Help Remove Derrogatory Radio Commercial Against Fat People
I just received this message from the NAAFA Group on Facebook:
Darliene Howell posted an announcement to the cause NAAFA – National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance.
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WE RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM KATHY HERNANDEZ OF CLUB CATALINA IN SAN DIEGO ON A DERROGATORY RADIO COMMERCIAL AGAINST FAT PEOPLE.
KATHY STATES:
A commercial that is currently running on a San Diego radio station starts out with two females talking to each other about why the one girl has her refrigerator stocked full of beer. She is asking her questions like are you having a party?
The other girl says no I’m using it to get guys. She than starts telling her friend that she’s too fat to get a guy unless she gets him drunk so that’s why she has a refrigerator full of beer where she lives to be able to have sex.
The commercial goes on to say if they call Anti Gym and lose this weight in their fat stomach and fat butt than they won’t need to put beer goggles on the men they want to have sex with.
I have NEVER heard such a disgusting and nasty commercial. I know the economy is bad and everyone needs money but 93.3 FM needs to be boycotted until they get some morales and realize this commercial is HIGHLY discriminatory against people of size. This commercial is telling our young children, teenagers, and anyone who is a person of size that they are not worthy of a person to love them because they are fat, and we have to trick people into sleeping with us because we aren’t thin.
I urge everyone to take 2 minutes out of your day and call the manager at 93.3 and let him know EXACTLY what you think of this type of vulgar and discriminatory advertisement. His name is Jimmy Steel at 858-715-3155. I talked to Tanya from 93.3 who is an intern there and she agrees as most do who work at 93.3 that this commercial needs to be removed. I also talked to Hula who was also very sympathetic but also told me this commercial has been running for about a week and a half.
I will be posting this in 38 yahoo groups today, my space, direct emails and of course NAAFA (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance). I am asking everyone to repost this on my space, forward to everyone in their email address and call Jimmy Steel at 93.3 @ 858-715-3155 to let him know your feelings on this discriminatory commercial they are now running on 93.3 I will NOT be listening to 93.3 until I get a phone call from Jimmy Steel letting me know that this commercial is no longer being aired.
Kathy Hernandez
Club Catalina in San Diego
93.3 do the right thing and take this garbage down now!!
After a quick Google Search I came up with the following article from Daily Camera. Here are some tasty bits from the article about the way Anti Gym operates:
Emily Akers forgot to turn in her food log. As penance, she has to carry a rubber chicken throughout her workout.
If you slack off too much, personal trainers will chuck Hostess Cup Cakes at you and “moo” at you. Sometimes they shoot you with Nerf darts or handcuff you to the treadmill.
This is the home of slogans such as “Too chubby; never find a hubby,”
CBS television and radio dropped Karolchyk after thousands of complaints. In one commercial, Karolchyk shoves a crying, overweight woman onto a couch so that her cake smashes in her face.
On Feministing, readers question how such discrimination is even legal, calling it degrading, junior-high, stereotyping and sick.
And instead of talking about health benefits of fitness, Karolchyk talks about sex.
“We’re honest. People go to work out to look better,” he says. “We don’t care about your cholesterol and blood pressure. If you look better, it will come down anyway. We measure sexiness.”
I’m actually feeling exhausted and a bit nauseous from reading about Michael Karolchyk. Please help make these ads go away. I know that Big Fat Blog wrote about this gym, which has intentions of spreading its evil in franchises around the country, but I’m still looking for that link. If you can find it please post it in the comments.
By the way, in addition to having a “Ravish Room” — the private exercise room for members with acceptably low BMI, and hosting cocktail parties for “hot” members only, they also offer barf buckets in the exercise area.
Everytime I read something like this I wonder how people can say with a straight face there is no size discrimination in America.
Who would WANT to go to such a place? And who would care what a person like this shallow-pated, sociopathic Karolchyk creature thinks of him or her? Seriously, with an opinion like that, I just consider the source and chuck it in the trash where it belongs.
Oh. Good. God.
*ew*
That’s disgusting. Not just the ad (which, also, by the way sounds like it is anti-beer, something else I do not approve of), but the entire business model. Seriously, you would have to pay me huge sums of money to put myself through this.
He’s an attention whore, but he knows how to push buttons and get free publicity.
The Ravish room includes things that are strictly regulated or illegal in San Diego. i live near San Diego, and i have contacted the local Crimestoppers and will be calling the District Attorney’s office and the Zoning office tomorrow.
Truly these are the end times.
Read this magazine story about him:
http://www.5280.com/issues/2008/0801/feature.php?pageID=979
I’m as disgusted as everyone else – but I’m also curious: what do the people who go to the gym say? How long do they stay members? I certainly would never even consider using this service, but who does, and what reasons do they give for going along with it aside from being saddled with low self-esteem?
@Meryt: It seems from the interviews with ppl. who go to this gym that they go because they want to be “hot” and they want to increase their chances of having sex with “hot” ppl.
@living400lbs: I second that with whipped cream and a cherry on top.
@Linda: Yes he is good at getting publicity but I believe that his narcissistic behavior is indicative of a deep psychological problem. Someone needs to help this guy. Preferably by locking him up somewhere.
@fatfairy: Yay you! Please come back and let us know what happens.
@Di: See @Meryt above.
I live in San Diego and listen to 93.3 in the morning on my way to work and the first time I heard one of the two commercials The Anti Gym is running, I just laughed. I thought it was a joke! The commercials are rediculous! I just noticed yesterday morning that they have put a disclaimer before and after the commercial runs saying that Channel 93.3 and AJ’s Playhouse neither endorse nor share the views of The Anti Gym. That’s a nice band-aid, but I think the commercials should be pulled from the air permanently.
Sometimes they … handcuff you to the treadmill.
I feel so sorry for anyone who has such low self-esteem to actually *pay* to be treated like this, but handcuffing someone to a treadmill?? That’s extremely dangerous – someone could get seriously injured.
Urk. I just read the article RL posted above. The man is clearly a psychopath who hates women – all women, not just those he deems “chubby”.
I came across your blog while doing a search for this pathetic business. Thanks for your post. I will call Jim Steele tomorrow.
I am a San Diego native, certified with the American Council on Exercise, have a B.S. in Kinesiology and am an advocate and activist for positive body image and self esteem. Now I did not come here to tell you all my credentials, but to tell you as a fitness professional myself and especially as a woman who is fiercely passionate about these issues I am shocked and disgusted at these ads and this “gym”. This man does not deserve to have this business in my home town. He is encouraging low self esteem, quite possibly encouraging eating disorders and sending a terrible message to everyone. I intend to do something about it. He says in his articles all of his haters are “fat chicks”.
I would venture to bet that if I walked into his gym 5 months pregnant (which I am) he would call me fat.
Okay, I’m climbing down from my soap box now.
Thank you for your post and your passion
@Andrea Thank you for leaving your comment. I am thrilled to hear of your plans to call Jim Steele. Please come back and let us know what response you receive.