotic weight loss underscores a
interesting shift, in which the idea of a healthy body becomes reframed as on
pertaining to size. That is, the healthy body becomes equated with a lean-lookin
body.
Canada, it seems, proves no less conciliatory towards fat. On 23 Octob
2006, Quebec unveiled a "national" plan for dealing with obesity, entitled Inveing in the Future. This initiative commits $200 million over 10 years to preve
weight-related problems and promote healthy living habits, and articulates a
objective closely aligned with that of our Amercian counterparts: by 2012,
reduce obesity in Quebec by 2% and overweightness by 5%. This provincial mov
reflects developments that have occurred on the national stage. Just months aft
America's 2001 Inaugural War on Fat, Canada's then-health minister Anne McLe
lan announced our own patriotic "war": "We are a nation, or becoming a natio
of obese people," she said (Kennedy 2002, Al). This war against fat, however,
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fact a citizen's responsibility because the consequences of personal consumption
will impact all taxpayers. McLellan's "war on fat" was announced by the National
Post under the headline "Fat Canadians Imperil Health Care," quoting McLellanas stating that "the medicare system could become unaffordable unless citizens
take more responsibility fo r their health" (Kennedy 2002, Al).
This responsibilization theme dominates much of the popular and politi-
cal rhetoric surrounding adult obesity. Responsibilization, "the social process that
imposes specific responsibilities on some category of social agents" (Rous and
Hunt 2004, 826), is clearly framed within the political discussion surrounding
Canadian obesity. In July 2005, for instance, Ontario's Minister of Health Promo-
tionJim Watson argued that civil libertarians may not approveof his government'scampaign to direct health habits; however, it is in fact the government's business.
"As a taxpayer," Watson argued, "I don't want to fund this person's quadruple
bypass because they haven't taken care of themselves" (Dare 2005, B1). Canadians
are treated to a host of statistics that underscore the staggering public costs of the
individual obese citizen. Recent research has pegged the annual direct health-care
cost for obesity at $4.3 billion (Salinas 2006, Fl); Canadians are repeatedly urged
to take responsibility fo r their health because otherwise it will be impossible to
sustain our health-care system.5
Assessing the Citizen Body: The Logic of Larger and Lesser
The previous overview intends simply to introduce the link between the body
and the citizen, and more importantly to sketch the way in which the lean
body (framed as the healthy, active body) is regarded as somehow more worthy,
whereas the obese body is presumed to be unhealthy,6 and stands as that of
a "lesser" citizen. Indeed, researchers have documented a widespread bias and
discrimination against obese people; "weight stigma" is very strong in North
America, and discrimination based on weight has "been documented in key
areas of living, including education, employment, and health care" (Puhl and
Brownell 2003, 213). What are the theoretical and practical implications of
framing the larger body as a lesser citizen, and how has it come to pass? The fol-
lowing section will address this question in three parts. First, I would like to sug-
gest that part of the problem is rooted in the tension between Mikhail Bakhtin's
concepts of the "classical body" and "carnivalesque" body-with the classical
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a Canadian environment that is increasingly recognized to be obsogenic. Sin
obese citizens are not silent citizens, I will conclude with a brief look at some
the strategies employed (and problems encountered) by those who demand to bviewed as equal regardless of size.
ClassifiedBodies: The Classicaland the Carnivalesque
Feminist scholarship and cultural studies offer a rich literature on the heavily ge
dered framing of size and obesity. We know that "fat is a feminist issue" (Wan
1999; Schoenfielder and Wieser 1983), and scholars such as Eve Sedgwick hav
long argued for the possibility of "speaking" one's fatness or "coming out"
fat in order to renegotiate the representational contract between one's body an
one's world (1993). In turn, Samantha Murray (2005) has penned personal an
provocative articles on the challenges of "coming out" as a fat woman, questio
ing whether it is even possible to make the fat body visible in new, enabling, an
politically empowering ways. The narrative of the failed citizen, however, tra
scends gender. In this context, the obese body is, ironically, democratic-open
all, irrespective of gender, race, or class. While one might reasonably focus on th
connection between race and obesity, or the control over women's bodies, it
the idea of the body itself that proves of interest. The tension between the classic
and carnivalesque body, I suggest, is what allows the moral framing of the obes
"lesser" citizen.
Bakhtin outlines the presence of two bodily archetypes: the classical bod
and the carnivalesque body. The classical body "represents the dominance of th
body by the mind" (Carolan 2005, 89). It is a body ruled by reason, and reaso
indisputably, is one of the principle tenets of democratic participation. Cam
valesque bodies, in contrast, represent the triumph of passion over reason, withe body ruling the mind (89). Certainly, we can read bodies as classical or ca
nivalesque. As Michael Carolan has observed, the fit, toned body is a well-reg
lated and restrained body, and it represents the body of beauty, of productivi
and of superiority (92). Through the lens of public policy, the classical body
the autonomous body, the one in which the neo-liberal model of governanc
works best and where the concept of citizen responsibility is utterly validated. Th
responsible citizen is the citizen in good health, the metaphorically "fit" citize
who does not inflict (self-created) problems on health care. The carnivalesqu
to
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Participaction programs, and statistics on the precarious state of our health-care
system. It is significant to note that Bakhtin's carnivalesque body bears remark-
able likeness to Samantha Murray's definition of the fat body, which "exists as adeviant, perverse form of embodiment"--one that demands transformation "in
order to be accorded personhood" (2005, 155). The transformation demanded is
to that of a lean body.
What proves particularly problematic for Murray is the fact that, unlike other
bodies that have been constructed as deviant (such as the gay body), fat bodies
are always and irrevocably "outed." She observes, "w e read a fat body on the
street, and believe we 'know' its 'truth': just some of the characteristics we have
come to assume define fatness are laziness, gluttony, poor personal hygiene, anda lack of fortitude" (2005, 154). What might also be added to this list is a lack of
concern about the health (including the health care) of the nation.
The dichotomy between the classical and the carnivalesque body presents
a new context for framing the issue of obesity and public health. This distinc-
tion between the two bodily archetypes is supported, however, by other theo-
rizations explaining why obese individuals are stigmatized or viewed as lesser.
Puhl and Brownell, for instance, document that "obesity stigma results from a
social ideology that uses negative attributions to explain negative life outcomes"
(2003, 215). Attribution theory suggests that people search for the "cause" of
certain outcomes; in the case of obesity the "cause" is presumed to be found
in individual decision-making and due to a lack of self-discipline (215). Nega-
tive judgements on obese people, Puhl and Brownell relay, are rooted in "tradi-
tional conservative American values of self-determination and individualism ...
where people get what they deserve and are responsible fo r their life situation.
This notion closely resembles a Protestant work ethic that emphasizes internal
control and self discipline" (215). Attribution theory, which Puhl and Brownell
categorize as the most empirically driven theory of weight bias, is also evident in
Regina Lawrence's analysis of the framing of obesity in American news coverage
from 1994 to 2003. She found that the most conventional way of understanding
obesity is as a problem of individual behaviour (Lawrence 2004, 62), with "many
news articles, op-ed pieces, and especially letters to the editor articulating general
claims about the need fo r individuals to take responsibility fo r their own health-
relatedchoices"
(68). Lawrence theorizes this as an "individualizing frame," which
limits the responsibility to particular individuals afflicted with the problem. Even
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Whether viewed through the lens of the camivalesque, attribution theory, o
individualizing frames, the link between responsibilization and obesity remain
central. Hidden in this theory, however, is the idea of the citizen. While the individual adult may be responsible for creating his or her own size, where (beyond
the burden placed on health care) is the citizen in the question of obesity? In
part, the citizen resides within the role of the consumer.
ConspicuousBodies,ConsumerBodies
The dichotomy between the classical and the carnivalesque body unveils a sec
ond, provocative tension within contemporary society. As citizens of a capital
ist democracy, one's primary function is to consume. One might recall that, in
the wake of September 11, President George W. Bush exhorted all Americans t
show their patriotism via consumption. President Bush declared that the Ameri
can economy was "open fo r business" (2001b); he insisted that "individual con
sumer confidence remains high" and argued for the need to "act boldly at hom
to encourage economic growth" (2001a). Vice President Dick Cheney similarl
advised Americans not to let terrorists "throw off their normal level of economi
activity" (Reich 2001, B1). This call fo r patriotism through consumption is on
instance of how consumption is becoming "increasingly suffused with citizenship
characteristics and considerations" (Scammell 2000, 351). Citizen consumerism
acknowledges that the "site of citizens' political involvement is moving from th
production side of the economy to the consumption side" (351). Citizen consum
erism overtly plays out in marrying dollars to political projects: purchasing envi
ronmentally friendly products, socially responsible brands, pink ribbon goods, o
organic foods; yet it also exists in the everyday activity of ordinary people "whos
regular conduct of leisure and consumption has an ever-stronger political edge(352). As Bush and Cheney implied through their calls to consume patriotically
all consumption has political overtones.
Despite the fact that consuming is both a core value and a core function
of an individual, there is a near-visceral disgust at those who show their (over-
consumption on their fleshly bodies. As attribution theory suggests, conspicu
ous bodies that are visible simply due to size are subject to social condemnation
Fat bodies represent the "failed body project" and are rejected for their aestheti
transgressions (Murray 2005, 154). The only acceptable form of conspicuou
body is the classical, athletic, muscular body-the body that is disciplined an
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body. As Carolan argues, "the classical body is a body in possession of money-the
'right' foods to eat are not cheap, nor are gym memberships, tanning sessions,
personal trainers, or dietitians" (92); but the personally incurred cost bolsters theeconomy instead of straining tax dollars.
Or so it seems. Bacchi and Beasley have argued that the classification of
citizenship in relation to the physical body pivots entirely on the perception of
control. Those who are deemed to be in control of their bodies are considered
autonomous, constituted as "full citizens," and remain generally free from gov-
ernment surveillance. Political subjects surmised not to exercise this control,
"who are considered to be controlled by or subject to their bodies, do not mea-
sure up on the citizenship scale" (2002, 348), and are therefore subject to gov-ernment regulation projects: "Conceptions about bodies act as a dividing line
between full and lesser citizens, with citizenship itself understood in terms of'autonomy' from government" (348). The conspicuous body,whether conspicu-
ously sized or conspicuously sculpted, may have equal problems with control,
however. To underscore Bacchi and Beasley's point: "citizens" are perceived to
be in control of their own bodies. This creates an ambiguity of ownership. The
classical body represents a successful performance, although it might equally be
a control manifested through bulimia, surgery, diet pills, and smoking (and all of
these, too, place burdens on health care). The classical body, then, may also be a
charade.
This means that the indulgence that is read into the obese body, and that
works to justify its position as lesser citizen, might be unfairly allocated. "Virtu-
ous" health is grounded in a particular aesthetic of looking good (Jutel 2005,
12), or merely looking lean, but this aesthetic does not necessarily mean the
reality of rational control.7 Beyond this, the indulgence (which is so disparaged
when displayed on the body) is one that can be equally promoted as virtuous.
The Atkins diet, which took Canada by storm in 2004, operated solely on the
premise of virtuous indulgence. Rich sauces, gourmet cheese, steak, butter-all
of these promised to work in favour of a lean body, along with the assurance
that deprivation was unnecessary in the pursuit of a classical physique. Nota-
bly, Atkins promised that one could give in to cravings or relinquish control to
bodily demands for indulgence and still look lean; and so, while a key problem-
atic surrounding fat bodies is the presumption that they express a moral laxitythrough indulgence or lack of restraint autel 2005; Murray 2005), the fact that
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IndividualLives, NationalImplications:Lookingat the System
Canada's government under Prime Minister Stephen Harper was elected on the
platform of accountability. "Accountability" stands as the government's keystoneand the articulation of accountability to the Canadian public is concomitant with
the expectation that the Canadian public is accountable to the government
Accountability places emphasis on individual actions and choices, and suggest
(along with attribution theory and individualizing frames) that combating obe
sity is a personal responsibility.
Environmental factors are increasingly recognized as influencing persona
choice, however. An emerging body of research in Canada scrutinizes how th
built environment, from the number of parks to proximity to fast-food outlets
contributes to being overweight or obese. This look at the obsogenic environmen
suggests that the individual Canadian thrives in a larger Canada, and that the per
sonal might be properly framed more broadly. It might be viewed through wha
Lawrence identifies (in her analysis of American news coverage) as a "systemi
frame," one that views obesity as the consequence of larger social forces and there
fore invites governmental action (2004, 57). The systemic frame suggests that th
body politic might "bear someresponsibility fo r the shape" of individual bodie
(57). Indeed, that philosophy underpins the requirement for nutrition labelling
the reassessment of urban design, tax deductions fo r sports lessons, and, amon
other initiatives, the tabling of Bill C-283 (whichwould require nutrition labellin
on menus at large chain restaurants) in Parliament on 8 November 2006.
Treating obesity at a policy level, then, can span the spectrum of "responsi
bility," ranging from McLellan's "war on fat" (in which individuals must assum
complete responsibility) to the government-funded obesity programs focussin
on the obsogenic environment (in which individual responsibility is lessened)While individual responsibility may be lessened by focussing on the environ
ment, however, the adult consumer citizen is rarely absolved. In popular new
discourse, the pattern is to use an individualizing frame to respond to a sys
temic frame (Lawrence 2004). That is, while one might accept that an unhealth
environment contributes to obesity, the call for personal accountability is sti
paramount. A classic example of this resides in Dr. Diane Finegood's 8 May 200
discussion of the solution to Canada's obesity crisis. Finegood, scientific directo
of the nutrition, diabetes, and metabolism unit of the Canadian Institutes o
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succeeded in denormalizing tobacco smoking as cool and desirable. Now we have
to denormalize obesity" (quoted in Lem 2006, 15). As such, the obsogenic envi-
ronment is still only host to a series of micro, and personal, choices. Beyond this,Finegood's call fo r denormalization of obesity is rather jarring. In light of attribu-
tion theory and camivalesque bodies, one might reasonably argue that obesity
is already denormalized. Calling for its denormalization places another layer of
stigma on an already overburdened form.
Even when considering the system, then individual accountability and
responsibilization factor strongly; yet a second strategy, found in Quebec's
recently released action plan to combat weight-related problems, also operates
to foreground the citizen's location in relation to obesity. The 49-page actionplan released 23 October 2006 argues that overweight people give off "negative
externalities." One of the government's articulated priorities is to employ social
campaigns to "promote favorable social standards" that help to develop healthy
practices. Significant about framing the initiative around the idea of externalities
is that it appeals to an individual's self-interest. The negative externalities of obe-
sity are the burdens it places on the health-care system. So if another Canadian
loses weight (which is presumed to be an indicator of improved health), then
even "classical" bodies benefit because health-care costs drop and (technically)
classical and carnivalesque bodies alike may enjoy lower taxes. The key lies in
the individual recognizing the benefit of fostering the public interest. Investing
in the health of others, as Quebec's action plan suggests, ultimately will benefit
the individual financially. Note, however, that the obese body is still framed
here as if symbolically polluting (or literally taxing) the social system.
ReclaimingSpace
Given democracy's long history of equating fit citizens with good health and/or
visibly lean bodies, and the various ways that the carnivalesque, over-conspicuous,
and consuming bodies are routinely marginalized, one question remains: what is
the large body to do? One wonders whether "coming out as fat," as Sedgwick
suggests, can really allow individuals to reclaim their rightful position as equal
citizens. Advocacy groups, such as the American Obesity Association, seem to
undermine the very prospect of equality by arguing that obese bodies are, in fact,
failing: "Wewant
obesityunderstood by the health-care community and patients
as a serious disease of epidemic proportions," they claim. Other organizations,
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Charlene D. Elliott
not officially classify obesity as a disease. However, our incessant reference to th
obesity "epidemic," raises strong images of contagion-and contagious bodie
are always bodies to be avoided.
Notes
1. Similar headlines include the OttawaCitizen's "Harper Lampooned for Bulging Belly
(Weeks 2006a) and "Harper Gets Flak over Bulging 'Spare' Tire," (Weeks 2006c), a
well as the MontrealGazette's "Harper's Bulging Belly Steals Spotlight: Prime Minister
Fondness for Soft Drinks Sets Bad Example for Canadians" (Weeks 2006b).
2. Indeed, a recent Ipsos Reid poll indicated that 34% of Canadians currently rate healthcare as the most prominent issue, well in front of terrorism and national securit
(21%), education (13%), and the environment (10%) (Pynn 2006, A17).
3. It is important to note that the criteria for classifying overweight/obese are contestedThe categorization is based on Body Mass Index (BMI), such that persons with a BM
over 25 are tagged as "overweight" and those with a BMI over 30 are labelled "obese.
Several researchers, however, claim that this classification is inappropriate (i.e., weighdoes not necessarily predict health); and as such, it should not be at the centre o
public health debates (Gaesser 1996; Campos 2004; Campos et al. 2006; Oliver 2005)Astudy conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in fact, showed
that people in the "overweight" category actually had the lowest rate of mortalityStatistically significant increases in mortality due to weight were not seen until th
BMI reached 35 (Flegal et al. 2005).4. See, for instance, Chang and Christakis (2002), Brown and Zavestoski (2004), Lup
ton (1995), Crawford (1980), Turner (1992), Richardson and Shaw (1998), Woodward
(1996), and Prout (2000).
5. This is precisely the message advanced by Ontario's Ministry of Health Promotionestablished in 2005 by the McGuinty government.
6. Campos's The ObesityMyth (2004) provides an exhaustive critique how the publi
health scare of obesity is wrong-headed. Size does not indicate good health, argueCampos, and there is little scientific evidence to support the argument that exces
weight causes excess risk for health issues (with the exception of a minority of people
that are at the extremes of body weight on both ends of the spectrum; namely, thextremely thin and the extremely fat.
7. Indeed, there islittle rational about bulimia, the abuse of laxatives, diet pills, and sforth.
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Journal ofCanadian Studies - Revue d'6tudes canadiennes
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TITLE: Big Persons, Small Voices: On Governance, Obesity, and
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SOURCE: J Can Stud 41 no3 Aut 2007
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