People of Walmart: Fat Hatred and Classism Rolled Into One

Some language and partial nudity warnings on the videos above! Have any of you seen that People of Walmart website or associated videos like I have posted above? The People of Walmart website has endless viruses on it now. My browser just blocked it. Google the term "People of Walmart" if you want to see it, but be wary of your computer's security. I wonder if some outraged objects of rude photographs hacked the place? The first video has pictures from them, but the second two are one's I believe were inspired by the "People of Walmart" website.

I hate Walmart and do not shop there. The food is gross and an MSG laden mess. The produce rots after three days. Ever since I moved away from my rural area I stopped shopping at Walmart but trust me there is empathy for those who have few other choices for their shopping. In my old rural town if you refused Walmart and needed a plastic trash can or even a package of underwear, you'd be driving two and half hours to find other options. Walmart famous for lower prices though that could be argued a bit, is dominant in rural and poorer urban areas. The crowd that can't afford Whole Foods or Trader Joes or even your regular smaller grocery store is flocking to Walmart.

How on earth did taking pictures of people who have less money and less lithe bodies at Walmart become so in vogue?. The videos above disturb me, the one with the lady that is around my weight 500lbs being called 1200lbs, there was some conflict for me even posting it, but 8,000 people have already seen it. Maybe if she sees it, she can get it taken down. This tells me if I was on a scooter at Walmart in my 500lb or near 500lb glory, someone could take a video of me and let the rude comments begin. She is a person in my position getting endless assumptions and judgment!

Young people flock to these websites to laugh at the clothes, the fat people and many people who really are mentally ill.  The mentally ill in some of these pictures look to have dementia in the case of some of the elderly or even schizophrenia. They should not be mocked but helped. There are pictures of people who have soiled themselves, and that really upsets me because there endless medical complaints that can cause that to happen such as Chrohn's Disease. It's horrifying enough when it happens even if someone is not there to take your picture and plaster you across the internet.

To me these videos are a sign of an increased narcissistic culture where if people don't match the skinny and healthy bodies of the top 15% elite on our TV screens that they are to mocked and made fun of. Yes, there is the crowd who dress half naked and need some lessons on modesty, who cling to promiscuous ways and desiring to show off.  There isn't much excuse for wearing dirty T-shirts with the F word on it, or wearing shorts where the bottom of your butt is displayed to the world, but there are many people who are simply POOR.

When you are poor clothes are often ILL-FITTING and if you gain weight, you can't buy new ones. Even thrift stores if you wear over size 14 for a woman, there is very little choice for a bigger woman to get cheaper clothes. There were times when I was so poor, and this was during my weight gain, where I had to wear skirts with ripped out hems. Even today those memories of not having good enough clothes to wear are not one good ones and yes it did affect my job getting abilities. Thrift stores and volunteer places weren't stacking up the clothes for the over 400lb set.

  Also in the land of the thin, many clothes now being produced look horrible on fat people! They really do. The fashion designers are not coming up with fat friendly clothing, but styles that look ugly on fatter or even plump people. In other words them designing all the clothes for anorexic models means they look bad even on normal people.  I special order all my clothes from one plus sized company because I refuse to wear tight uncomfortable clothes that do not cover anything.  I once had some pants split open in my 20s where I had to run for the hills. Sadly some of those more innocent folks get their pictures put online too.

There are many people who do get their pictures taken on these websites who aren't doing anything that outrageous except being too poor or too fat in the wrong place. Poorer American people have very poor health, the misshapened bodies are an outcome of a toxic environment, poisoned people who are under extreme stress and strain. In other words many of these people with odd shapes aren't choosing how their bodies look. The obesity and odd weight displacement, skin problems, and flesh that is anything but smooth is occurring due to the very environment they exist in.  Ironically the photos are being taken in the very place helping move that along, with all the bad and processed food. 

America is a very sick place now, and it's showing in the health of the most poor and vulnerable. One can see the moral, spiritual and health decline of Americans. Some surely are making bad choices, but others look like people just beaten down who are barely functioning despite all their effort. Others are fat people probably like me wondering why their body has turned against them so viciously? Others are sick, or severely mentally ill.

I have been considering the sheer numbers of people in American society are marginalized. What is it now 80-70% of the population? Anyone not thin and connected enough to get a good corporate job? If you think about it, if all people see as normal on their television sets is the marble counters and under 120lbs crowd for the women and under 180lbs for the men? I suppose some lesser minds may consider them fodder for abuse and mocking. Maybe there is an agenda behind why the only time any of us get to see any working class or poor people now [outside of ourselves in my case] is as objections of derision, ridicule or when they are getting marched off to jail on our TV screens. Maybe some of the folks in these pictures need to reject materialistic or overly sexual American cultural messages and regain some of their self-respect and show it in their dress.  I am old enough to remember where DIGNITY was an important facet of life. People of Walmart for all it's shaming techniques though is part of the problem scooping up both innocent and guilty into one toxic web. 

Sure even I will worry about the moral degradation and lack of self respect that occurs in some of these photos but consider the fat hatred shown, the meanness to the old or anyone who is DIFFERENT. Sometimes when I look at that website outside of the willful degenerates or ones brainwashed about what looks "sexy", my thought is well at least someone is dressing a bit differently!

The fact that "People of Walmart" videos and websites even exist is upsetting, that now if you are poor or fat, it's open season for you to be abused on the internet. The websites and videos to me show the fat hatred and also the CLASS issues that are prevalent when it comes to obesity.