The city of Detroit has started posting warning signs in city offices, instructing workers to avoid wearing any type of scented product, including colognes, aftershave, perfumes, deodorants, facial/body lotions, as well as the use of scented candles, perfume samples from magazines and air fresheners.
Some details are yet unknown, but this seems to be in response a 2008 federal lawsuit, which awarded $100,000 to Susan McBride, a woman who claimed a coworker’s perfume made it difficult for her to breathe and do her job. The woman sued the city under the Americans with Disabilities Act, though the city argued that she is not disabled.
Though the article does not explicitly say McBride has asthma, it does say that people with medical conditions such as asthma, suffer greatly from chemical smells at work. While this may be true, the responsibility has been placed on the wrong party. The general public should not have their freedoms taken away to satisfy a minority. It is up to the individual to take measures to protect themselves against danger. If perfume is dangerous to some, then they need to tailor their lives accordingly. If not, there will come a time when people can’t eat junk food at work anymore because a fat person may see them, fail to restrain themselves from indulging as well, and then suffer from greater obesity issues.
McBride’s attorney actually likened the situation to that of the fight against smoking in the workplace.
Are you kidding me?
Smoking, whether it be first-hand or second-hand, directly causes death. Although I have an inborn urge to fight back against any and all restrictions on the personal freedoms of Americans, I acknowledge the need for some smoking laws. However, I have come across no perfume that could kill me. Never have I sniffed a scented candle so powerful, I felt my ability to function was even the slightest bit impaired. This is just plain ludicrous.
Allowing personal freedoms to be taken away is a slippery slope. First it’s smoking, then it’s cupcakes, then R-rated movies…there is no end in sight. The attacks can be made out in the open, as in this case, or they may be hidden via higher sales tax as with cigarettes.
It sounds right at first, to ban people from doing things that can possibly harm others. But whenever you are faced with a situation like this, remember to take a look at the problem’s true cause and who is being asked to pay the price for it. The truth is, asthma and conditions like it can be very hard to live with. Luckily, not everyone is burdened with it. So, why then should everyone be required to give up their personal freedoms because of it?
