Can anorexic models be banned?

Women's Wear Daily thinks that anorexic models may be covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. "Under the protections of the act," WWD said, "a candidate cannot be passed over for a job only because he or she has a disability, if an employer could accommodate the person with a reasonable amount of adjustments."

It's amazing how desperate the fashion industry is to find some way to accommodate its preference for size 0 models.  First, they argue that it's not the designers' fault, it's the stylists, or the models, or maybe the modeling agencies.  When that argument fails, Vogue steps up with a panel of fashion insiders discussing eating disorders and the CFDA offers voluntary guidelines.  And then WWD raises the specter of the ADA to an industry that has never given much thought to addressing the rights of minorities or the disabled.

When I see a model rolling down the runway in a wheelchair at the next Calvin Klein show, maybe I'll feel for the designers who worry about the legality of excluding anorexics.

Comments

[Kari-Ann Muravsky]

If people would see what was under the clothing they modeled, maybe people would not find them as attractive

[Jane]

The folks who cast fashion shows and shoots employ all sorts of crazy -- and probably illegal -- reasons to exclude/include a given model. Too tall. Too short. Too young. Too old. Too curvy. Not sexy enough. Whatever. The industry is clearly balking at having any external guidelines that limit the pool of talent from which they can discriminate.

[Kiwi]

Right on! I don't think that anorexia can possibly be conceived of as a disability. The legal definition is:
“The term ‘disability’ means, with respect to an individual –
(a) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual;
(b) a record of such impairment; or
(c) being regarded as having such an impairment.” (P.L. 101-336, Sec. )

The ADA definition is an inclusive definition that tends to capture both the largest and broadest estimate of people with disabilities. It describes a disability as a condition which limits a person’s ability to function in major life activities – including communication, walking, and self-care (such as feeding and dressing oneself) – and which is likely to continue indefinitely, resulting in the need for supportive services.

There's more at the site where I got this,
including the major categories of disability, including mobility impairment, cognitive impairment, hearing impairment, visual impairment, and speech impairment. It's damned hard to be classified as disabled by state and federal agencies.

Email me if you want the URL.