Lizzo vs. Jillian Michaels
In January 2020, former Biggest Loser trainer Jillian Michaels questioned why people were celebrating Lizzo’s body during an appearance on BuzzFeed News’ digital series AM to DM. Michaels asked why the focus was not instead on Lizzo’s music, adding that it would not be positive if the singer developed diabetes. Fans criticized the comments as fat-shaming.
Lizzo later addressed the backlash on Instagram, writing that she had done nothing wrong and forgave herself for ever believing otherwise. She said she deserved to be happy, then responded to her critics with a profane remark telling them to enjoy the “flavor” of invoking her name.
Michaels subsequently defended her position during an appearance on E!’s Daily Pop. She said being overweight is linked to heart disease, cancer and diabetes, conditions that can be fatal. Michaels added that if refusing to celebrate someone’s weight because of those potential health risks amounted to fat-shaming, she accepted that criticism. She also stressed that she does not celebrate anyone’s size, whether they wear a size 0 or a size 6.
DON’T MISS: Why Napoleon Was History’s Most Infamous Boss From Hell
Michaels said years of marginalization and exclusion had pushed the conversation toward a point where some people responded to criticism by embracing being overweight. As a health expert, she continued, she felt obligated to warn that excess weight can have serious consequences, including death.
She reiterated that she does not celebrate being overweight because she believes it can be deadly. Michaels argued that denying health risks for the sake of political correctness is neither honorable nor virtuous, but instead irresponsible and potentially dangerous. She concluded that she would not misrepresent her views simply to win people’s approval.