MICHEL MARTIN, host: There is not any denying that obesity is a serious well being difficulty in the nation, and it's a very huge problem for African-American ladies, greater than half of whom are considered overweight. However you also, I feel, must look on the components on how we ourselves play a task in it as nicely. If we find it, there's an issue. But it isn't - and it hasn't been easy, Michel, as a result of in my neighborhood, if I need to get good, healthy food including groceries, I should go the West Aspect. Moreover being a cover woman, Buffie appeared within the movie "ATL" as Large Booty Judy, and is as recognizable in the black group as some supermodels. And it was passed down, clearly, from generation to technology. MARTIN: Nicely, what acquired you onto this matter, Debra? What made you think about this? Ms. DICKERSON: There's sure things - it simply breaks my heart after i read about how low our ranges are of organ donation, and it's more likely that a black person who needs a liver or kidney or something like that goes to match up to another black person. (Soundbite of laughter) Ms. CANNICK: Africa. MARTIN: You mean West Africa, okay. It is - there is a complete lot of cultural things happening in here, and that i took pains that piece to say what you like is what you like - if you want huge breasts, if you want huge butts. When we get these circumstances, we get them far more severely. (Soundbite of laughter) MARTIN: However she's not obese. You realize, and that is a difficulty from, you understand, from the West Aspect of this nation to the East aspect, whereby predominantly black and brown neighborhoods, we just haven't got access to the identical issues that extra affluent neighborhoods have access to. I felt… Ms. DICKERSON: I think they're lovely. I had enjoyable. Ms. CANNICK: Thank you. Jasmyne Cannick is a blogger and commentator. However I've heard since I was slightly kid, no one wants a bone however a canine, you realize, and that sort of factor. Ms. CANNICK: Thank you. I know I am on the right track, let's just put it like that. MARTIN: However some people do not. She joined us from her home in Albany. And what hurts me in all these blowback is that folks do not seem to get that I am coming from a spot of love for my sisters. Ms. DICKERSON: Right. MARTIN: And there's s no question that they're healthy, you already know. Ms. DICKERSON: Most likely, and besides she's… MARTIN: However I see your level. I think they're completely beautiful. To inform you the reality… Ms. DICKERSON: I wanted to ask you bought at 236? MARTIN: Yeah, why did you get it? Exactly? Debra, see, there you go. I think that has too much to do with it, also with the fact, you realize, from day one, we're simply not raised to think about ourselves in that manner, particularly in terms of our weight. And what steps can we take, you know, to curb it. She is a blogger and commentator, and she joins us from her office in Los Angeles. And guess what? How a lot of that, I bet, is advertising. And it is a lot a part of our neighborhood, but at the identical time, we really do believe as black of us that someway that food is nice for us as a result of that's the meals that we have been raised on. MARTIN: And she raised you right. It is extra type of a sexual fetish. And lots of what made me do that. MARTIN: …this 12 months, "Norbit," the place black ladies are, you already know, fats ladies or big girls are held up as objects of ridicule. And that i look at the magazines, I have a look at, you recognize, the universal cultural marker, music videos, proper? However at the same time, I am in Compton, and i have to inform you. And it was like solely entertainers who might really get away with being obese, like Aretha Franklin and folks like that. Not less than not held up as beauty objects. Some folks suppose they're not feminine enough as a result of they are not, you know, slender and waif-like, you realize. Ms. CANNICK: West Africa. You are mainly saying she's glorifying an unhealthy life. And now, here - I need to edit for radio. Ms. CANNICK: Will do. Ms. DICKERSON: Thanks, Michel. MARTIN: I would like to bring in one other voice here. And Debra Dickerson is a writer and columnist for Salon.com. Ginormous butts and weaves - must have. Buffie, for the 45-inch butt, is the reigning queen of the scene, and her recognition speaks to blacks' normalization of a really un-pc fatness. I'm Michel Martin, and this Tell ME Extra from NPR News. MARTIN: Right. Ms. CANNICK: Nevertheless it undoubtedly has increased substantially. What we're doing to ourselves in this group and we're so up in arms about racism, however there's so much more we could possibly be doing to take care of ourselves. MARTIN: Now, you recognize, quite a lot of Americans are overweight. Let's discuss more tomorrow. We're speaking about obesity among black girls and whether or not the tradition truly permits it. MARTIN: Wait a minute. And i should also mention that I am not telling your small business, Jasmyne, because you've been blogging about your personal efforts to lose weight. I know that's not the automobile - you understand, that's not the standard by which… Ms. CANNICK: Actually, I do use that. MARTIN: Okay. In accordance with a Village Voice article by Ben Westhoff, there are a slew of city magazines discovering success with males of color by replacing the traditional photograph spreads of effectively-recognized bony fashions and actresses with unknown round-the-means sisters, seems to be and fitness not required. It was actually fairly striking. She got here throughout as a down home, round-the-approach sister. Ms. DICKERSON: Certain. MARTIN: However you additionally noticed one thing earlier, Jasmyne, that even when - as you have been putting on weight, you were inclined to think you had been okay. She joined us from her workplace in Los Angeles. How are you received by the holler index at 236, and the way are you feeling now? Ms. CANNICK: Okay, utilizing the holler index, I did not too many at 236. But I have to tell you now, after i step exterior of the door at work right here in Compton, the brothers are stopping. Writer Debra Dickerson wrote an essay about it for Salon.com, the web journal, and she joins us by telephone from Albany, New York, for a behind-closed doors conversation. Ms. DICKERSON: Right. I like bodybuilder's our bodies, and I do know some - my own mom, when I used to be a bodybuilder, thought my body was disgusting. MARTIN: And eat healthy. I have to ask, does it matter what type of automobile? (Soundbite of laughter) Ms. CANNICK: No matter what kind of automobile. Nicely, you recognize, I felt proper at residence. But I can't inform you how many times I've gone to my grandmother's house to sit at a table filled with fried hen, every starch on the planet… (Soundbite of laughter) Ms. CANNICK: …the greens with pork in them. I imply, you cannot argue with the numbers when it comes to obesity inside our neighborhood. Ms. JASMYNE CANNICK (Blogger): I feel there's quite a lot of truth in it, but I also - I mean, I just came back from the motherland and, you know, aka the land of big butts aplenty, okay? Ladies, thank you both so much for joining us. If anything, I was too small. You're not talking about Atlanta, right? She put on that behind, supposedly she mentioned, drinking these GNC protein supplements. So that is one thing that you should talked about. Ms. DICKERSON: Yes, I think it does. But if like something that's killing somebody, you have to learn not to like it so much. You think it is, possibly what? The circumstances that a number of black women dwell in that don't supply wholesome selections? Ms. CANNICK: Yeah. It is the very first thing quite a lot of worldwide guests touch upon. MARTIN: Let me learn, shall I? Ms. DICKERSON: Okay. MARTIN: Okay, Jasmyne, I am sorry. Now, one commentator means that one motive black women are overweight is that the brothers like it that manner. Ms. DICKERSON: Your momma raised you proper. So once i look at… Ms. DICKERSON: (unintelligible) Ms. CANNICK: But that's the food that we ate because that is all we might afford to eat. Thanks for being with us. However, you recognize, going from right here over there and simply taking a look at us as African-American girls, yeah, there was a huge difference. So I think there's a whole tsunami of things happening. MARTIN: Jasmyne, as you're shedding weight, how are you feeling - what is the phrase I am in search of? Because I know that you're not like on an index of, like, hollers on the street. MARTIN: Debra, you understand, I feel Jasmyne's additionally elevating another point here, which is that isn't there something equally unhealthy in constantly evaluating your self to individuals whose physique sorts could be very different from yours? And I'm desirous about like look at Serena and Venus Williams, who're very muscular ladies. We're additionally going to be joined by Jasmyne Cannick. I'm not so sure we're talking about beauty objects. Ms. DEBRA DICKINSON (Columnist, Salon.com): Thanks for having me. And although I was 236 pounds, I thought of myself to be relatively healthy in terms of no different type of well being circumstances, but I was fats. And I feel particularly the jumping off point for me was that article I read within the Village Voice about how apparently there are all these new city lad mags the place that specifically looked for sort of spherical away sisters with these humongous rear ends. And that i still have quite a few to go. There is not one single wholesome restaurant. Ms. DICKERSON: I believe we're talking - again, we're on harmful territory right here, but I believe we're talking about sexual fetishes. Ms. DICKERSON: She's unhealthy and the numbers speak for themselves in terms of the diabetes and the hypertension and the way much sooner we die than other individuals. And black ladies particularly, we take care of everybody and nobody takes care of us and we do not take care of ourselves. And so, you recognize, at five-six, for me to be 135 pounds, it's simply not going to occur. Why are you hating? (Soundbite of laughter) Ms. DICKERSON: You already know, I like Buffie. Debra, why are you hating on Buffie? Come on, now. All the things else is fast food. So my problem is the health outcomes: earlier deaths, hypertension, diabetes, diminished quality of life. But you suppose the tradition rewards black women for being big? Jasmyne, you suppose that is true? Ms. CANNICK: Effectively, first of all, I won't ever ever put myself on the identical scale as a white woman because robotically, my body structure's completely different. MARTIN: However junk within the trunk is completely different from being obese, and I assume I'm excited about movies like that Eddie Murphy movie that came out early… Jasmyne, you have been making some extent earlier that you are not so certain it's the culture. And when it did, I needed to make some way of life adjustments. What do you think of Debra's argument? And so right here I'm, at 29 years old - I woke up one morning and I used to be 236 pounds. Ms. DICKERSON: Which - sure. MARTIN: In case you're simply tuning in, we're speaking to Debra Dickerson and Jasmyne Cannick. A whole lot of this is black ladies don't want to get their $200 hairdos messed up sweating on the gym. And it's humorous to me as a result of I am lesbian, but even if I used to be having heterosexual, I am not going to give anybody the time a day that shout their holler at me from a automobile. besides seeing "Norbit"… (Soundbite of laughter) MARTIN: What? Ms. DICKERSON: …was this type of desirous to be more healthier. MARTIN: All proper. I just had to ask. I wished to discuss that because Debra cites a statistic in her piece from womenshealth.gov, stories that compared with overweight white Americans, BUSTY BLONDE ROUGH GALLERY overweight black People are two to thrice more prone to say their weight is average even after they're been told they're overweight or obese by a physician. Ms. DICKERSON: Right. MARTIN: And I do not see lots of huge ladies in them. As a result of that - Buffie's probably undercover on the salad bar. I mean, such as you mentioned, I've been struggling by myself weight reduction and I'm - I have lost about forty six pounds now and so… Ms. DICKERSON: Congratulations. So I am not so sure it is a beauty picture. MARTIN: Nicely, okay. Ms. CANNICK: I do. And you can discover a link to her article at our Net site: npr.org/tellmemore. I imply, it took a little while for that to sink in. She would not exercise. The whole lot she eats is, quote, "Southern fried" and a sugary drink. (Soundbite of music) MARTIN: That is our program for at the moment. You're all the time going to have pockets, and I feel there's in all probability some class issues there. There's just one sit-down restaurant. The unbelievably hideous numbers about black women in breast most cancers is killing me. I was very, very fats. And it bothers me that this girl felt herself to be too skinny at 120 pounds. Sure, there is definitely some - a market desire for women who've junk in the trunk, or nonetheless you want to put it. That's to say that the tradition rewards girls for a bit further padding. Buffie's not going to be with us too long. We've got certain property that others pay for that we just are born with naturally.

How To Love A Black Woman

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