March 10, 2000

10:48 AM

It's been pointed out a lot lately (especially after Prop 22) that gays are the one minority that it is still safe to discriminate against. I agree, except that they are not the only ones.
And yes, I must admit, I resemble that remark.
posted by wendell (8 comments total)

As a fat, white male computer programmer from Mississippi, I think that, despite being hetero, I'm at least half of the things you can still make fun of in this country.
posted by harmful at 12:12 PM on March 10, 2000

never mind how fat *women* are treated.

it's nice to see that actress on The Practice written as being sharp--and sexual. interestingly, the heavy guy on that show (sorry, I just don't watch often enough to remember names) is written as a good-hearted but slightly incompetent lawyer.

RB
posted by rebeccablood at 12:59 PM on March 10, 2000

yeah, but while it's socially acceptable to discriminate against fat people, it's not explicity supported by the law, as discrimination against homosexuals is.
posted by muta at 1:12 PM on March 10, 2000

Discrimination against overweight people seems so ingrained in our society, while we're at least questioning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation now. Still, I'd like to see both issues go buh-bye.
posted by veruca at 2:13 PM on March 10, 2000

I dunno...This whole thing seems pretty simple to me. If you guys just stop being fat, us skinny people will stop discriminating against you.
posted by Popstar at 3:03 PM on March 10, 2000

Despite the facetious aspect of the previous statement, the courts have ruled that it is acceptable to discriminate against any aspect of a person that the person has the capability of changing. This precedent was established in a suit where some smokers claimed that they were being discriminated against.

The court ruled that they had the ability to stop smoking, and thus this was not discrimination.

On the other hand, someone can't stop being black, or stop being female (except by expensive surgery which is not reasonable). I think that whether it's difficult for any given person or not, a court would decide that it is possible for an obese individual to lose weight. Thus I'm not sure that obesity would qualify for protection status legally.

It is, of course, a matter of discussion whether homosexuality is a choice. I personally don't believe so, in most cases. But some people think it is.
posted by Steven Den Beste at 3:55 PM on March 10, 2000

make no mistake, it's not only legal to discriminate against people of color, in many cases it's legislated. for one example, take a look at the actions of the GOP in shutting out black voters from the South Carolina primary.
posted by sudama at 7:34 PM on March 10, 2000