CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Food for thought will be the main item on the menu during events scheduled at the University of Illinois in conjunction with National Eating Disorders Awareness Week Feb. 25 to March 4.
Among the topics to be explored will be body image, self-esteem and how women are depicted in advertising.
Events during what the UI is calling "the Body Pride Project," coordinated by the campus Counseling Center:
Tuesday (Feb. 20), 7 to 9 p.m.: "Growing Up With Barbie: Women and Body Image," Room 209, Illini Union, 1401 W. Green St., Urbana. Open to women.
Feb. 26 (Monday), 3 to 8 p.m.: Ribbon campaign promoting size diversity and size acceptance, Intramural-Physical Education Building, 201 E. Peabody Drive, Champaign. Ribbons promoting size diversity and size acceptance will be available. People wearing ribbons will receive discounts from several stores on campus during Eating Disorders Awareness week.
Feb. 27 (Tuesday), noon to 7 p.m., and Feb. 28 (Wednesday), 1 to 7 p.m.: "Mirror, Mirror: An Interactive Body-Image Experience, Illini Union Health Resource Center, Room 129, Illini Union. "Mirror, Mirror" is an interactive museum that explores perception, distortion, body image and self-esteem.
Feb. 28, 5:30 p.m.: "Picture Perfect: A Body Image Workshop for Gay & Bisexual Men," McKinley Foundation (Geneva Room), 809 S. Fifth St., Champaign. Jeffrey Kemp, a health educator from the McKinley Health Center, will lead the discussion.
March 1 (Thursday), noon to 1 p.m.: "Ads R Us?," Illini Union, Room 129. People attending the event will watch "Killing Us Softly 3," a video by Jeane Kilbourne, and discuss how women are portrayed in advertising.
March 1, 7 to 9 p.m.: "YouÕve Lost Weight, YouÕve Gained Weight, Now Have More to Eat: Food, Culture and Our Bodies," La Casa Cultural Latina, 1203 W. Nevada St., Urbana. Three counselors from the campus Counseling Center will present the movie "Beyond Killing Us Softly" and then lead a discussion with audience members about their reaction to the movie. The counselors also will conduct an exercise showing the relationship of culture, body image and food.