Weight and the law in New Zealand

ABSTRACT

Fat people face discrimination in employment, housing, educational, and healthcare settings; they are vulnerable to the bias and prejudice held against fat people. Yet few places in the world legislate that weight (or physical size) is a protected category under the law. This manuscript reviews the law in New Zealand and considers the options available to fat people in New Zealand who believe they have experienced discrimination because of their fatness. It reflects on whether New Zealand is in breach of international agreements to protect all people from discrimination. An appendix provides a draft Bill that may be submitted in Parliament to amend the existing law and provide equal protection under the law for fat people.

KEYWORDS:

• Fat studies
• law
• discrimination
• human Rights
• New Zealand

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Tania Te Whenua and Greg Robins for their assistance in understanding the legal system in Aotearoa New Zealand; any misrepresentations in the manuscript are ours.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Cat Pausé

Cat Pausé is a Fat Studies scholar at Massey University in Palmerston North, New Zealand.

Kathryn Palmer

Kathryn Palmer graduated from Victoria University, Wellington in 2019 with a LLB/BA and is a solicitor at Anderson Creagh Lai in Auckland.