The petition, which argued the status promoted self-destructive thoughts, gathered more than 16,000 signatures.
The petition said that when Facebook users set “feeling fat” as their status, then they are poking fun at those who consider themselves overweight, and that may include people with eating disorders. The petition said that is not okay. It continued to say that fat isn’t a feeling and it is a natural part of our bodies, regardless of how much a person weighs. “All bodies deserve to be respected and cared for,” according to the petition.
A spokesperson for Facebook said that they listened to their community saying that listing “feeling fat” can reinforce negative body image.The spokesperson continued to say that they decided to remove ‘feeling fat’ from the list of options.
Catherine Weingarten, 24, started the petition, and after Facebook announced that it was removing the option, she said that she felt happy that a form of body shaming is being eliminated.
Previously, Facebook said that users share their feelings with friends and they support each other. The company continued to say that adding a feeling to their post is one of the ways they can express themselves. Facebook said that people can choose from more than 100 feelings that they offer, based on users’ inputs or they can create their own.
