Ragen Chastain

Ragen Chastain

Bio

Ragen Chastain is a professional speaker, writer, and real live fat person.  She has spoken everywhere from friend's living rooms to Google Headquarters to Cal Tech and Dartmouth.  She will not stop until we live in a world where the full diversity of body sizes is respected, and fat people are able to live in fat bodies without shame, stigma, bullying, and harrasment, regardless of why they are fat, what being fat means, and if they could (or even want to) become thin. She lives in Los Angeles with her partner Julianne and their adorable rescue dogs, and is training for her first (and hopefully only!) IRONMAN triathlon. If you can't get enough of her on Ravishly, you can check out her blog www.danceswithfat.org

Ragen Chastain Articles

I don't care what Donald Trump eats.

I Don't Care What Donald Trump Eats, And Neither Should You

I don’t care what Donald Trump eats, or any other president for that matter. I don’t care if he exercises. Health is not guaranteed under any circumstance.

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By Anna Hanks (@annaustin) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

I Feel Pretty, Not Delusional  

Amy Schumer, of I Feel Pretty, keeps trying to sell us this narrative that she is fat (and ugly, which she seems to think mistakenly are the same thing).

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United Airlines, Leggings, And Deciding What Matters

Companies make unjust policies all the time, and they rarely change them except by public pressure.

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March has been a pretty stellar month for The Resistance, actually. (Image Credit: Flickr/Fibonacci Blue)

March Activism Success Roundup

In the U.S., we are living in frightening times.

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Let’s stop all this one-size-fits-all, unrealistic expectations approach to pregnancy, and let’s put our energy into making sure that pregnant people have the support and resources they need for themselves, their fetuses, and their kids. (Image Credit: Instagram/stylish_bump)

Please Don't Expect All Pregnant People To Be Serena Williams

The last thing pregnant folks need is the message that they can (and should) be able to work at the level of professional athletes and actors while they are dealing with the life-altering symptoms that happen when you are growing a fetus.

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Kids fitness — by any definition — isn’t an obligation or barometer of worthiness.

Fitspo Is Not For Ten-Year-Olds​

While it's fine for child athletes to be on social media, it should be clear that what they are doing certainly isn’t necessary, or even appropriate.

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Weight Watchers Black

Weight Watchers Is Back With New Nonsense

Let’s be honest for a minute, sex is pretty damn fantastic. But if you’ve ever felt self-conscious in the sack you’re not alone – we’ve heard that more than half of women have avoided sex because they were worried about how they look.

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Let’s take a moment and soak this in: women make up half the population and only 1/13th of the Doctors from Doctor Who, and there are actually men out there deluded enough to claim that this is unfair to men. (Image Credit: Instagram/nymag)

The Misogyny Of 'Dr. Who' Fans - Dudebros Are NOT HAPPY With A Female Lead

Ms. Whitaker is a white woman, so obviously 'Dr. Who' is still desperately behind and lacking in their Doctor diversity. But the show has finally introduced a woman as the main character and men (and a few women, because internalized oppression is a thing) are flipping out.

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Image Credit: Netflix Insatiable

Alyssa Milano Needs To Stop Telling Fat People How To Feel About Fat Suits

Alyssa Milano take note - if a fat person has to become thin to find acceptance, that’s fat-shaming. If it requires a fat suit, it’s fat-shaming.

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Photo by Annie Gray on Unsplash

No, You Shouldn't Ditch Your Fat Friends ​

Slimming World (UK version of Weight Watchers) is telling those who have reached their “target weight” to ditch their fat friends.

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