It's Been a Minute The privilege of being "skinny"
Dec 29, 2025
Emma Specter, a culture writer exploring media and identity, and Kate Manne, a philosophy professor focused on ethics, dive into the heated debate sparked by influencer Slim Kim's viral TikTok. They discuss how society's idealization of thinness creates privilege and reinforces beauty standards. Emma highlights the backlash against body positivity, while Kate connects societal pressures to political shifts. Together, they advocate for solidarity and stress that the fixation on body ideals distracts from bigger issues of bodily autonomy.
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Skinny As A Cultural Demand
- Slim Kim's declaration that her favorite thing to be is "skinny" signals fear of being fat and reinforces cultural pressure.
- Emma Specter argues that such statements implicitly tell others their bodies must match that standard.
Backlash Repackages Old Ideals
- Body-positivity gains produced a predictable backlash that re-centers thinness in discourse.
- Emma Specter notes thinness never truly left and backlash amplifies calls to 'bring thin back.'
Thinness As Wealth Signal
- Weight-loss drugs and costly wellness services turn thinness into a socioeconomic signal.
- Kate Manne explains access to GLP-1 drugs makes extreme thinness a marker of capital.