Virgie Tovar
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Virgie Tovar | |
|---|---|
 Tovar at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival | |
| Born | May 19, 1982 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Occupations | Author and podcaster |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Website | www |
Virgie Tovar, (/ˈvɜːrdʒi ˈtoʊvɑːr/ VUR-jee TOH-var; born May 19, 1982) is an American author, lecturer, and weight-based discrimination speaker. She writes about fat acceptance, anti-fat bias, and diet culture.[1] She was the host of The Virgie Show on CBS Radio[2][3] and the podcast, Rebel Eaters Club (produced by Transmitter Media).[4]
Tovar is of Mexican descent.[5][better source needed] She has struggled with weight issues since childhood.[6] In middle school she struggled with an eating disorder.[6]
Tovar received her bachelor's degree in political science from University of California, Berkeley in 2005[7][2] and her Master of Arts in Human Sexuality Studies from San Francisco State University.[7][3]
Career
In 2013 Tovar criticized the American Medical Association for classifying obesity as a disease.[8] She began the #LoseHateNotWeight campaign to highlight the impacts of diet culture and educate people about the importance of ending weight-based discrimination.[6] Tovar has advocated for legal protection against weight discrimination.[9] Tovar has been accused of downplaying the negative effects of obesity.[10][better source needed][11][12]
Tovar is an ongoing contributor for Forbes.[13] and has authored several books and articles. In 2014, Tovar appeared in the documentary Fattitude.[14][15] She has been profiled in the New York Times[16] and the San Francisco Chronicle[17] and has appeared on NPR[18] and BBC Mundo.[19] Tovar was also the host of the Webby Award-nominated podcast, Rebel Eaters Club, produced by Transmitter Media for three seasons.[17][20]
Tovar has received Yale's Poynter Fellowship in Journalism,[21] the Anne G. Locascio Memorial Scholarship from the Mendocino Coast Writers Conference,[22] the Inspire Award from Project HEAL,[23] and three individual artist commissions from the San Francisco Arts Commission.[24]
In December 2024, Tovar was hired for six months as a consultant on "weight stigma and weight neutrality" by the San Francisco Department of Public Health.[1]
