NSFW    COLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND — For most students, college is a time of newfound freedoms and expanding awareness of their personal identities. And for many it's also a time of expanding waistlines, with hungry students packing on their "Freshman 15".
Now, for students at the University of Maryland who want to know more about the fat-forward lifestyle, the school is offering a 3 credit course this winter called "Introduction to Fat Studies". Basically, Fat Studies is a field that tries to reveal and counter negative perceptions and treatment of fat people, especially women, arguing that fatness is an identity, not a disease.

According to the syllabus students will explore the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA) website and read articles about "fatshion" on xoJane.com. They will also read the Fat Liberation Manifesto, which is sure to put excitable young students on the fat war path.

Introduction to Fat Studies could open up new horizons to budding social justice warriors who find that other marginalized groups already have campus champions. And, you don't need to be fat to take the class, though it might be a good place to look if you're trying to make some full bodied friends.