‘It shouldn’t matter how tall you are or how much you weigh’: New York City bans discrimination based on height and weight

“We all deserve equal access to jobs, housing and public places, regardless of our appearance, and it shouldn’t matter how tall you are or how much you weigh,” said the mayor, joining other fat elected officials. -Acceptance advocates at a bill signing ceremony at City Hall.

Adams, a Democrat who published a book on reversing his diabetes through a plant-based diet, said the ordinance will “help level the playing field for all New Yorkers, create more inclusive workplaces and living environments, and will protect against discrimination.”

The exemptions under the ordinance, which the city council approved this month, include cases where a person’s height or weight could prevent them from performing the essential functions of a job.

Some business leaders voiced their opposition to the legislation when it was before the council, arguing that compliance could become an onerous burden.

“The scope of the impact and cost of this legislation has not been fully considered,” Kathy Wylde, president and CEO of the Partnership for New York City, said in a statement.

Several other US cities have banned discrimination based on weight and physical appearance, including San Francisco, Washington, DC, and Madison, Wisconsin. And legislation has been introduced to ban weight and height discrimination in states like New Jersey and Massachusetts.

Tigress Osborn, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Fat Acceptance, said New York City’s ban on weight discrimination should serve as a model for the nation and the world.

Osborn said the city’s adoption of the new ordinance will “reverberate around the world” and show that “discrimination against people based on body size is wrong and something we can change.”

The ordinance will take effect in 180 days, on November 22.