Sunday, August 14
The final morning is both a time of sadness at parting with friends new and old and turning back to the familiar battles out in larger world, and the hope that comes from the energies raised, the ideas exchanged, and those new clothes to show off. For the farewell breakfast, we were all encouraged to look forward to future projects and to brainstorm on actions to take close to home between the large events.
Sunday Picture ZIP
Some say their goodbyes and head out after this. Others stayed on for a couple of intensive aftersessions. The Final Words is where everyone let their hair down and gave their feelings of how the convention went. This year was an effort truly raised up from scratch by Heather and her closest teammates and involving a lot of discussion and feedback. I personally thought it all went very well, and everyone pretty much agreed. Suggestions were raised that those who have laptops and net connections could make themselves known for consultations on places to see in the neighborhood around the convention site. As everyone spoke in turn, eventually the time came for Heather to speak, and she thanked all the people who helped out, letting out a few tears as she finally felt free to release all the stress of keeping the operation running throughout the week. My always resourceful fiancee instantly produced a box of tissues and rushed over, saying in all good sympathy, "If I weren't marrying Avery, I'd marry Heather!" From that point "the box" ended up being used by a few others, including Frances White who has been involved at the highest levels of the organization for years and shared the joy of all the Northern Californians that we were able to show our hospitality. Many thanks also went to "Captain Noodles", who everyone agreed was the consummate gentleman and a shining example for his peers.
Thus primed with all the warm feelings of the Final Words, the hard-core activists stayed to get down to serious business. A fellow named Dan Mogavero came to tell us of a program he is producing, "Fat&Fit". Mogavero started in the vein of a media professional, saying that those in the industry see regular TV watchers as voyeurs, eager to see into the lives of others both for entertainment and for insight into their own lives. In this context he presented the outline for the show which he said he'd originally titled "Three Fat Chicks and a Doc". I think the more ardent feminists in the room were willing to work with that image, that is until they asked him whom he had previously contacted in the academic or fitness segments of the fat-acceptance community, and he had to admit not knowing any of the names given out. Things started to get a bit heated from this point in. I'm not sure if he had been prepared for the intensity of emotions and opinions which arose.
Mogavero obviously was thinking about how to present the viewing public with what to many of their eyes would still be a very radical idea. As the discussion went on, he suddenly decided to play devil's advocate, opining on how unhealthy the food supposedly was at the meal functions. "Salmon is unhealthy food? Since when?" was my first reaction, as that had been available the night before, along with salad, meats and juices. His problem appeared to be that there was dessert. Of course it was raised that this is the kind of food one sees at a convention of any group. Marilyn at this point walked out, obviously frustrated with the way things were turning. I myself told Mogavero that as a Green, I do think there are healthy and unhealthy foods, but that there are so many other hooks into that conversation than invoking the language of "the obesity epidemic" as many are tempted to do.
A more constructive thread had to do with sponsorship. Mogavero stated that he had enough resources to be choosy about sponsors, and we made sure he understood the psychological effect of what had happened so often in commercial media, in which fat-acceptance partisans find themselves, with limited time, contending not only with their direct opponents on the shows, but marketers of weight loss products as well when the commercial breaks interjected.
I believe that Mr. Mogavero came not necessarily to follow everything in NAAFA's philosophy, but to get an idea of where the group's activists and academics come from. He certainly got an earful, and we shall see as time goes on how everything shakes out.
Epilogue:
Kat has been experiencing a year of firsts ever since we got engaged. The intersecting curves of the universe (whether they're designed intelligently or evolved I'm still not sure) seemed to bring the NAAFA Convention near for the first time in exactly the right year. "Some people say that NAAFAns are dead," Kat told me, "but after what I've seen this week I'd say they're full of it." She has told me she felt a spiritual bond with many of the people there. Perhaps it's just a first-contact high, though she and I had been to the Vegas Bash the month before. Still, the Bash and the Convention are different animals. Kat looks forward to attending the local NAAFA events when she is finished moving here, assuming the San Francisco chapter can think up a few. Things look good though: Marilyn led a group to intercept the ASBS this year after having ditched it last year, and this weekend there's a craft meeting for constructing fat goddess figurines. The next couple of years are going to be hot for activism, and we shall have to see how much consensus is there to make fat-acceptance a lively part of it.
The final morning is both a time of sadness at parting with friends new and old and turning back to the familiar battles out in larger world, and the hope that comes from the energies raised, the ideas exchanged, and those new clothes to show off. For the farewell breakfast, we were all encouraged to look forward to future projects and to brainstorm on actions to take close to home between the large events.
Sunday Picture ZIP
Some say their goodbyes and head out after this. Others stayed on for a couple of intensive aftersessions. The Final Words is where everyone let their hair down and gave their feelings of how the convention went. This year was an effort truly raised up from scratch by Heather and her closest teammates and involving a lot of discussion and feedback. I personally thought it all went very well, and everyone pretty much agreed. Suggestions were raised that those who have laptops and net connections could make themselves known for consultations on places to see in the neighborhood around the convention site. As everyone spoke in turn, eventually the time came for Heather to speak, and she thanked all the people who helped out, letting out a few tears as she finally felt free to release all the stress of keeping the operation running throughout the week. My always resourceful fiancee instantly produced a box of tissues and rushed over, saying in all good sympathy, "If I weren't marrying Avery, I'd marry Heather!" From that point "the box" ended up being used by a few others, including Frances White who has been involved at the highest levels of the organization for years and shared the joy of all the Northern Californians that we were able to show our hospitality. Many thanks also went to "Captain Noodles", who everyone agreed was the consummate gentleman and a shining example for his peers.
Thus primed with all the warm feelings of the Final Words, the hard-core activists stayed to get down to serious business. A fellow named Dan Mogavero came to tell us of a program he is producing, "Fat&Fit". Mogavero started in the vein of a media professional, saying that those in the industry see regular TV watchers as voyeurs, eager to see into the lives of others both for entertainment and for insight into their own lives. In this context he presented the outline for the show which he said he'd originally titled "Three Fat Chicks and a Doc". I think the more ardent feminists in the room were willing to work with that image, that is until they asked him whom he had previously contacted in the academic or fitness segments of the fat-acceptance community, and he had to admit not knowing any of the names given out. Things started to get a bit heated from this point in. I'm not sure if he had been prepared for the intensity of emotions and opinions which arose.
Mogavero obviously was thinking about how to present the viewing public with what to many of their eyes would still be a very radical idea. As the discussion went on, he suddenly decided to play devil's advocate, opining on how unhealthy the food supposedly was at the meal functions. "Salmon is unhealthy food? Since when?" was my first reaction, as that had been available the night before, along with salad, meats and juices. His problem appeared to be that there was dessert. Of course it was raised that this is the kind of food one sees at a convention of any group. Marilyn at this point walked out, obviously frustrated with the way things were turning. I myself told Mogavero that as a Green, I do think there are healthy and unhealthy foods, but that there are so many other hooks into that conversation than invoking the language of "the obesity epidemic" as many are tempted to do.
A more constructive thread had to do with sponsorship. Mogavero stated that he had enough resources to be choosy about sponsors, and we made sure he understood the psychological effect of what had happened so often in commercial media, in which fat-acceptance partisans find themselves, with limited time, contending not only with their direct opponents on the shows, but marketers of weight loss products as well when the commercial breaks interjected.
I believe that Mr. Mogavero came not necessarily to follow everything in NAAFA's philosophy, but to get an idea of where the group's activists and academics come from. He certainly got an earful, and we shall see as time goes on how everything shakes out.
Epilogue:
Kat has been experiencing a year of firsts ever since we got engaged. The intersecting curves of the universe (whether they're designed intelligently or evolved I'm still not sure) seemed to bring the NAAFA Convention near for the first time in exactly the right year. "Some people say that NAAFAns are dead," Kat told me, "but after what I've seen this week I'd say they're full of it." She has told me she felt a spiritual bond with many of the people there. Perhaps it's just a first-contact high, though she and I had been to the Vegas Bash the month before. Still, the Bash and the Convention are different animals. Kat looks forward to attending the local NAAFA events when she is finished moving here, assuming the San Francisco chapter can think up a few. Things look good though: Marilyn led a group to intercept the ASBS this year after having ditched it last year, and this weekend there's a craft meeting for constructing fat goddess figurines. The next couple of years are going to be hot for activism, and we shall have to see how much consensus is there to make fat-acceptance a lively part of it.
