Three years in prison. That is what anyone in Brazil who humiliates, excludes, or denies someone a job because of their weight could face.
Bill 2519/2026, which is moving forward in the Chamber of Deputies, seeks to make fatphobia a crime, with fines and harsher penalties if the victim is a child or adolescent, if it occurs in schools or on social media, or if the person discriminating is a public official. The proposal also includes educational campaigns to combat body-related prejudice, although it clarifies that medical and nutritional guidance, or requirements justified by safety, will not fall into this category.
The text must still pass through the Chamber, the Senate, and receive the presidential signature before becoming law. In the meantime, another debate has already begun: where does legal protection end and the limit on freedom of opinion begin?
