Are fat people treated unequally/unfairly? All Opinions welcome.
 

I've just returned from a long and intense diversity conference. At one point, we were asked to present topics to be addressed by people in other groups. I indicated that I feel that I am treated unfairly as an obese woman.

The group that chose to pick up my topic was the "people of color" group. They belittled the very idea that fat people are subject to being treated unfairly. The comments that I got back were along the line of "you've got to be kidding!" One member of the group told me that they had a great time laughing at the suggested topic. The observation that fat people are treated unfairly was dismissed as a non-issue.

I tried discussing this with two members of that group separately. I pointed out that fat jokes are perfectly acceptable on TV while jokes about race are politically incorrect. I told them that I've read about a study that showed that fat women earn 26% less than the average earnings for all women in the same job category. One of the men just shrugged it off and wouldn't discuss it further. The other man insists that he has never heard of fat people being mistreated and that he has never seen it. He acknowledges that gorgeous women are treated better than average, but thinks that all women who are not visually stunning are all lumped together as average and are regarded equally. Later that evening, I caught him telling a fat joke to another colleague. I didn't have the energy to pursue it.

Have I lost my mind? I am 41, obese and I think I have been judged harshly for my appearance and ridiculed for a lifetime. Is it just not-as-bad-as-having-ancestors-who-were-slaves and therefore an invalid complaint? I am baffled.

What worries me most is that one of the women who was reportedly belittling my topic is the diversity coordinator for the entire company (a Fortune 500 company). I'd like to take this up with her one-on-one but first I'd like to hear some other perspectives and arm myself with statistics.

Please tell me your honest opinions. I'm not just looking for backup. I'd like to hear a range of perspectives.

Though it's not necessarily in my face discrimination, I strongly feel I've lost job opportunities because of my weight. You get looks from everyone around you, with looks of contempt on their faces. I've had people heavier than I look at me with a sort of desparation, I've had thin people look at me as if to say "god don't ever let me get THAT fat". Men & dating? Forget it, no one will look past your weight, doesn't matter what kind of personality you have, they all want thin, and they'll take a thin woman who treats them like yesterday's garbage over a fat girl anyday..........

I've had looks at airports, on the plane, even in Starbucks, where no one will sit near you because they might 'catch' what you have, obesity, like you're going to bite them or talk to them or something.

My brother tells fat jokes all the time and is quite demeaning towards anyone who isn't tall & lanky like him.

I thank GOD every day for my present boss, who obviously saw something beyond the weight and hired me, he is so happy with my work and doesn't regret giving me a chance. He is tall and very thin, my weight didn't seem to affect him at all..........

The other bad thing is I cannot walk in my neighboorhood for the comments retarded men seem to want to yell your way as you walk down the street, so I stick to Greenlake or the gym.

I've noticed people looking in my cart at the grocery store, probably wonder what the hell I eat that makes me so fat? Well, it was never any fast food, junk food, never ate any chips, cookies or cakes. My one and only rare indulgence was Starbucks Java Chip Ice Cream. Oh well, go figure..........

LL :)

Definitely fat people are treated differently. They're one of the remaining classes of people its ok to poke fun of on TV. You wouldn't laugh at a black person for being black, but you can laugh at a fat person for being fat.

I remember seeing 60 minutes or some such show a woman dressed up in a fat suit and did some experiments. She was most certainly treated different in the fat suit and out of it.

I remember it as well. The girl started out to do it to help her understand what her overweight friends went through on a daily basis because she didn't believe "it was all as bad as they said it was". By the end of the experiment, she had changed her view completely and was absolutely stunned at how differently she was treated in a variety of situations because of her fatness. The two situations I remember were shopping at the mall and visiting a club.
Perhpaps if you write to 60 minutes, you can get a copy of that story to show your friends who think that fat discrimination doesn't exist.
Those that don't want to admit that it exists are likely a part of the problem themselves. :(

I have been both thin and fat and boy oh boy is there a major difference! When you are fat, you are forgotten. People's eyes run right past you as if you didn't exist. Either that or they look at you as if you are pathetic and disgusting. I've had men say rude things to me and look at me as if I was a piece of dog sh*t because of my weight. Luckily my husband is a man of character and he loves me exactly the way I am. :)

It's definitely true that fat jokes are still acceptable and I think it's horrible. I always feel bad for people who are very obese because I know what that's like and my heart goes out to them for what they are put through on a daily basis. The ridicule, the torment, the embarassing situations such as when you don't fit into a seat on the train or in the movie theater, the looks of disdain that people always give to those who are obese.... it really breaks my heart :( and it makes me angry :mad:

I agree with the above poster. People look right through you when you are overweight. No one makes eye contact. It is an odd feeling. I guess I was in denial, but I never noticed this until I had lost weight. Now people are looking at me and smiling and generally friendlier.

I do believe that it is discrimination.

It's funny that this topic popped up... I was thinking about how differently I was treated back in highschool (i was heck thin and actually had a 4pack going when i was on the swim-team), when i gained a lot of weight (really quickly) because of too much beer and twinkies when i started university, and now (still trying to get the 6 or at least 4pack going)...

Honestly, I prefer the way i'm being treated while i'm at a "decent" weight... especially by women... while i was obese/fat, i was pretty much just "friend material"... now, i get treated different, especially at bars and night clubs and especially the pool (where i get stares and these cute lifeguards approaching me)... i'm still single, i don't know why... hmmm maybe i'm affraid of commitment, but heck i'm still young ;) this is a really shallow reason why i push myself to stay fit for life now :p

i also watched that 60minutes documentary... it was really interesting watching how people (especially men) treated the woman...

i don't really understand why fat/thin people are treated differently when it comes to applying for jobs though... what happened to hiring people for their ability?!

I totally believe fat people are discriminated against!! My best friend had weight loss surgery a year ago. Prior to that, she had difficulty getting jobs - would easily get interviewed but then not receive the job (she's a RN and they are scarce around here too). Since losing 90 lb from the surgery, she's gotten both of the jobs she interviewed for and they treated her so much nicer in the interviews. Since nothing changed except for her weight, she believes this was the deciding factor.

People think it's fine to make fun of fat people, and I find it loathesome. My own husband is nearing 300 lb but still makes comments about others who are overweight. That is just sad.

People were extra nice to me at my "ideal" weight, especially men. When I was at my heaviest, they act like you don't exist.

Yes, I do think there is discrimination, and I feel this way because I have been both thin and fat.

Most of my life I have been slender and active. I am blonde and busty so I know that I have recieved special treatment by people especially male bosses due to my looks.

However, about five years ago I was treated for depression and placed on a mutlitude of anti-depressants that caused me to gain - 60 POUNDS! I went from a size 4 to a size 16, and it happened quite quickly.

I will never forget the reaction of and the treatment by people who knew me, and those who didn't. I had some unbelievably mean and cruel comments and nasty jokes made toward me. At first everyone thought I was pregnant, and the embarrasment for both them and myself when I had to tell them I wasn't - was horrible. My family was perhaps the worst. Overall though, I was accused of horrible crimes due to my weight. This was difficult for me, because I was accustom to receiving certain advantages when I was thin, people were kind, and helpful. As a thin woman, there was always a stranger, usually a man ready to help me carry a heavy bag, as a fat woman, they ignored me. I was also used to having men try to buy me drinks in bars, and when I was a size 16, I found myself sitting alone at a bar stool, while my thin girlfriends chatted up men, and didn't include me in the conversations. And of course, I got the you are so pretty comments - you'd be a knock out if you lost some weight!

When I stopped taking the medications, I quickly returned to a size 4. And all of a sudden, people wanted to be around me again, strangers smiled, I had an easier time hailing a cab. I learned that to be overweight, is a very lonely thing.

I am now about 15-20 pounds overweight again, but I hide it well, because it mostly in my stomach and middle, which can be disguised by the right clothing. I refuse to let my weight get heavier than that because I could never stand to return to the lonely and painful existence I had when I was severely overweight and that is why I am here and doing Atkins.

My heart really goes out to those for whom a weight problem has been a long time problem, because people can be so cruel and judgemental. And I briefly worked in retail when I was laid off, and I witnessed that qualified overweight women were always denied jobs which were given to unqualified thin and pretty girls.

It's because of a stereotype (conscious or otherwise) that believes that fat people are also lazy and not good workers.
Another prejudice that exists among employers is that fat people utilize health care more and will adversely impact the group's experience (in an experience rated insurance market) and cause their health care premiums to go up, plus more sick days, etc...
There isn't much fact behind this belief, but it's a factor when an employer chooses a thin employee over an overweight one even when the overweight candidate is more qualified.

rant, apology in advance
 

Fat people are treated VERY badly. In the press, on the street, at work, everywhere. It's pathetic. Men who used to look at me a few years ago with distain now look at me with lust. Why the difference? It's disgusting. It's very obvious that this world is so weight conscious that being fat is a contagious disease.

When I was at my highest weight, 235, 20 years ago, I was invisible. No guy wanted anything to do with me. They made fun of me. I was teased and tormented. I was a "pity date " at best.

But in the last week I have been asked out by 3 different men. It's not my personality that's changed! My body is different but I am the same person I always was inside. Bubbly, outgoing, articulate, funny, smart... (blowing my horn for a minute here)

People don't understand how insensitive they sound when they make jokes or ugly reference to people's weight.

Although I still have a nasty roll of stomach skin that won't go away and still a few # from goal, my SO says I am beautiful, that he loves me and that he doesn't see an ounce of fat on me. That's how it should be. Unconditional acceptance. True love.

The general public should wrap their heads around the fact that being fat is only partially about what you put in your mouth. I hate how people are so superficial. Sometimes it is about food sensitivities, allergies, hormones, nature or simple bad luck. Sometimes it is about what we eat and how little we exercise.

When I was fat, no one saw ME, they saw fat. I couldn't get a good job, or a good date because people couldn't get past how I looked. Those same people fall all over themselves now to get my attention. Those people make my skin crawl.

Sorry for the rant but I had to sound off on this one! We are all here to improve ourselves and meet our goals and quite frankly, the heck with anyone who is standing in my way. People who treated me badly when I was fat have no place in my life now.

I am coming up for my 20 year high school reunion and am very interested in how differently people I went to school with will treat me 20 years and 100 # later.

Thanks for reading so far, but it is a topic near and dear to all of our hearts.

Julie

I would say that fat people are treated differently and should be, but the extent to which they are mistreated is much greater than it should be.

Racial discrimination is discrimination against something you did not choose and cannot help. However, you can help being fat. If you're fat, its a reflection of you, your habits and your character. If you're fat (and don't have a gland problem), then you've gotten that way, because you were lazy and didn't watch what you ate. I know that's how I got fat. It reflects on you and people saw me as a lazy slob and in many ways...I was.

Now, the level to which they are mistreated is much greater than it should be. I know some people saw me when I was fat and felt I was less motivated than someone that was thin. To some extent, they were right. However, others saw me as a slob, an ugly person and 'below' them. That's not right.

If I was an employer and there were 2 equal candidates for a job, but one was fat and one was thin, I'd choose the thin one. There's just a better chance he'll be more motivated, all other things being equal. Now if the fat person is much more intelligent, has more experience and better references and I still chose the thin one, that's taking it too far.

I think there are two different things here, though they overlap. All things being equal, people at a healthy weight for their body are more likely to be fit, healthy etc. So for the opposite sex to find healthy weight bodies more attractive than very over or underweight bodies, is a matter of 'natural selection' if you like - we unconsciously choose someone who looks like they'd make a good mate (even if we are only out for the night!).
Of course this is affected by the media, so that we look for 'on the thin side of a healthy weight' because of that, but even so, that's what most of us find attractive.
I don't think there's much point arguing about that. Of course our personalities are just the same - but sexual attraction is based on physical attributes first, the rest comes later. And its basically sexual attraction that helps a girl get a cab etc!
The more serious one is when we hire people for jobs, speak to people in the street and so on. Because that should very definitely be about who they are as a person - so discriminating against fat folk there really is a nasty prejudice.
Our whole society is so image conscious though, that this needs challenging, in all of us, all the time. Are we nicer to pretty people than plain ones, tall men rather than short men and so on.

Well, I've found that I have never had problems with men - there are plenty of men out ther who like big girls. But as for jobs, yeah I think I have been discriminated against. I am more than qualified to do any job, but as others have said, if you're fat then you're automatically lazy ir unable to do tasks as quickly as others etc...which of course we all know is cr*p.

Funny this topic came up...I just posted on it in my journal and in response to a woman who was feeling depressed. Just gonna cut and paste my opinion here. Sorry to anyone who already read it elsewhere...
From my journal:
"Read a post by someone who's lost over 100 pounds but finds herself depressed. Made me remember my weight loss from 8 or 9 years ago. Lost over 100 but I actually got angry at men for taking notice of me...for people in general being more congenial. Somewhere inside I resented the heck out of the fact that being skinnier made people treat me better and with greater respect. After all...I was the same person, but suddenly I was worthy of attention and being taken more seriously? VERY irritating! The truth is, that overweight people ARE treated differently...and when you go from the one side of the coin to the other...it can upset you to see that. It's emotionally depressing on a subconscious level, I think...and it affects your happiness with yourself because part of you wants to snap back to being big and kick the world in the seat of the pants. I dont know...but I do remember that...still makes me angry, I guess. I already see a difference now in how my customers relate to me at work...the weight loss makes life better on a social level...dealing with people is easier because they treat you better, but,(somewhere way down deep) something about it all makes you wanna lash out a bit."

So, YEAH...I think fat people are treated differently.


PS: TCastro...I just need to point out that most people who are comfortably thin simply have a genetic disposition to be that way. For some of them...it's a happy circumstance that will change over the course of time as they age. But fully 90 percent of the "skinny" or "average" sized people that I know dont eat any differently than I used to...they're simply a different body type with different metabolisms. Many of them eat far worse than I ever did. Of course it CAN be true that a fat person may eat like a horse and snack on junk food all day long...but many eat relatively normally and still gain weight...as I did. Take the same diet that I eat now and add in a bagel for breakfast and a starch with my meals...I'd gain weight....but I wouldnt exactly be making a pig of myself. So I think the "fat people eat poorly and aren't motivated to eat right and excercise" theory just doesnt stand up.

Just my opinion.

There is a difference in how "fat" (I hate that word) people are treated versus non "fat" people. I am overweight, but you would not know it to look at me, so I am told by my peers. When I was much heavier I was very much picked on and ridiculed, my ex husband even divorced me because of it. when we got married was a very thin runner, very active. I got in a bad car wreck and gained alot of weight. I went from weighing 130 to almost 200 lbs. And the way I was treated by people (even my own family!!!) was very different indeed. As a "thin" (average weight I think) I am veiwed very different and I had a boss tell me one time that I was hired on the a job because the owner of the establishment needed a "looker" out front. The other lady who was much more qualified than I, lost out on the higher paying job. I felt very used at that point, and very bad about how I got the job after that.

now, I work at a job where there are almost only "fat" women. I love these women, they are funny, and make going to work fun....but, they do pick on me because I am thinner then they are. They harp on my diet plan all the time and try to exclude me from things stating things like "only real women here" and "when are you going to eat like a real person" things like that. So I guess in some ways it goes both ways, lookism is not right, any way it goes.

This is simply an ignorant statement. He hasn't seen it, so it must not happen. That's like saying that since I've never actually witnessed a murder, it's never happened. People see what they want to see. You'll never convince him otherwise. Don't waste your energy.

Please don't use the word "retarded" as an insult. Mentally challenged people, like my sister, didn't choose to be "retarded" any more than you chose to be overweight. Actually, she had less to do with being "retarded" than you had with being overweight.

If we're going to be offended by people who treat overweight people poorly, then we have to be just as sensitive to how we treat other people who are different.

Why? Because they don't fit some arbitrary standard of beauty it's okay to treat them badly (and it's not "different"...it's just plain bad treatment)?
I find multiple body piercings distasteful and unattractive. Does that make it okay for me to be rude and discriminate against those people just because I find it unattractive and they chose to do that to their bodies? How much of being treated "differently" is okay and when does it cross the line into being unacceptable?
When you meet someone who is overweight or see an overweight person out in public, how do you know that they haven't already lost a significant amount of weight and are doing everything they can to improve their health? You don't, unless you first get to know them.
As someone already pointed out, many people got overweight doing everything that conventional medical wisdom says they should do only to find themselves heavier than before. How is it okay to "punish" the overweight by treating them "differently" simply because they haven't yet found the answer that they are seeking or because you or anyone else don't think they're working hard enough at it?

Hi

I have been overweight through much of my life. I started gaining around
age 10 and it has gone up and up ever since. I believe I have been treated very poorly by peoiple due to my weight.

I was dumped by my very first bf because I was overweight (I was 160 pounds then) and his parents and brothers could not understand how he could be going out with such a fat person.

My last bf recently dumped me and I believe my weight had something to do with that as well. He even outright told me my weight embarrased him on our first anniversary. It sure hurt as he was overweight himself and his weight was not an issue for me. I saw him for who he was that day.

I have been told by my father over the years I do not need to eat certain things and he wonders why now we are not very close. Duh.

I am criticised by my own sons at times and I have heard things from my own siblings as well as so called friends. I have seen looks by ppl and been taunted at by teenagers driving past me in cars as I walked down the street minding my own business.

I could count on one hand people who never said anything bad to me or about me regarding my weight.

Do I think fat discrimination exists? Damn right I do!!!!!!!

Well, Hello Mr. Stereotyper! I know lots of fat people who are fat for a variety of reasons. Some because of illness, or injury, some because of depression, some because its genetic, some because they tried to eat a healthy diet called Low-fat and it made them fatter.

I used to be a budding martial artist, until my knees got too bad for it (another genetic condition), and I was still fairly hefty depsite many days a week of intense physical conditioning. In fact, quite a few of the very good martial artists were stout. But damn, they could probably kick you and your sterotypes into the next county. Those folks weren't lazy, they were just big.

I personally wouldn't leap to the conclusions about fat people like you did because my eating patterns that were caused by my diet are probably 90% responsible for my being overweight. It had nothing to do with laziness or will power, but a lot to do with suffering from hunger from rising and falling blood sugar.

Stereotypes or not, they were developed on truth.

I've met very few fat people in my life that actually had legitimate health problems that caused them to be that way and I know A LOT of fat people. Milwaukee, WI is one of the fattest cities in the country. I've met some that developed problems AFTER they had already become fat that hurt their ability to lose the weight, but only 2 people that I know were 'genetically' fat or had problems that made them big.

Perhaps things are different in other parts of the world and 95% of fat people can blame their problems on other issues or people (like McDonalds and the media), but most of the fat people I know (over 40, including friends, family, coworkers, etc) got that way because we ate poorly and didn't exercise.

Its unfair to the few people that are fat, because of health reasons, but the fact remains that most of us are fat, because of their lifestyles and unfortunately they are grouped in with us.

What would you say is the ratio of fat people that are that way, because of health reasons in comparison to those that just didn't eat right?

1:1? 1:2? 1:1000?

I don't know the stats, but I'd be willing to bet that 95% or more of the 'overweight' people in this country are not that way, because of health problems. They're that way, because of their lifestyles.

No. Stereotypes are not necessarily based on truth. They are more likely based on observations of a limited segment of that population on which the observer jumps to conclusions. Something along the lines of "all the cows in my area are brown, therefore all cows are brown." Then the observer convinces others that their observation is valid and a stereotype is born.
Webster defines Stereotype as: "An idea that many people have about a thing or a group of people that may often be untrue, or only partially true."



Really? And they had all been tested to rule out insulin resistance (which probably 60% of the overweight population has) or thyroid problems?
None of them had stressed Adrenals or PCOS? None of them ever had to take medications that are known to cause weight gain? Wow...you live in a pretty unusual neighborhood. ;)
I'd like to point out that often you can't tell by casual observation whether a person has any of the above health problems; they can only be discovered through blood tests. Often the person who has them doesn't realize it unless their doctor is astute enough to do the bloodwork and verify it.
Sorry, I still don't buy the assertion that overweight people should be treated differently because "it's all their fault" simply because there is no way for the casual observer to determine that so the person treating the overweight person badly is doing so based on a sterotype and jumping to conclusions which are more likely than not....incorrect.

Then again...every good lie has at least a grain of truth in it...that's what makes lies believable. ;)

Yes, absolutely. The more I lose, the more attention I receive from everyone-- not just people who might be sexually attracted to me. It pisses me off, because as someone above said, I'm still the same person.

People think it's fine to discriminate against fat people, because fat people can "do something about it." F*** that. Yes, I am able to lose weight, and I'm doing it, but it's hard work, and I'm just really fortunate to have found this eating plan. If it was easy to lose weight, I'd have done it before now.

Worse, fatphobia leads people to some really unhealthy behaviors and conditions, which can be deadly.

And, as with most types of oppression, there are activists out there fighting it, trying to raise awareness of the issue.

http://www.naafa.org/fatf/
http://www.nowfoundation.org/issues.../bodyimage.html
http://www.lustydevil.com/fatgirl/
http://www.law-nerd.org/art/fat.html

Of course, on the flip side, I have friends (lesbians, feminists) who are concerned that I'm losing weight, because they don't me to get all messed up about my body image, etc. My decision to lose weight is somehow balanced against the oppressive nature of fatphobia in society, so there are issues.

For me it's been the opposite. I've never had a problem getting the jobs I wanted. And I've done well in them and been respected. That is except for my very first job where I had to fight and "change my name" to be taken seriously (I made people call me Deborah instead of Debbie -- remember Debbie Does Dallas?).

But men are a different subject -- not just being ignored, but ridiculed and snubbed. And I haven't dropped enough weight to make a difference yet. We'll see. If there is a change, it'll be fun saying no. ;)

But I do have to say that not all men are like that. The men I work with now, and I'm in a male-dominated field, are very accepting and respectful of me and even occassionally compliment my appearance.

Good for your Tcastro, I like to see someone who is dealing with reality on a personal basis.

I think this whole thread is a bit off course, or confused.

The premise seems to be that fat people are discriminated against, and that, that is fairly unique, and very unfair.

The premise is correct regarding the unfairness, but very much incorrect on the uniquness aspect.

The sad truth is that discrimination is the norm in human relations, and fat is just one of thousands of discrete issues on which humans discriminate against each other. Someone who is different from the local group is almost certain to suffer discrimination. Usually, unfair discrimination, but not always. Who doesn't want to discriminate against psycopaths, serial killers and rapists?

Right now fatness is a big issue in Western culture, and it should be.

One of the main reasons that I have changed to an Atkins WOL is because I realized that my obesity was a health problem, a symptom of depression and self-hate, and a burden for heathier members of my family.

Anyone who has a problem with recognizing that obesity is a problem for him/herself should go and see a psychiatrist in the morning, IMHO.

Why are you strugglling with making Atkins a successful WOL if you do not see that the discrimination against the obese if based in realistic worries about health, mobility, sexual desirabilty, and a healthy self image??

Don't watch TV so much, think for yourself. Please!

I agree that discrimnation against fat people is not unique, but to say that it's because people care is totally unrealistic. The discrimination I've felt and witnessed of all types has never been because the discriminator cared about the person they were discriminating against. Discrimination (prejudice) is just plain wrong. We discriminate against people to give ourselves a higher sense of worth -- to convince ourselves that we are somehow better than the next person -- or because we do not understand or cannot accept the person's differences. And I know from experience that it's very hard not to discriminate and I still have problems with it.

Well, we might just have to agree to disagree.

I happen to think that discrimination is to prejudice as intelligent, informed analysis is to ignorance.

Being a person of discrimination, of detailed analysis and having the ability to distinguish objective differences, is a highly desirable human characteristic, and a hallmark of professionals in the analytical fields.

Being prejudiced, or being a person who exersizes prejudices as part of everyday life is the height of ignorance, and, to me, means the person has not ability to discriminate in a rational manner.

I have not heard you say anything about my point regarding the value of being able to quickly and accuratley discriminate against serial killers and rapists in the local community??

Gettin pretty philosophical here, ain't we?? heh

I think we will just have to agree to disagree. I think the basic premise here is that prejudice and discrimination against the overweight (it's not just the very obese here) is one of the last socially acceptable forms of prejudice and discrimination. As someone pointed out, racial slurs and jokes are no longer socially acceptable on public TV and radio and yet nobody has a problem with fat jokes in those same mediums. An employer can refuse to hire you based on the fact that you are obese and you would have no legal recourse, while they cannot deny you employment because of your race, gender, or religion.
I wont deny that prejudice in other areas still exists. We just happen to be discussing this one at the moment because it directly impacts most of us. Perhaps men are less subject to it than women because they are more apt to pop someone in the mouth if they have something nasty to say to them?



I am making low carb a WOL for myself because I know that I have medical problems that this alleviates but to say that every person who has taunted me, the total strangers who have made rude and hurtful comments in public, clerks who have ignored me in stores, etc...are doing it "because they care" is just pure boloney. Prejudice and discrimination is nearly always rooted in a need to feel superior to the group being prejudiced against.
BTW...I see noone has yet addressed my question regarding how much prejudice against the obese is okay and should be socially acceptable and I'll add: at what BMI does it become acceptable/unacceptable?



I really hope that you aren't lumping the obese in with psychopaths, serial killers and rapists, most of which you cannot identify through casual observation; they look like everyone else.
Once they are caught and found guilty of a crime, yup...they're incarcerated. That's not discrimination; it's punishment and protecting the general public from a menace.

Lisa, in my opinion, no level of prejudice against the overweight and obese is acceptable nor to any other group or individual.

I do accept that men (and women too) have personal preferences about the appearance of the people to whom they are attracted. And there are men who are attracted to large women. But to turn that around and treat people to whom you are not attracted disrespectfully, that is wrong. As I said in an earlier post, the men I work with are not attracted to me, but they do treat me respectfully. And they don't treat other large women disrespectfully or make fat jokes, etc. (and we can get pretty off-color in our joking in the office too), at least not in my presence, so it's not just me they respect.

And perhaps we should make the distinction between prejudice and discrimination except that there are two connotations to discrimination -- 1. as W.W. described it in an analytical capacity, and 2. in the same context as prejudice. I think we've been discussing discrimination in this thread in the second context where it is not acceptable.