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Links Eating Disorder:
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Physical Differences
There is evidence that shows that discrimination exists against individuals of varying sizes and those who utilize wheelchairs.
Persons with Disabilities:
For many men and women, wounded by accident, illness, or birth defect, the wheelchair is no prison. It's a friend, a gift, a solution . . . They are not confined but enabled to experience life to its fullest.
Here are some tips when referring to someone with a disability: What's wrong with using the term "wheelchair bound"? People use wheelchairs for mobility and freedom. Without a wheelchair, a person would be "bound." INSTEAD, Avoid
emotional language with: People
using this phrase are trying to be positive. But "physically
challenged" is cutesy, artificial and relentlessly cheery.
It suggests barriers are good; that they exist to build a disabled person's
character. INSTEAD, "person
with a disability" is preferred; "disabled" is acceptable.
What's Wrong with using the term "confined"? Disabled
people consider wheelchairs liberating, not confining .
Avoid
emotional language with: "uses a wheelchair" Size Discrimination:
Discrimination in employment due to body size is rampant throughout the United States , a s evidenced by documentation of numerous cases and successful litigation on file at NAAFA, Inc. Such discrimination has also been substantiated by employment surveys conducted by independent researchers.
According to NAAFA.org, fat people are not hired as often as those of average size, are not promoted as often, are paid less than their thinner counterparts, may be charged more for employee insurance coverage, and are sometimes fired because of their weight. Higher insurance costs, increased health risk, client or customer size biases, job performance, grooming, and employers' aesthetic preferences are reasons cited for firing or for refusing to hire or promote qualified fat workers. Discrimination against fat people may be direct and overt, unspoken and covert, or even subconscious. Currently the primary legal protection available to fat people in most states is to use existing disability laws and declare obesity to be a "perceived" disability by employers. |
Links to sites for more information: Council on Size and Weight Discrimination International Size Acceptance Association American Association of People with Disabilities Program on Employment and Disability Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities
For more information, click on the links below:
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Phone: (270) 809-3140 |
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