Obese People And Discrimination
It has been said that obesity discrimination is the only type of discrimination still commonly accepted in our society today. Even though we live in a time when many are obese, with eight of out ten people in the US overweight and 43 million obese or morbidly obese,the mistreatment of overweight people continues. The fat jokes, the harsh treatment, and the outright discrimination. Obese people are discriminated against in society, at the doctor’s office, and at work.
Public Obesity Discrimination
Obesity discrimination and sex discrimination often go hand in hand. Not too many people shout rude things at very large men, probably because they’ve discovered that it can be hazardous to their health. But let an obese woman walk by a group of men, and all too often they’ll start making comments about the shape and size of the woman’s body. Several women have reported being “rated” on a scale of one to ten as they walked past fraternity houses or construction sites.
Another subtle form of obesity discrimination is public scolding. Although it’s never well-mannered to correct a stranger’s behavior in public (unless the stranger is behaving illegally, in which case it’s best to leave the correction to the police), it’s especially offensive to tell someone how many calories or in a food or whether or not the food is good for them. I once had a woman tell me, “You’d have such a pretty face if you could just lose a few pounds.” I considered saying, “And you’d have such a great personality if you’d only keep your mouth shut,” but self control won out. Darn it.
Obesity discrimination starts as early as kindergarten – both boys and girls report being targeted for cruel jokes and harsh treatment even at these very young ages. A pack mentality sometimes sets in, with all the “normal” kids ridiculing the obese one. Befriending an obese child , even at this early stage in life, is considered a bad choice and is ridiculed.
Healthcare Obesity Discrimination
The health care field is a common place where we see obesity discrimination today, ranging from the physicians to the insurance companies. Many doctors will not give an obese patient the same courtesy and respect that they extend to other patients, and some doctors even dismissively tell their obese patients to diet, knowing full well that 95% of all diets are complete failures long term. Many insurance companies will refuse to provide coverage to an obese person even when they are otherwise healthy.
Discrimination in the Work Place
Obesity discrimination is probably worse on the job than it is anywhere else. The American Obesity Association cited the following, alarming, statistics: All other factors among candidates being equal, employers overwhelmingly described fat job applicants in negative terms such as “socially inept” or “emotionally impaired.” In another study, researchers found that weight played a greater part than any other factor?including age, sex, or race?in deciding whether or not a candidate would get a job. Finally, asked to rate a list of potential employees, employers rated fat candidates more negatively than they rated mental patients or ex-felons.
And while there are laws to protect people who experience job discrimination based on sex, age, race, religion, and increasingly, sexual orientation, there are no laws in place to protect people who suffer obesity discrimination.
