"Fat & Nasty"

Actor/Author/Whatever Else Tyrese Gibson was recently interviewed by AllHipHop.com.  They asked him,"What kind of responsibility do you feel as an entertainer, you have to inspire people to live healthier lifestyles?
 
His response could have been motivational.  It could have been awesome since apparently (I read recently) he was raised by an overweight Mom and has overweight siblings.  It could have been EXACTLY what "Joe EveryMan" needed to read to inspire a healthier lifestyle.  His response could have been anything else. 
 
Instead, his response was... 
"No two situations are the same. If you are fat and nasty and you don’t like the way you look, do something about it. It’s simple. 
 
When you take a shower and you put your fat, nasty body in the shower and by the time you get out, the mirrors are all steamed up so you don’t look at what you did to yourself. That may sound offensive or insensitive but ultimately, you are big as hell because you have earned that sh*t. You worked your a** off to eat everything in sight to get big as hell.
 
If you got a problem with the way you look, then you need to do something about it. Excuses sound best to the people that’s making them up."
 
Hearing this immediately got me thinking and honestly, kind of angry.  I already have beef with this guy (read below), but this put me on edge so I felt a strong urge to write a response.  It's a near certainty that this will never reach his eyes, but it's important for me to get this out...for myself, and for any person out there who happens to read this who Tyrese considers - and now likely consider themselves even more - "fat and nasty." 
 
First let me say, I understand his comments overall.  I get it.  There is an obvious obesity problem in America that needs to be addressed, we need to take seriously, and we need to do a better job of inspiring living a healthy lifestyle.  Additionally, sure, if you don't like something about yourself, you have the power to work on it and make it better somehow.  Sure, you should value yourself enough to make yourself the best you, you can be (which is a very difficult concept for some).  I get it. I am also aware that there are people out there who are lazy, and choose to eat and live their lives in an unhealthy way.  But is Tyrese aware that not every single overweight person "earned that sh*t"? 
 
Jillian Michaels (who kicks my a** with her work out DVD's - buy them, seriously) was interviewed this morning by radio program, The Bert Show, who asked her for her thoughts, and she said something like..."It's just not accurate...(gave an example from The Biggest Loser). That's ignorant and foolish.  He shouldn't talk about things he doesn't understand."  She is right.  She is tough, she is a bad ass, she is awesome, and she is right.       
 
Making a blanket statement like that is socially irresponsible and it makes him sound insensitive (in my opinion) and extremely unknowledgeable about obesity / overweight people. 
 
Difficult admission:  I have struggled with my weight and self-esteem for as long as I can remember.  I have never been "obese", but I have been overweight by about 30 pounds and extremely self-conscious.  Here's the catch.  It's not because I was LAZY, thankyouverymuch.  It's because I have suffered from bouts of depression and yes, an eating disorder that stretched itself over and haunted me for many, many years.  I am proud to say that I have never been happier and I have reached a place where I understand and choose to live a healthy life. 
 
But really, what does Tyrese know about people struggling with issues like the one's I went through, or things like thyroid problems, genetic issues, etc...?  Are there people that eat their way to obesity?  Absolutely.  But putting every overweight person in one bucket of being "fat and nasty"...?  It's just not okay, dude.      
 
So, Tyrese, I implore you to think before you speak so strongly and negatively about topics which you do not fully understand.  You're a celebrity.  Your voice gets heard.  Instead of making comments that will hurt people who are probably already hurting and stuggling, and instead of making those comments that ultimately make you sound a liiiiiiittle ignorant, why not choose to inspire people to live a healthier life... instead of cutting them down?  Positivity and / or a healthy challenge will go a lot farther.
 
That's just my 2 cents.  It may not even be worth 2 cents to anyone but me, but I am glad I got it out. 
 
 
 
And in case you're curious...   
 
My Initial Beef with Tyrese:
 
I worked at Houston's in Century City many years ago (I believe 2005 or 2006) as a Hostess and Waitress.  We had countless celebrities and people in general dine with us - it was a busy, busy place.  Tyrese came in one day for lunch.  He insisted at sitting at one of our largest tables (that we usually reserve for parties of 6-8) by himself, and his body guard (or whoever) at his own big table by himself.  We accomodated them.  He was rude not overly friendly and he ordered a fairly expensive meal.  We gave him the bill that was nearly $100.00.  His tip?  $2.00. 
 
Thank you, Tyrese.  Those $2.00 greatly contributed to the tip-share that all Hostesses and Waiters split evenly at the end of the night.     
 
 
 
 
 

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