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4 March | Every year
Turning a day of erasure into a platform for justice, reform, rights, and visibility.
International Fat Liberation Day (IFLD) is held on 4 March as a deliberate act of reclamation.
This date has long been dominated by messaging that frames certain bodies as problems to be solved, often under the guise of “health.” Those narratives are not neutral. They produce stigma, legitimise discrimination, and cause real harm to people living in larger bodies across healthcare, policy, and public life.
IFLD exists to interrupt that story.
This is a day for justice, reform, rights, and visibility. It shifts the focus away from weight loss, pathology, and individual blame, and towards the social, political, and structural forces that shape whose bodies are valued and whose are erased.
We don’t just push back against harmful narratives.
We rewrite them.
International Fat Liberation Day is a call to resist, to speak out, and to demand a world where dignity and human rights are not conditional on body size.
Want to learn more about why this day exists and what it stands for?
Read our blog here
4 March is not a neutral date.
For many years, it has been marked as World Ob*sity Day, a day dominated by narratives that frame fat bodies as problems to be reduced, prevented, or eliminated. Even when presented as “health promotion,” this framing reinforces stigma, legitimises discrimination, and contributes to real harm for people living in larger bodies.
International Fat Liberation Day exists to reclaim that date.
Rather than allowing 4 March to stand unchallenged, IFLD transforms it into a day of resistance and collective power. It creates a counter-narrative, one that centres dignity, justice, rights, and lived experience, and refuses the idea that anyone’s body needs to be fixed to be worthy of respect.
This isn’t about ignoring harmful narratives.
It’s about interrupting them.
Reclaiming 4 March ensures that calls for erasure are met with visibility, accountability, and a demand for something better.
A deliberate day of advocacy and resistance.
Tell us what fat liberation means to you
For International Fat Liberation Day, we’re inviting community members and allies to share what fat liberation means to you, or what this day represents, in 25 words or less.
Selected responses will be turned into shareable tiles and amplified across our channels on 4 March.
Other Ways to take part
There are many ways to mark International Fat Liberation Day, including:
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Sharing messages that challenge weight stigma
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Hosting a discussion, event, or workplace conversation
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Reviewing policies and practices through a weight-inclusive lens
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Amplifying fat-led advocacy and lived experience
Organisations and community groups are encouraged to plan their own ways to engage respectfully, collaboratively, and with intention.
Planning an event or activity for International Fat Liberation Day?
Let us know so we can add it to this page and help promote it across our socials.
Resources and campaign materials will be shared as they become available.
We continue to refine, expand, and add to these resources over time, check back regularly for updates.
SOCIAL TILES
Click the image to download then share on socials
HASHTAGS
Use #IFLD with any of the following:
#InternationalFatLiberationDay
#4March
#EndWeightBias
#ReclaimTheDate
#FactsNotMyths
#DignityForEveryBODY
#RewriteTheNarrative
#RespectIsntRadical
FLYERS AND POSTERS
What is International Fat Liberation Day?
International Fat Liberation Day (IFLD) is held every year on 4 March. It is a global day of resistance focused on ending weight-based discrimination and advancing fat liberation. It centres dignity, justice, and the lived experiences of people in larger bodies and challenges the systems and narratives that continue to cause harm in the name of “health”.
Why is International Fat Liberation Day held on 4 March?
4 March is the date of World Ob*sity Day, a day that promotes narratives framing fat bodies as problems to be reduced, managed, or eliminated. International Fat Liberation Day deliberately reclaims this date. Rather than allowing harmful messaging to stand unchallenged, IFLD offers a counter-narrative; one that centres dignity, autonomy, and liberation instead of fear, shame, and body surveillance. Reclaiming 4 March is strategic and symbolic. Silence allows a dominant story to stand. A counter-narrative interrupts it.
What is fat liberation?
Fat liberation is a social justice framework that recognises weight-based discrimination as systemic and embedded across healthcare, policy, education, and culture. It calls for: - the removal of discriminatory practices -weight-neutral evidence-based health approaches - an end to using body size as a measure of worth -full autonomy and equal access for people of all sizes Fat liberation is not about changing bodies. It is about dismantling systems that punish people for having them.
Is the day only for fat people?
Fat people are centred because they experience the greatest harm from weight stigma. However, International Fat Liberation Day is for anyone committed to dignity, justice, and bodily autonomy. Allies play an important role when they listen, amplify fat-led voices, and focus on systemic change alongside their fat friends and loved ones.
Can organisations or workplaces take part?
Yes and thoughtful participation is encouraged. This could look like: - reviewing internal policies and health messaging - sharing fat-led resources - hosting conversations about weight bias - reviewing physical environments, events, and activities to ensure they are accessible and size-inclusive We encourage to reach out as we can provide guidance and support to help ensure participation is informed, respectful, and aligned with best practice
Who started International Fat Liberation Day?
International Fat Liberation Day was initiated by End Weight Bias, an Australian-based not-for-profit, member-led advocacy organisation. As an organisation grounded in lived experience and systemic advocacy, we created this day to offer a counter-narrative to weight-centric public health messaging and to advance evidence-based, weight-neutral approaches that promote dignity and equal access for people of all sizes.
Why does International Fat Liberation Day exist?
Because weight stigma causes measurable harm. People in larger bodies experience discrimination across healthcare, education, employment, media, and public policy. International Fat Liberation Day exists to challenge these structural harms and to demand systemic change.
How is this different from other days of significance?
International Fat Liberation Day exists alongside, not in competition with, other important moments such as Fat Liberation Month in August and days focused on fat joy, body positivity, and visibility. Those spaces are vital for celebration, community, survival, and cultural change. IFLD is different because it is: - explicitly political - strategically positioned on 4 March - focused on countering harmful public health and policy narratives Where other days may centre joy and visibility, IFLD centres resistance to systemic stigma, discrimination, and weight-centric health and policy frameworks.
Why use the word “fat”?
Fat is a neutral descriptor, like tall or cold or tired. It is not an insult. Reclaiming the word challenges stigma and rejects the idea that larger bodies must be softened, medicalised, or apologised for. Using clear language exposes how deeply body shame is embedded in culture and refuses to comply with it.
How can I mark the day?
There are so many ways to participate that suit your capacity and resources. You can: - share what fat liberation means to you - amplify fat people, voices, and perspectives - challenge weight-based assumptions in your own communities - hold a conversation, workshop, or event that centres weight bias and systemic change If you’re hosting something, sharing reflections, or taking action, let us know, we’d love to amplify your message, promote your event, and support the work you’re doing.
How can I participate respectfully?
Respectful participation includes: - centring lived experience - avoiding weight-loss messaging - focusing on systems rather than individual bodies - resisting debates about people’s existence or worth Participation should contribute to collective change and avoid reinforcing the very narratives this day exists to challenge.
Is International Fat Liberation Day happening every year?
Yes. International Fat Liberation Day is held annually on 4 March. The day marks an ongoing global effort to reshape narratives, policies, and systems that harm all people but especially fat people, and to ensure that these harmful frameworks do not go unchallenged.
International Fat Liberation Day challenges harmful narratives about body size, health, and worth. These myths shape healthcare, media, policy, and public opinion and they cause measurable harm.
Myth 1: Fat liberation promotes unhealthy lifestyles
Fact: Fat liberation challenges stigma, not health.
Fat liberation advocates for dignity, equity, and evidence-based care for people of all body sizes. It does not discourage health-promoting behaviours. What it rejects is the false belief that health can be determined by body size, or that shame and discrimination improve wellbeing.
Health-promoting behaviours, such as accessible healthcare, joyful movement, adequate nutrition, stress reduction, and social connection are beneficial across body sizes.
Myth 2: Body size is a reliable indicator of health
Fact: Health cannot be determined by appearance.
Health is complex and shaped by genetics, environment, socioeconomic conditions, stress, access to care, and countless other factors. Body size alone is not a reliable proxy for an individual’s health status.
People in larger bodies can be metabolically healthy and people in smaller bodies can experience metabolic concerns that are not visible from the outside. Size does not tell the full story and often tells us very little at all. Reducing health to appearance oversimplifies biology and reinforces harmful assumptions.
Myth 3: Smaller bodies are better!
Fact: Body size is not a measure of discipline, virtue, or worth.
The idea that smaller bodies are inherently “better” assigns social value to appearance. It suggests that size reflects discipline, responsibility, or moral virtue, and that larger bodies signal the opposite. These narratives are cultural, not scientific.
Body size is shaped by genetics, environment, socioeconomic conditions, stress, and access to care, not simply individual choices. Treating smaller bodies as superior reinforces stigma and influences how people are treated.
No body is morally superior to another.
And no one’s dignity should depend on their size.
Myth 4: Weight stigma motivates healthier behaviour
Fact: Shame is not a health strategy.
There is a common belief that social pressure, criticism, or “concern” about someone’s body size or shape will encourage positive change. It shows up in public health campaigns and in everyday comments like “Are you sure you need that?” or “I’m just worried about your health.”
But research consistently shows the opposite. Weight stigma increases stress, healthcare avoidance, disordered eating, and poorer health outcomes. It erodes trust and reduces psychological safety, both of which are essential for wellbeing.
Myth 5: People can control their body size
Fact: Body size is determined by complex biological systems, not willpower.
There is a widespread belief that body size is simply the result of discipline, effort, or personal responsibility. But decades of research shows that intentional weight loss does not work for most people in the long term. When people engage in intentional weight loss, regain is the most likely outcome, especially after repeated attempts.
This is because of set point theory, a complex biological systems that works to maintain stability. Our bodies have a predetermined point that it wants to maintain. When weight is intentionally reduced, the body responds with hormonal and metabolic adaptations that increase hunger and conserve energy as a protective factor, making long-term weight suppression almost impossible to sustain.
Assuming people can control the size of their body ignores biology and fuels stigma rather than understanding.
Myth 6: BMI is a good measure of individual health risk
Fact: BMI was never designed as an individual diagnostic tool.
BMI was developed in the 19th century as a population-level statistical measure, not as a clinical tool to assess individual health. It is based on data from Western European men and does not account for sex, ethnicity, muscle mass, bone density, fat distribution, or overall metabolic health.
Despite these limitations, BMI continues to be widely used in healthcare, insurance, and policy settings as a proxy for health risk. Relying on a single ratio of height and weight can overlook important clinical markers and may lead to both over and under diagnosis. Health is multifactorial and cannot be accurately determined by BMI.
Myth 7: Larger bodies cause chronic illness
Fact: Correlation does not equal causation.
People in all body sizes experience chronic illness. There is no chronic condition exclusive to people in larger bodies. While certain conditions are statistically associated with higher body weight, association does not prove that body size itself is the cause.
Many disparities attributed to body size are strongly linked with weight stigma, chronic stress, delayed or inadequate medical care, socioeconomic inequality, and environmental factors. Treating body size as the cause can obscure these underlying drivers and can lead to care that focuses on weight rather than health.
International Fat Liberation Day exists because people chose to build something different, together.
By becoming a member, you’re supporting work that challenges weight-based discrimination, advances fat liberation, and creates space for resistance, visibility, and systemic change — not just on 4 March, but year-round.
Membership helps us:
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advocate for policy and systems change
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develop resources and campaigns
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centre lived experience
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grow initiatives like International Fat Liberation Day sustainably
If you believe this work matters, we’d love you to join the movement.
