Anyone else have this issue?

[CelticHooligan3]

http://boston.barstoolsports.com/random-thoughts/does-this-look-like-the-face-of-a-lady-suing-southwest-when-she-was-told-she-was-too-fat-to-fly-for-the-2nd-time/


For those that travel frequently, or who have ever been that guy wedged in a seat you paid for with someone else spilling into your lap. My question is, what are your thoughts on this matter?

[guava_wrench]

I usually travel with my girlfriend and we get seats on the 2 seat only side.

[CelticHooligan3]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

[Chris]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

[CelticHooligan3]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

Do the people who are assigned to a seat next to her have the same rights though? Because assuming they are of normal size then arent their rights being violated as well? Yet they wouldn't be in that disibility grey area obviously.


 As a person who's run into this problem on more occasions than i'd like to admit, i just think other passengers rights should be taken into account as well. When you buy a ticket you shouldn't have to deal with another persons girth trampling on your own comfort and personal space. You buy the ticket for yourself. Not you and a half another person.

[Fafnir]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

Protected class is the term used I believed.

Severe obesity can be characterized as a disability, if not as a primary reason the secondary effects it has on your health can cause it to become one.

[Fafnir]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

Do the people who are assigned to a seat next to her have the same rights though? Because assuming they are of normal size then arent their rights being violated as well? Yet they wouldn't be in that disibility grey area obviously.

There really isn't the right to be comfortable.

In general airline policy is to require people who are oversized to buy two seats. That's what the article referenced was refering to.

[Chris]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

Do the people who are assigned to a seat next to her have the same rights though? Because assuming they are of normal size then arent their rights being violated as well? Yet they wouldn't be in that disibility grey area obviously.


 As a person who's run into this problem on more occasions than i'd like to admit, i just think other passengers rights should be taken into account as well. When you buy a ticket you shouldn't have to deal with another persons girth trampling on your own comfort and personal space. You buy the ticket for yourself. Not you and a half another person.

Well, the way it works is that if someone doesn't fit in the seat due to a disability, the airline needs to attempt to make accomodations (thats why they have seatbelt extenders, for instance).

But, whether you have a right to sue because someone's fat is crossing the barrier into your seat?  No, I don't think so.  You have a right to fly a different airline, or pay for first class tickets.  But ultimately, that is a joy of flying coach.  When you buy a coach ticket, you buy it knowing the seats are tiny, uncomfortable, and you may have a behemoth next to you, a crying baby in front of you, and a 6 year old kicking your seat all flight.  

Now, there are always extremes, such as when the person next to you litterally doesn't fit in the seat, to the point, they cannot put the seatbelt on, and lower the arm rest...at which point the airline does have to deal with it for safety reasons.  

But, run of the mill, overweight guy overflowing a bit to your side...thats just what you pay for.

[CelticHooligan3]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

Protected class is the term used I believed.

Severe obesity can be characterized as a disability, if not as a primary reason the secondary effects it has on your health can cause it to become one.

Really good explanations here guys thanks. My next question fafnir would be is it still considered a "disibility" if it's proven the person doesn't have a condition (thyroid etc.) and instead is obese on their own accord? Because that doesn't seem fair..

[CelticHooligan3]

I know there's a lot of lawyers on this site. My question is, is this a civil rights isssue? And if so, who wins? The lady or any passenger of a differing size who has to fly next to her for however many hours in extreme discomfort?

I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand about civil rights issues is that it must be for a certain protected (for lack of a better word) minority. 

Fat people are not one of those groups.  However, I am not sure whether severe obesity would be classified as a disability.  If that is the case, then I believe they do need to make reasonable accomodations for her.

Do the people who are assigned to a seat next to her have the same rights though? Because assuming they are of normal size then arent their rights being violated as well? Yet they wouldn't be in that disibility grey area obviously.


 As a person who's run into this problem on more occasions than i'd like to admit, i just think other passengers rights should be taken into account as well. When you buy a ticket you shouldn't have to deal with another persons girth trampling on your own comfort and personal space. You buy the ticket for yourself. Not you and a half another person.

Well, the way it works is that if someone doesn't fit in the seat due to a disability, the airline needs to attempt to make accomodations (thats why they have seatbelt extenders, for instance).

But, whether you have a right to sue because someone's fat is crossing the barrier into your seat?  No, I don't think so.  You have a right to fly a different airline, or pay for first class tickets.  But ultimately, that is a joy of flying coach.  When you buy a coach ticket, you buy it knowing the seats are tiny, uncomfortable, and you may have a behemoth next to you, a crying baby in front of you, and a 6 year old kicking your seat all flight.  

Now, there are always extremes, such as when the person next to you litterally doesn't fit in the seat, to the point, they cannot put the seatbelt on, and lower the arm rest...at which point the airline does have to deal with it for safety reasons.  

But, run of the mill, overweight guy overflowing a bit to your side...thats just what you pay for.

Of your examples ive dealt with the former three times in recent recollection. I have lower back/hip issues and when your on  four hour flight to houston i can tell you the pain cn be excruciating. But when a person is spilling into your seat you tend to contort your body even more. It struck me as i was sitting there however that this person was encrouching on my rights. Im just happy the airline took this stance and hope to see it more often in the future. You shouldn't have to suffer through these types of personal violations because another person has decided to make different lifestyle choices.

[Roy H.]

I can't disagree with the woman's complaint from the opening paragraph of that story:  the company's policy should be clearly posted somewhere, and it should be standardized.  Otherwise it comes off as arbitrary.

At the same time, I don't have a huge issue with Southwest having such a policy, either.  It makes sense.

Also, how the heck does that lady even fit in an airline seat, let alone get the lap belt around her?

[Fafnir]

Really good explanations here guys thanks. My next question fafnir would be is it still considered a "disibility" if it's proven the person doesn't have a condition (thyroid etc.) and instead is obese on their own accord? Because that doesn't seem fair..

Well I got this from Wisconsin's website:

The Americans with Disabilities Act ( ADA) has a three-part definition of disability. Under ADA, an individual with a disability is a person who: (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; OR (2) has a record of such an impairment; OR (3) is regarded as having such an impairment.

A physical impairment is defined by ADA as "any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems: neurological, musculoskeletal, special sense organs, respiratory (including speech organs), cardiovascular, reproductive, digestive, genitourinary, hemic and lymphatic, skin, and endocrine."

Neither ADA nor the regulations that implement it list all the diseases or conditions that are covered, because it would be impossible to provide a comprehensive list, given the variety of possible impairments.

So no, if you're obese and it impairs a major life function the cause of it isn't really important. Though being disabled meanse different things to Social Security, the ADA, the states, your disabled parking, etc.

There isn't a centralized federal definition of disabled as far as I can determine.

[Fafnir]

I can't disagree with the woman's complaint from the opening paragraph of that story:  the company's policy should be clearly posted somewhere, and it should be standardized.  Otherwise it comes off as arbitrary.

At the same time, I don't have a huge issue with Southwest having such a policy, either.  It makes sense.

Also, how the heck does that lady even fit in an airline seat, let alone get the lap belt around her?

If Kevin Smith needs two seats, she needs three based on that picture. There is no way she can fit in a single seat.

[prov1ml34]

I can't disagree with the woman's complaint from the opening paragraph of that story:  the company's policy should be clearly posted somewhere, and it should be standardized.  Otherwise it comes off as arbitrary.

At the same time, I don't have a huge issue with Southwest having such a policy, either.  It makes sense.

Also, how the heck does that lady even fit in an airline seat, let alone get the lap belt around her?

I'm not trying to be mean but how can she even fit through the door and down the aisle let alone the seat....

[indeedproceed]

I'm 6'4, 300 lbs. I'm too tall for most planes and too wide for some.

Its a (freaking) nightmare.