From a young age, many girls learn to hate their bodies. That’s because they’re told – through magazines, TV, other forms of media, and even their family members – that being thin is the ideal. For a young Mexican girl, this unwanted advice came from the Manuel Guillermo Chapman Moreno, the mayor of Ahome, Sinaloa. During a recent visit to Centro de Educación Inicial Indígena, Chapman zeroed in on the young girl and in front of her classmates (and on camera), he began to question her eating habits.
The young girl, identified solely as Nancy, started off by saying she liked to eggs and chicken. But since it wasn’t the answer he was looking for, he offered his own thoughts.
“Sweets?” he added. “You like to eat sweets?” The young girl nodded, and he then turned to the teacher and said, “What is the problem with this girl? This girl is … frighteningly obese. Why?”
The teacher responded that the girl’s mom allowed her to eat whatever she wanted at whatever time she wanted. Though you can’t see the young girl’s face, it’s clearly an uncomfortable moment – and one that she’ll likely remember for a long time. It’s not only unacceptable that he would comment on her body, it’s also shameful that he would subject her to ridicule in front of her peers.
Chapman is now facing heat for his comments.