I have no idea who Maura Kelly is

[yendi]

Or why she has a writing job (it's clearly not based on talent, at least from this one sample), but one thing's for sure: she's an asshole.

Ditto whatever editor at Marie Claire thought this article was a good idea.

Link via ewin

Comments

[mermaidnchains.livejournal.com]

I am sputtering in anger. Must form coherent thought before saying more than 'OMG! FUCK HER!'.... ~growl~

[ultra-lilac.livejournal.com]

But she's being forced to look at evil fat people! It's an outrage!

[yendi]

Oh the humanity!

[cbpotts.livejournal.com]

I mean, yeah, it's Hearst, and we're catering to the lowest common denominator here, but still. She is an asshole of the highest order.

[davidlubar.livejournal.com]

What a twit. That show has heart. Besides, nobody puts Sookie in the corner.

[samhenderson.livejournal.com]

What an asshat.
And the cheerful "all you need to do is eat healthy and work out, just like me" makes me want to spit nails.

[ex-gnomicut.livejournal.com]

The incredibly painful ignorance of that statement kills me. Eventually in her fauxpology, she semi-admits that there are reasons people can't eat what she considers to be healthy food and work out. But the massive ignorance of the idea that you will be thin if you follow her simple rules, it slays me. I mean, entirely besides the fact that she is vile and hate-mongering.

I'd love to see her make a post saying "I hate it when Hollywood makes us watch smokers kissing each other, because we should never have to see unhealthy people even exist. Also people who drive too fast.and people who eat too little.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

I don't like fashion magazines. There are good reasons for this.

[pixelfish.livejournal.com]

I loooooove how she equates watching a show which (however problematic it may be) made fat folk the protagonists with "junk food for the brain".

That's right, possibly thinking that fat people could have lives and aspirations and compelling narratives is JUNK FOOD FOR THE BRAIN.

[yendi]

*nod* Anti-television snobbery has a long and storied history, but is generally a sign of a flaw with the snob, not with the medium.

[tablesaw]

Maura Kelly '96 found solace in Salinger's classic novel because it made her feel like she was not so alone. She struggled with anorexia growing up and credits the psychologists who worked with her for helping her to overcome the disorder.

—http://www.dartmouth.edu/~csrc/students/careers/stories/kelly.html

Same person, it matches profile photos.

Clearly, there are some issues left for her.

[yendi]

Good point.

[avivasedai.livejournal.com]

In the comments she mentions that she struggled with anorexia... which makes one wonder even more how she could've allowed that piece of writing to possibly get to her editor, who could possibly be allowed to publish it. Evidently she gained no external awareness while working through her troubles.

Maura Kelly

[lori bau (from livejournal.com)]

I think this person should go to a class to learn to treat people with respect, no matter their size, color, religion, or sexual history.

How she has a job with Marie Claire, I have no idea, Whoever let her write this article and have it in the magazine also needs to make a public apology.

The magazine really screwed up big time. They should be ashamed of themselves, and I think they will be sorry as their subscriborship goes down.

[soph-nyc.livejournal.com]

I stopped reading MC after they went "serious" a couple of years ago... how a fashion magazine can take themselves that seriously I don't know, but I was kind of waiting for the slip to happen.

And I just love love LOVE!!! how she gives us fat people some advice on how to lose weight. I mean, really, I just never thought of that. *groan*

[littlebuhnee.livejournal.com]

Awful lot of back-peddling in her Update. I'm still kind of stunned it made it past the editors in the first place.

[trochee.livejournal.com]

... wow, what a bigoted piece of writing.

But it's kind of refreshing to see an "update" that says basically "I was an asshole. Sorry." I'm so used to reflexive wagon-circling and "no *you're* racist for noticing" responses to this sort of think (*cough*MoonFail*cough*) that this is actually kind of a relief.

It's not a *perfect* apology -- there may be no such thing, and this one does contain a strong "but it wasn't my intent" thread and another "but some of it *really* matters" under-undercutting" thread -- but at least it contains this one sentence:

"my extreme reaction might have grown out of my own body issues, my history as an anorexic, and my life-long obsession with being thin. ... I think that's an accurate insight."

... which I'd like to read as "I throw a lot of stones for someone living in a glass house."