Born on September 24, 1908,[1] Freistater started her career as a student teacher at James Monroe High School and continued to teach there as a regular substitute for several years.

[5] The City Board of Education opposed her appeal, arguing that it would be an undue burden on the pension fund if Freistater was to fall ill and that most rejected applicants were able to successfully lose weight.

[5] Several faculty of Columbia University's Teachers College supported Freistater's appeal, with George Counts remarking that "the matter of weight is entirely irrelevant to the question of efficiency in the classroom.

[7][8] On October 15, 1935, Freistater refiled her appeal through her attorney and claimed that while she had lost all the weight requested, she was unable to maintain her diet because she needed strength to act as a caretaker for her mother.

Freistater was able to produce a signed doctor's note stating that her weight gain was the result of poor diet and not any permanent health issue.

[2] An op-ed in the Billings Gazette contrasted Freistater's situation with the case of Isabelle Hallin, a Massachusetts teacher allegedly fired for being "blonde and beautiful".

[19] Jonna Perrillo, a professor of English education at the University of Texas, described the Freistater case as being indicative of standards designed to "transform the image of the teacher from a domineering schoolmarm to a compliant and capable professional.