He Said ‘You’re Too Fat to Be Raped’ – And Here’s Her Stunning Response

March 11, 2016 / Beck Cooper

(Content Warning: sexual assault, victim blaming, fatphobia)

What would you say to the idea that “fat bodies can never be raped?”

That’s what someone told spoken word artist Beck Cooper – and her response will floor you.

She imagines a “rape prevention potluck” to add to the ever-expanding list of things we must supposedly do to protect ourselves from sexual assault. This unforgettable performance shows how toxic lies about rape put the blame on victims in the most ridiculously offensive ways.

Watch this talented performer confront the idea that fat girls “can’t say no” – and stand up for all survivors in the process.

With Love,
The Editors at Everyday Feminism

Click for the Transcript

It has been brought to my attention

by the man with all the answers

that I am too fat to be raped

Said no one would dare lie with me in all my morbidity

So if a man donates his body to the inside of mine,

I should just be grateful

Said I could smother any man underneath my fat folds

so if a man doesn’t make it out of me alive, I must have consented

Fat girls are all green light

Can’t say no – not to chocolate cake, not to getting raped

God, I wish I had known this earlier

I could have saved so much money on pepper spray, longer skirts, looser sweaters, rape whistles

Don’t want to get raped? Easy – fatten up!

Right now, a rape prevention potluck

We’ll eat everything

Bathtubs of mac’n’cheese

Cake the size of crop circles

And why stop there?

While we’re at it, let’s make meatloaf of my rapist

And use his bones to pick our teeth

And when we’re plump and stuffed,

a toast to the promise that fat bodies can never be raped.

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Beck Cooper is a New Orleans based spoken word artist, whose work draws upon personal experience to explore themes of womanhood, queer identity, and body positivity. She is a two time member of the Baton Rouge National Slam Team, and her work has been featured on Upworthy, Everyday Feminism, and All Def Poetry. Beck ranked within the top 20 poets at both the 2015 Women of the World Poetry Slam in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the 2015 Southern Fried Individual Poetry Competition in Little Rock, Arkansas. You can follow her on Tumblr here.

Video courtesy of Write About Now (WAN) Poetry. For more amazing spoken word performances, check them out on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook.