Fat Girls in Black Bodies

Please Note: This live online conversation was recorded on our CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel. It is also available on our podcast.

To live in a body at the intersection of fat, Black, and female is to be on the margins. From concern-trolling—I just want you to be healthy—to outright attacks, fat Black bodies that fall outside dominant constructs of beauty and wellness are subjected to healthism, racism, and misogynoir. As a body justice advocate and leader Dr. Joy Arlene Renee Cox believes that the spaces carved out by third-wave feminism and the fat liberation movement fail at achieving true inclusivity and intersectionality. She believes that fat Black women need to create their own safe spaces and community—instead of tirelessly working to educate, chastise, and strive against dominant groups. 

Dr. Cox’s latest book, Fat Girls in Black Bodies: Creating Communities of Our Own, breaks down the myths, stereotypes, tropes, and outright lies we’ve been sold about race, body size, belonging, and health. In her work, Dr. Cox explores belonging, resistance, and acceptance—informed by personal history, community stories, and extensive research. Dr. Cox also offers ways that fat Black women and girls can reclaim space, create a rich community, and dismantle the institutionally ingrained myths about race, size, gender, and worth that deny fat Black women their selfhood. 

Join educator and sexologist Bianca I. Laureano for a conversation with Dr. Cox about how to reject the myths and lies that hold back fat Black women, and ways for their communities to flourish.
 
Please note that this talk/conversation will be hosted live online and includes an audience Q&A. Instructions on how to join the conversation will be included in your event confirmation email. If you need additional assistance finding or joining the event, please email publicprograms@ciis.edu. 


Dr. Joy Arlene Renee Cox, PhD is a body justice advocate, researcher, and leader who addresses the intersections of race, body size, accessibility, and "health" She earned her master's in interpersonal communication at the University of Missouri-Columbia after completing a thesis on the perceptions of fat women in media and earned her doctorate at Rutgers University after completing her dissertation on the fat liberation movement, identity, and political action. Dr. Cox currently serves as the Chair of Diversity and Inclusion for the Association for Size Diversity and Health (ASDAH). She is also the owner and operator of the Black and fat-positive podcast and product-line, both called Fresh Out the Cocoon, and a supportive force behind the scenes for organizations looking to incorporate diversity and inclusion into their practices. Her newest venture, Jabbie, is an app that seeks to redefine fitness standards and provide users with a weight-neutral platform full of support and inclusivity.


Bianca I. Laureano is an award-winning educator, curriculum writer, and sexologist. She is a founding member of the Women of Color Sexual Health Network (WOCSHN) and ANTE UP! a virtual freedom school offering professional development training and certification. She has written several curricula and the sexual and reproductive justice discussion guide for the NYC Department of Health published in 2018 and is leading the curriculum development for the Netflix film Crip Camp which is rooted in disability justice principles available at www.CripCamp.com/curriculum. She is an AASECT certified sexuality educator and supervisor and in May 2020 was awarded an honorary doctorate from the California Institute for Integral Studies for her work in expanding the US sexuality field. Find out more about Bianca at her website BiancaLaureano.com and about ANTE UP! at www.AnteUpPD.com.