Name: Sydney Royce
Social Justice Group: Women’s Role and Representation in the Media (print/ads/tv)
Date of Fieldwork: January 13, 2023
Name of Organization and person (people) with whom you met and their title(s):Elizabet Altunkara from the National Eating Disorders Association
Type of Fieldwork: Interview
What I did and what I learned about my topic, activism, social justice work or civil and human rights work from this fieldwork?
Last week we had our interview with Elizabet Altunkara, the Director of Education at NEDA. NEDA, the National Eating Disorders Association, is one of the largest nonprofits dedicated to helping people and families. Their mission is to help any people who suffer with eating disorders, but also educate people on what an eating disorder is and how to prevent one. NEDA has a website with lots of information but they also have a hotline for anyone who is struggling with this, or is curious about eating disorders.
Elizabet said that most people who experience body dissatisfaction feel as though their bodies are flawed. Most people but mainly women, feel that they don’t have their ideal body and this idea usually results to eating disorders. On the website it states, “Over one-half of teenage girls and nearly one-third of teenage boys use unhealthy weight control behaviors such as skipping meals, fasting, smoking cigarettes, vomiting, and taking laxatives.” These symptoms can be different for everyone, but these are the most common ones with eating disorders. A lot of girls and women feel that they need to be thin and beautiful in order to be “desirable” or “accepted.” A lot of boys feel that they need to be thin and muscular so they can feel more masculine.
From both sides, the reason why many people have eating disorders is because of our culture and the pressure to be a certain way. NEDA’s goal is to really teach people to love themselves and learn to accept their bodies. This organization is so amazing and inspiring and I’m so glad NEDA exists. It is such a great help for anyone who is struggling with eating disorders and/or has any questions about it. It was a great opportunity getting to talk with Elizabet.
