Speaker denounces diet industry as tool of 'body fascism' targeting Black fat bodies

At the Socialism 2026 conference held at Chicago’s Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, Da’Shaun L. Harrison delivered a critique of the diet industry, labeling its practices as "body fascism" that specifically targets Black fat bodies. He explained that the surveillance and discipline of Black fatness underpin larger governance structures, without which concepts like BMI or obesity epidemics would not exist. Harrison described a network of major food corporations, the medical-industrial complex, and affluent benefactors that sustains a social order where fat individuals are constantly monitored, guilt-induced, and penalized.

He also denounced GLP-1 weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic, arguing they are part of a racialized public-health agenda. Panelists Beatrice Adler-Bolton and Artie Vierkant joined the discussion, which attracted over 200 attendees. Psychotherapist Jonathan Alpert cautioned that interpreting routine medical advice as oppression could have psychological costs and diminish willingness to heed health guidance. Clips of the session were later shared on X by Manhattan Institute analyst Stu Smith.