Reminder

Stitched by: Emily Currie

Pattern designed by: Self

I made this cross stitch “Reminder” to highlight the oppression of diet culture.

My definition of diet culture is the ever present and widely accepted notion that the pursuit of weight loss, or maintenance of smallness, is just, right and central to the success and health of our society. The continuation of this culture is supported because this belief continues to be passed down through generations without question.

Rejecting diet culture is an act of rebellion in a society where even during a pandemic, the pervasive thoughts of society en masse is to fix, change or maintain the body in a rigid and specific way. Every major newspaper, online news outlet, radio and meme page during the pandemic has perpetuated this shame, guilt and scorn fuelled narrative of punishing the body.

I use this cross stitch as a reminder that if we continue this fixation, we miss the opportunity for great change. While certainly not limited to women, this quote by Naomi Wolf sums it up beautifully.
“A culture fixated on female thinness is not an obsession about female beauty, but an obsession about female obedience. Dieting is the most potent political sedative in women’s history; a quietly mad population is a tractable one.”― Naomi Wolf, The Beauty Myth