Social network giant Facebook is catching some heat for having “fat” as one of their how are you feeling status updates.
Non-profit organization Endangered Bodies has started a Change.org petition hoping to get Facebook to remove the emoji which features embarrassed rosy cheeks, a puffy circumference and even a double chin.
Graduate student and playwright Catherine Weingarten, chosen as 1 of 7 global ambassadors by Endangered Bodies, told People:
“This issue is so important because being a young person, Facebook is kind of the way we live… I always had this idea of ‘I’m fat,’ ‘I feel fat,’ but when I was saying that, that wasn’t actually how I was feeling. I was feeling angry at myself and like I wasn’t good enough, but I simplified it to ‘I feel fat.’ Through therapy, I was able to work through it, and now I feel like, ‘Wow I never felt fat. I felt like I wasn’t good enough.'”
As for Facebook – they issued the following statement:
“People use Facebook to share their feelings with friends and support each other. One option we give people to express themselves is to add a feeling to their posts. You can choose from over 100 feelings we offer based on people’s input or create your own.”
Do you think this petition has merit?
