14 DAY TRIAL // More and more people are classified as overweight or obese with each passing day in what has been generally referred to as the obesity epidemics. Health experts constantly issue warnings about the health risks the obese and overweight are exposed to because of the many extra pounds, but the danger for them lurks from the outside world as well. Bullying and fatism are becoming ever-present wherever we look, 53-year-old Marsha Coupe says for the Daily Mail.
Ms. Coupe is overweight, but that alone should not be a reason for discrimination, let alone for a hate crime, she says for the publication. She was recently attacked on a train for the mere reason that she weighed more than the average woman, was left with severe bruises all over her body and even feared she might lose one of her eyes. Because of this, now that she’s made full recovery, she aims to use her own example to help people understand that fatism is as serious and hurtful as racism or other types of discrimination that one can think of.
“I was returning home one night on a train and a woman sat across from me started kicking me and said, Hey fattie! You should not be on the train, you need two seats, she said. I had probably 30 to 40 bruises over my chest and my neck. […] London prides itself on being diverse yet there is almost a zero-tolerance on anyone of size. You cannot walk the streets without being verbally or physically assaulted.” Ms. Coupe, who was born in America but lives in Hayes, Kent, says for the Mail.
Coupe weighs 22 stone (approximately 139kg) and says that fat discrimination in the British capital is outrageous. Back home in the US, she says, people are more open to the idea that individuals come in different shapes and sizes, as the saying goes, and those with weight issues have certain “allies” on their side to prevent this type of discrimination, the British publication informs.
“She has now joined forces with a group of other women to lobby mayor Boris Johnson to make the capital more fat friendly. In the US city of San Francisco it is illegal to discriminate against people because of their size and the women are hoping to see similar moves introduced. Cinemas and restaurants have to provide larger seats, and doctors are even asked to ‘respect the wishes’ of fat patients who do not want to discuss their weight.” the Mail writes of the changes that Ms. Coupe hopes to make happen.