Fit is a Feminist Issue, Link Round Up #61

This is where we share stuff we can’t share on Facebook page for fear of being kicked out! Read why here. Usually the posts are about body image, sometimes there’s nudity but we’re all adults here. Right?

Yes, Even My FUPA Deserves Love

You might be asking yourself, What on this earth is a FUPA? The Urban Dictionary defines a FUPA as a Fat Upper Pubic Area, but I fondly call mine Creation. I’ve had mine since before the term FUPA even came into existence — and, for a long time, I hated my Creation.

I hated it because I always had a hard time buying clothes that would fit me. See, having a Creation, plus being well rounded from behind, plus having a smaller waist, makes shopping not so fun. So, for years and years, I did everything in my power to hide my Creation.

I never wore anything that was form fitting. I just couldn’t. Every time I looked at myself in the mirror, I loved how I looked from all angles — except when I saw my ever-so-lovely fat pouch. I hated wearing jeans because none ever fit me correctly. Needless to say, getting dressed up was always a nightmare, so I stopped even trying. I would just toss on the first big shirt I could find to hide my FUPA.

I’ve tried everything you can think of to get rid of it. I’ve gone on every diet imaginable. I’ve done tons of situps, crunches, and lower abdominal exercises. I’ve bought one too many body shapers in an effort to flatten my Creation from existence. It just doesn’t go anywhere. I can be 140 pounds, and it’s there — just as I can be at 260 pounds, and it’s there.

11 Assumptions About Being Butch – And Why They Need to Stop

Have you made any of these assumptions about what it means to be butch?

These misconceptions are really damaging, and way too common – and you might not realize how much they recreate harmful ideas that come straight from patriarchal thinking.

It’s time for a reality check.

Anorexic Woman Shows Off Stunning Transformation to Send Message About ‘Real Beauty’

A former anorexic woman who nearly died from her disease has now shared pictures of her healthy, curvy body, hoping to inspire women to love themselves.

Twenty-two-year-old Megan Jayne from Colchester, Essex, England, started suffering from anorexia at just five years old.

At one point during her teenage years, her disease became so severe that she only weighed 56 lbs

Review of the FitBit for your vagina

Recently my girlfriend admitted that, while fingering me, they wondered, is it possible to break someone’s fingers with a vagina?

So I’m being up front with you: that is the caliber of vagina we’re dealing with, here. That is my ridiculously toned PC muscle. That is years and years of squeezing dildos like a boa constrictor seizing its prey. I do it without thinking, because much of the pleasure I derive from dildos comes from throttling them.

Maybe I’m imagining I’m crushing men’s heads. I dunno.

This is to say that I’m not the prime candidate for the Minna kGoal,¹ a pelvic floor strengthening vibrator with corresponding phone app and kegel workouts. However, I’ve always wanted an accurate measure of my vaginal strength to flaunt at the most inopportune moments — and the kGoal, thankfully, gave it to me.

On my first go ’round, I scored 9.8. Out of 10.

Such street cred.

Why Feminism Still Needs To Be Called Feminism

Leaving aside the maniacs of the Men’s Rights Movement for a minute, even people committed to women’s rights have raised the sacrilegious idea in recent years that the f-word is old-fashioned and needs to be retired for something newer, snappier, and more inclusive. Quick, somebody hire a marketing department. Can we sum up an entire equality movement in an emoji? But all joking aside, should the word “feminism” be replaced?

I say no way — and understanding where the word “feminism” came from is a necessary ingredient to understanding why other words just can’t quite compete. Humanism, equalism, and other ideas have been suggested as replacements, by people as prominent as Meryl Streep, but if they really want a word that’s all about fighting for the rights of women in the world, “feminism” is the best we’ve got, and there are good historical reasons as to why.

So here’s why you shouldn’t throw away your “This Is What A Feminist Looks Like” T-shirt or alter it to another word. The history of “feminism” as a word is a slightly twisted one, and it has some unexpected moments — just like the waves of feminism itself. Words are strangely powerful things. Let’s take a look at how the term feminism came to be — and why it needs to stay.