RIP Feeling Fat Emoji

He had a cute face, but we won’t miss him. After a change.org petition gathered more than 16,000 signatures, Facebook has reversed itself and removed the feeling fat emoji.

Now, if you search through the drop down box to describe how you’re feeling when you post something on Facebook, “feeling fat” is no longer an option. You can, however, pick the very same little guy that formerly went with “feeling fat” and say that you’re “feeling stuffed.”

This all got started when an Ohio State graduate student, Catherine Weingarten, rallied the international body image organization, Endangered Bodies, to get behind a campaign urging Facebook to drop the feeling fat emoji.

Facebook initially tried to wave them off, saying, “You can choose from over 100 feelings we offer based on people’s input or create your own.” Yesterday, they came around and said:

We’ve heard from our community that listing “feeling fat” as an option for status updates could reinforce negative body image, particularly for people struggling with eating disorders. So we’re going to remove “feeling fat” from the list of options.

Binge eating disorder activist Lizabeth Wesely-Casela welcomed the news, saying:

I’m glad the movement caught the attention of social media giant Facebook. Hopefully this activism will help us move toward limiting the intrusion of weight bias and stigma into our daily lives.

Nanette Adams, a counselor and patient advocate in body image and weight management, summed it up well:

Way to go, Endangered Bodies! We’re all better off with this source of negative self talk gone from Facebook.

Click here and here to read more.

Feeling Fat Emoji, Image from Facebook

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