FAT HISTORY FLASHBACK
CHANGING THE LENGTH OF SEAT BELTS/EXTENDER AVAILABILITY
In 1973, Judy Freespirit of the NAAFA-LA Chapter was “boiling mad.” She was searching for a seat belt extender for her car and found nothing. Manufacturers made longer belts for trucks but didn’t sell to the public. The National Safety Council, during their “buckle up for safety” campaign said it was not their concern. They “could not tell manufacturers what to do, they could only advertise the need for safety belts-that's all, ma'am.”
NAAFA’s founder, Bill Fabrey, had concerns about the length of seat belts since 1962. But seat belts are not REQUIRED by Federal law. Each state issues seat belt usage requirements. New York was the first state to require seat belts be worn in 1984.
Fast forward 25 yrs. In 1999, Elizabeth Morris Fisher started a campaign petitioning the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for seat belt extenders/longer seat belts for all vehicles. It began when a friend ended up with brain damage from a crash because the seat belt was too short for her to wear.
Elizabeth went to Honda to buy an extender and was told, "You can get one anywhere." The truth was there were NO aftermarket seat belt extenders available. Honda would not help. "There is nothing you can do to get Honda to change their policy. Nothing." - Team Environment Leader Supervisor for Honda's Consumer Affairs Division
Elizabeth created a website, wrote letters, conducted interviews with the media (see below). All to bring awareness that over 2M Americans' hip circumference was larger than the 99 percentile and seat belts would not fit.
The NHTSA petition was granted in 2001 to begin research. In 2003, they found that 87.5% of 2003 vehicles either fit up to 59” hip circumference or seat belt extenders were available. They would not change the regulations to require ALL manufacturers to increase the seat belt length. They placed the responsibility on the car buyer "...to be sure that the vehicle they choose is suitable for their needs, including having belts that fit."
Elizabeth Morris Fisher fought for change. It took time but her efforts influenced auto makers to make larger seat belts.
Here is some of the media content that was published:
[Image descriptions: All slides have the FLM logo in the upper left-hand corner. Below reads, "Fat History Flashback". There is an image and descriptive text. At the bottom right corner is the NAAFA logo.
Slide 1-Image is a B&W photo of Judy Freespirit, a smiling mature, fat, white femme with brown hair, wearing glasses and bib overalls. Text reads, "In 1973, Judy Freespirit of the NAAFA-LA Chapter was “boiling mad.” She was searching for a seat belt extender for her car and found nothing. The National Safety Council said it was not their concern."
Slide 2-Image is a photo of Bill Fabrey, a young, white male with blonde receding hair, and wearing dark-framed glasses. Text reads, "NAAFA’s founder, Bill Fabrey, had concerns about the length of seat belts since 1962. But seat belts were not REQUIRED by Federal law. Each state issued seat belt usage requirements."
Slide 3-Image is an illustration of a petition on a clipboard. Text reads, "In 1999, Elizabeth Morris Fisher started a campaign petitioning the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for seat belt extenders or optional longer seat belts for all vehicles."
Slide 4-Image is a photo of a 1999 Silver Honda Civic. Text reads, "There is nothing you can do to get Honda to change their policy. Nothing." - Team Environment Leader Supervisor for Honda's Consumer Affairs Division"
Slide 5-Image is a photo of a sign post listing types of media. Text reads, “Elizabeth shared with the media that over 2 million Americans' hip circumference was larger than what was considered the 99 percentile and would not be able to have seat belts fit."
Slide 6-Image is a photo of a seat belt extender. Text reads, "After studies in 2003, the NHTSA found that 87.5% of new vehicles (2003 models) either fit up to 59” hip circumference or seat belt extenders were available. They would not change the regulations." At the lower left is an illustration of seat belt couplings.
Slide 7-Image is a photo of Elizabeth Morris Fisher, a mature, fat, white woman with graying hair and wearing glasses with medium blue colored frames. Text reads, "Elizabeth Morris Fisher fought for change. It took time but her efforts influenced auto makers to make larger seat belts." End slides.]