Too Fat

Abstract:     
No one wants to be fat but many Americans are obese. Although people who are obese are often discriminated against, they have had little or no protection under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). The recently enacted Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (“ADAAA”) promises to make recourse more readily available to people with disabilities who feel they have been discriminated against. Despite the intention of the ADAAA to provide a broad scope of protection, it will provide no more relief to people who are obese than the prior version of the Act. Although we do not know the cause of obesity, we blame the person for being obese and refuse to see this as a disabling condition.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 55

Keywords: disabilities, disability, "Americans with Disabilities Act", "Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act",obesity, fat, ADA, ADAAA legislation discrimination

working papers series