Mexican Governor Says 'No One Likes Fat Girls' in Controversial Speech
Jaime Rodríguez Calderón, Mexico's first independent governor, is under hot water for comments he recently made during a speech.
In a speech, made on June 13, the Nuevo León governor was discussing teenage pregnancy and obesity when he made comments that were clearly insulting towards women.
“It’s better if we as parents tell our sons: ‘Hey, look son, come over here. Here’s what’s going to happen, no one wants a fat girl.’ Yes, it’s tough, but it will get their attention," said Calderón
The comments were not received well and, soon after realizing the damage his comments caused, Calderón attempted to clarify what he meant on social media.
"The intent of my message was to create awareness in decision making of adolescents and prevent unplanned pregnancies," he tweeted. "I want to express to those that perhaps misunderstood what was not too explicit about the topic, and that might caused confusion."
La intención de mi mensaje era crear conciencia en la toma de decisiones de los adolescentes y evitar embarazos no planeados
— JAIME RODRIGUEZ C (@JaimeRdzNL) June 14, 2016
Quiero expresar a los que malinterpretaron que quizás no fui lo demasiado explícito sobre el tema, y eso pudo causar una confusión. — JAIME RODRIGUEZ C (@JaimeRdzNL) June 14, 2016
He also shared a longer and more formal apology on his official Facebook page.
"I apologize to those who feel insulted by these comments, my purpose is solely to raise awareness about this serious problem and get to work to raise awareness in our children and to make them more accountable for their actions," he said.
Prior to his controversial comments, Calderón, nicknamed "El Bronco," was known for his historic 2015 victory against Mexico's PAN and PRI parties to become governor of Nuevo León.
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