Are jokes still considered comedy if they're at someone else's expense? Is any topic up for grabs when trying to generate laughs? Well, not everyone thinks so. YouTube star Nicole Arbour received backlash from every corner after releasing her controversial video, "Dear Fat People." The latest person to speak out against her poor choice of words is Empire actress, Gabourey Sidibe.
Sidibe opened up to People about her feelings toward the viral fat-shaming video. She did not see the comic appeal of the video at all, stating it was a "stupid video."
In the six-minute diatribe, Arbour tries to humorously tell anyone suffering with obesity to lose weight. She insinuates that overweight people choose to put themselves in that condition and in harm's way (i.e. diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.) because they won't stop eating. Arbour believes she's saying the thoughts that most people have, but are afraid to say. In between the humiliation and belittlement in the video, the YouTuber stated "fat-shaming is not a thing," comparing obese people to slow running zombies.
"I saw a little bit – about as much of it as I could take," said Sidibe to People at the unveiling of Empire's curated collection at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York City. "I think she is incredibly ignorant. I mean she's saying also that it's comedy, so ... and it's a joke ... I mean maybe it's not funny to me because I am a plus-size woman."
What we've all wanted to say to FAT PEOPLE
Posted by Nicole Arbour on Thursday, September 3, 2015
The video was taken down from YouTube and Arbour's channel was temporarily suspended, but it is already up and running again. Despite the backlash and warnings she received from the video, Arbour didn't really seem to care or show any remorse. Since the video was no longer on her YouTube channel, she decided to post it on her Facebook. The video currently has over 27 million views and over 240,000 likes.
Sidibe however, ultimately decided the video had nothing to do with her. The 32-year-old American Horror Story star has her moments where she feels self conscience, like every woman, but she's still very proud of herself and her body.
This isn't the first time Sidibe was made to feel like her weight wasn't acceptable in the country, let alone in Hollywood. The media and cyber bullies have attacked her on countless occasions about her size, which left her embarrassed at times to get dressed for an award show. The New York native thanks her haters for helping her find her inner and outer beauty, strength, and talent.
We literally broke the Internet... With comedy. #censorship pic.twitter.com/m3wgf24Xtb — Nicole Arbour (@NicoleArbour) September 6, 2015
Arbour's "Dear Fat People" video reportedly also cost her a movie role. She was allegedly scheduled to choreograph a dance for an upcoming movie, but once the director caught wind of her rant, he wanted nothing to do with her. Arbour however, denies any connections to the film. The YouTube star has yet to apologize for any of her comments and has resumed creating videos for her channel.
