In one of the US states, they want to ban discrimination against overweight people
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Lawmakers in the state of Colorado in the US are working on a bill aimed at banning fatphobia – discrimination and harassment of overweight people.
Colorado has the lowest obesity rate in the country – 25 percent, writes The Telegraph.
The document was initiated after a bill came into effect in New York the other day, prohibiting companies from firing employees because of their weight or paying them less than “skinny colleagues.”
According to the publication, the United States has the highest obesity rate among all developed countries – 39.6%.
| Photo: Milatas/gettyimages |
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), West Virginia has the highest obesity rate in the US at 41 percent, with slightly lower rates in Louisiana, Oklahoma and Mississippi.
Interestingly, of the 10 US states with the lowest percentage of obese citizens, five have proposed legislation to ban weight discrimination, while none of the 10 states with the highest obesity rates have done so.
For example, the Texas Supreme Court (Texas is one of the states with the highest obesity rates) ruled that “weight should not be covered by the article unless it is medically classified as a disability“.
The ruling was preceded by a lawsuit filed by an overweight 28-year-old woman who claimed she was wrongfully fired from her emergency room job because she feared she would not be able to work full time.
Anti-Obesity Coalition Board Chair Crystal Hartman says activists are trying to change the perception that obese people are to blame for being overweight and should not have to defend themselves against discrimination.
“The history of obesity is that most people thought it was their own fault, that they did it to themselves, they were lazy, they ate McDonald’s 10 times a day“, says Crystal Hortman.
The chairman of the board of the Coalition for the fight against obesity believes:
“Of course, watch your food, do physical exercises – it is importantbut actually slimness or overweight – it’s all physiological“.
As a reminder, in the USA, overweight children are advised to be examined and treated in the early stages of obesity. Medicinal intervention is recommended for ages 12 and up. Surgical – for those who have already turned 13 years old.
The World Obesity Federation predicts that by 2035, more than 50% of the world’s population will have problems with excess weight.
Read also: “As cancer whistles on the mountain, or sooner: when you really need to lose weight and how to understand it”
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