VIRGIE TOVAR
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#FireGeoffreyMiller

6/4/2013

 
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           - tweeted Sunday by Professor Geoffrey Miller, Dept. Psychology, UNM

Below is the letter I wrote to the University of New Mexico, where Miller has a permanent post. I'm asking everyone who reads this to email (feel free to cut and paste this letter) and/or call (which I will be doing this week) and use the hastag #FireGeoffreyMiller this week.

Phone: (505) 277-4121
Fax: (505) 277-1394
[email protected]


Hello,

I recently saw the article about Geoffrey Miller's fatphobic tweet stating that fat PhD candidates ought not apply because they lack the discipline to complete a dissertation.

I feel it is my duty to personally contact you because of not only the egregiousness of this statement for its obvious fatphobia, but also because of the gendered and racialized nature of the issue of fatness/weight in the United States. I hope that it is clear that - through this statement - he is further discouraging women (under-represented in tenure track positions) and people of color (under-represented across the board in academia by nearly every measure) from pursuing academic careers. I hope that you understand the seriousness of his statement.

I have faith that you will deal with Mr. Miller's decision with the severity it merits.

#FireGeoffreyMiller

Sincerely,

Virgie Tovar
Rox Chwaluk
6/4/2013 06:30:59 pm

rude dudeee!

Colleen Langford
6/5/2013 01:02:00 am

Corin Price
6/5/2013 04:13:03 pm

I copied your letter, added a note of my own (in my angry voice). Anyone who has a PhD & practices bigotry over science should have it immediately revoked regardless of how impressive their thesis might have been, not that I am a fan of institutional learning (leads to institutional thought). I fail to see how being plus sized somehow shut off my dedication to learning, which I choose to do on my own rather than have a fabricated piece of paper tell me I'm smart.

Much <3
We are big & beautiful ^_^


Comments are closed.
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    Virgie Tovar

    Virgie Tovar, MA is one of the nation's leading experts and lecturers on fat discrimination and body image. She is the founder of Babecamp (a 4 week online course focused on helping people break up with diet culture) and the editor of Hot & Heavy: Fierce Fat Girls on Life, Love and Fashion (Seal Press, 2012). She writes about the intersections of size, identity, sexuality and politics. See more updates on Facebook.

    WHY IS THERE NO COMMENTS SECTION?
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