A holidaymaker has started up a major debate with many people flaming her after she refused to give her seat up to a toddler because she is plus sized. The woman believes she was right not to accommodate the child and their parents – but others have flamed her.
The 34-year-old posted about the event on social media and explained that she had booked two seats on her cross country flight because of her larger size. She said she knew from past flights that she couldn’t comfortably sit in just one seat and she’s not alone as lots of airlines, usually in the US, offer free seats to larger passengers.
The lady was flying to visit her family over the festive period and settled into her seats when a young mother demanded she restrict herself to just one of the seats she had booked. Apparently she should "squeeze" herself in so the mum’s toddler son could sit in the other one.
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Posting on Reddit, the plus sized passenger explained: "I am obese. I'm actively working toward losing weight and I've made progress – but I booked an extra seat because I'm fat. I know it sucks having to pay for an extra seat but it is what it is. I know Southwest Airlines has this ‘customer of size’ policy but I’ve had some bad experiences even before I was obese so I wasn’t doing that and it’s mostly my fault I even got fat." She went on to refuse to move for the mother and explained that she had paid for two seats, not just one, however the mum wouldn’t let the issue go ruining her flight.
She noted: "[The mum] made a big fuss over it, and she told the flight attendant I was stealing the seat from her son.Then I showed her my boarding passes, proving that I paid for the extra seat. The flight attendant asked me if I could try to squeeze in, but I said no, that I wanted the extra seat I paid for."
The problem had arisen because the mum had booked her toddler in as a baby in arms – essentially, children under two can fly for free as they don’t get their own seats. The child is expected to be held in the parent’s arms and on their lap for the duration of the flight – as was the case with the 18-month-old boy.
However, the mum appeared to be placed by the plus sized passenger who had booked two seats and hoped she could put her son down in the extra seat. All this, despite not paying for him to have his own seat as he was supposed to sit in her arms for the entire length of the flight.
Unfortunately for the woman who had planned ahead to be comfortable, other passengers did not agree with her decision. She noted: "I got dirty looks and passive-aggressive remarks from her for the entire flight and I do feel a little bad because the boy looked hard to control – but am I in the wrong?"
In the comments of her post, people were also split in opinion. One person said: "If you are so fat that you have to have more than one seat on an airplane then you are selfish. Flights overbook all the time especially during the holidays – how can you justify having two seats to yourself?"
Another added: "How much room does a kid take up, seriously? Yeah the mum should've bought a seat but that doesn't mean you have to be selfish and cause two people discomfort."
Thankfully, many also defended her – particularly because she had paid for her two seats. One commenter noted: "She’s [the a**hole] for not buying a seat for her son and assuming someone else would give up a seat they paid for. Odds are she was hoping there’d be extra seats on the flight so she didn’t have to pay and used the lap thing as a loophole."
Another asked: "What's even the point of the extra seat if the flight attendants are going to let entitled people bully others into giving it up?" While a third commented: "You should always do what you can to be as healthy as you can, but being fat isn't a character flaw or a moral failing. We all have our own challenges in life, and you deserve to not be ashamed of your body and yourself even if you aren't currently meeting your goals.
"If mom wants an extra seat for her kids, she should have purchased one. She's not entitled to a seat you purchased, and you don't need to feel bad for her bad behaviour."
The overweight passenger added: "Apparently fat people have to get another seat to fly, but they also have to give up that extra seat for someone else’s child if they want it. I’m not really apologetic about or ashamed of my body as much as I’m stating a fact.
"I used to eat unhealthy and didn’t exercise. It wasn’t until I had a heart attack at 33 that I decided that this couldn’t go on. Sometimes, you have to be selfish just to live life. It isn’t always bad to be selfish. Don’t get me wrong though, it often is bad but in this case, I don’t think so."
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