Both Derek Zoolander and Samantha Brick have taught us that being really, really ridiculously good-looking isn’t always easy. But this week, one woman has actually been discriminated against for being too attractive.
But don’t stress about it too much, because the justice system says that it’s totally okay.
Stop the world, I want to get off.
In Iowa on Friday, their Supreme Court ruled that a dentist was acting legally when he fired his assistant because he thought she was attractive and he was worried he might start an affair.
The details of the case are as follows: Dentist James Knight from Iowa dismissed his assistant Melissa Nelson. He acknowledged that she had been an excellent employee for ten years – but said that he and his wife were worried that his superficial attraction to Nelson was a strain on their marriage.
The court acknowledged that Nelson had not encouraged any of his advances, or behaved unprofessionally, but nonetheless found ”that bosses can fire employees that they and their spouses see as threats to their marriages.”
“Threat” might be the wrong word to use in this situation, given that Nelson didn’t actually do anything. She was fired for the sole reason that Knight was worried he might have ‘impure thoughts’ about her.
A woman being punished for a man’s potential transgressions – does that remind anyone of anything?
But Knight couldn’t be expected to control himself, could he? Because:
Nelson’s attorney Paige Fiedler told the Associated Press, “These judges sent a message to Iowa women that they don’t think men can be held responsible for their sexual desires and that Iowa women are the ones who have to monitor and control their bosses’ sexual desires … If they get out of hand, then the women can be legally fired for it.”
After being fired, Nelson was replaced by another woman…
Read More: mamamia.com
