Today’s diet culture IRL is brought to you by never-ending fatphobia and the patriarchal world in which we reside. My husband and I celebrated our mini-moon late September of last year. The mini-moon was our abbreviated honeymoon until we can have the real deal when COVID officially slows down. We frolicked around Richmond, Virginia, eating delicious barbecue, dressing up, and ended the weekend with a trip to King’s Dominion.
The weekend was filled with love and laughter. We had the best time until an event that happens all too often, living in a fat body, occurred. We waited 45 minutes to ride a roller coaster and we got to the front. The lap bar wouldn’t close over my lap. To my horror, a buzzing sound went off, and a red light flashed above my seat as two men walked over and tried to shove me into the seat and jammed the bar down. After about five minutes of my mortification, the ride took off. The lap bar was so tight on my legs,my thighs were bruised for days. I wanted to go back in time and just let my husband ride without me, but it was too late. Everyone was watching us, it was really really embarrassing.
Not only was this experience awful, it put a damper on what was such a perfect weekend. Once again, I was reminded my body doesn’t fit in this world, and there was something wrong with me, not the ride. My husband was wonderful, of course, sharing they should have tested the seats out for folks or built rides that can actually accommodate everyone. This isn’t a standalone experience. Someone close to me shared a similar story. They paid an exorbitant amount of money to visit Pandora in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and when they got to the ride they were unable because of the size of the seats. Why wasn’t there information on the website to let them know the dimensions before they bought their ticket? Why don’t people think about the ways these decisions affect other people? It’s honestly so disheartening and happens all the time.
This segment was written and recorded by Coleen Bremner. Listen to episode 283 of Find Your Food Voice for more.
