Unfortunately, it’s common to hear the word “fat” thrown around as an insult. But fat is not a bad thing. We all have fat on our bodies, and as a five-year-old girl named Cambelle recently pointed out, there’s nothing wrong with that.
Cambelle’s mom, Allison Kimmey, first spoke out against fat stigma in a viral Instagram post in June, after Cambelle had called her fat. "I told her that I'm not fat, I HAVE fat,” she wrote. “And that everybody has fat. And I told her it's okay to have fat."
Now, Kimmey’s daughter is the one schooling the internet on fat shaming. In a new Instagram post, Kimmey recounts Cambelle telling her that someone called her “fat.” Her response? “I told her that I'm not fat, I HAVE fat. And that everybody has fat. And I told her it's okay to have fat," Cambelle said. She then went on to apologize for ever calling her mom fat.
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"Wow Cambelle! I am SO proud of you for the way you handled that situation,” Kimmey replied. “Fat is not a bad word. I don't think she was trying to hurt your feelings. It was so brave of you to help her understand that all people have fat, but that no one IS fat. And that it doesn't make you a bad person if you have more or less of it. Did she have anything to say?"
The girl’s response, it turned out, was "oh, okay."
This story proves that the way we talk to our kids (and siblings and anyone else who looks up to us) about body image makes a huge difference. It can shape not only how they feel about themselves but also how they talk to others.
"Children aren't born with hate inside them," Kimmey wrote. "They learn words from their environments and the things they see/hear, and they try them on for size. I can't prepare my daughter for all of life's situations, but I can help her to be a voice of compassion, humility, and love."
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