Fat Events: Fat Girl Speaks

So you’ve heard all about NOLOSE and all the great speakers there, and you’re wondering what else is out there. You’re not anywhere near New Jersey, so there’s no way you can make it this year, and you’re on a tight budget? Never fear! I’ll highlight a few other fat conferences that will both rock the casbah, and your socks off.

First up is Fat Girl Speaks, organized by the incomparable Stacy Bias (more on Stacy later). The conference takes place in Portland, Oregon, and is all about grassroots empowerment. In its first year (2003) the attendance filled the building to capacity at 450 and the event organizers had to turn more than 100 people away. When it was put on in 2004, over 850 attended the conference, again filling up their (new) location, the Roseland Theater (a venue which in the past has featured performers like Phish, Bob Dylan and Ben Folds Five, among others). I don’t exactly have numbers on attendance for other conferences, but from what I know that makes it the biggest conference of its kind in the country.

What does Stacy have to say about FGS? I got the chance to AIM interview her for my paper, and she shared with me:

FatGirl Speaks is kind of an everywoman thing, dealing with the personal aspects of living big in a small world. It’s about personal empowerment, self-esteem, self-love, body image. It’s about individuals and their daily struggles and how to feel good from the inside and take that out into the world. I kinda think that it’s all part of something bigger. I mean, who’s going to be brave enough to face a room full of research panelists if they’re not feeling amazing about themselves to begin with?

Rock. Incidentally, FGS took this year off, but should be back in the near future. Check FatGirlSpeaks.com for more info.