14 DAY TRIAL // Last month, one British family made all the national and international headlines after telling the media that they were being discriminated against for being overweight. The Chawners from Blackburn, UK, made it a point of voicing their dissatisfaction with the world for accusing them that they had no job, no plans for the future and were living entirely off government assistance, of which they asked more.
However, Emma Chawner, who is 19 and has big dreams of becoming the “second Amy Winehouse,” has just turned down an offer for a job on live radio, the Daily Mail informs, thus contradicting her family’s previous story that they are not working because no one would hire them. Emma, as some may remember, has also appeared on two popular talent competitions in the UK, only to be told that she should give up singing for good because it was definitely not something she was good at.
With all this, Emma won’t be a security guard either. While loud in previous interviews that she had trained as a hairdresser but no salon would hire her on account of her weight (wherefrom the conclusion that she and her sister were discriminated for being overweight), it seems that no job at all is better than just any job.
“On a live phone-in on Victoria Derbyshire’s BBC Radio Five Live show, the 19-year-old complained about not being given a chance in the job market because of her weight. But when listener Daniel O’Donnell rang in and offered her a security job on the spot, she rejected it out of hand, explaining that she ‘didn’t want to stand on a door watching people go in’.” She did not mention what she would like to do instead, though.
Just a short while ago, the entire Chawner family (which also includes a son who did not take part in the media scandal because he’s not living with his parents anymore) were defending themselves against the accusation that they were simply too fat and too lazy to work, opting instead for living off taxpayers’ money. At the time, they were saying that being out of job was not a choice they made, but rather one they were forced to make.
“People don’t want to employ large hairdressers, simple as that. They won’t say it to your face, but that’s how it is. I’ve been in salons and done good interviews, but look around and it’s all skinny minnies. We’re discriminated against.” Samantha, Emma’s 21-year-old sister, said at the time. “We’re the victims in all of this. It’s not our fault we can’t work. We’ve both applied for hundreds of jobs. It’s not our fault no one wants to employ fat people. Someone should be helping us, not accusing us.” she added.