Woman sparks debate for refusing to give up first class seat so a family could sit together (VIDEO)
A woman’s TikTok video has gone viral after she refused to give up her airplane seat for another passenger.
According to Maresa Friedman, she was sitting in first class when another passenger asked her if they could switch seats so that she and her family could sit together. It meant that Friedman would have to give up her seat in first class.
“I am not a villain for not moving from the seat in first class I paid full fare for,” she writes in the caption of a video that has since racked up 3.5 million views. “I’m also a mom so it’s called PLANNING AHEAD.”
@maresasdI’m sorry moms and families but as a fellow mom I’m not a villain for not giving up my seat♬ original sound – Maresa Friedman | Strategy
In a separate video, Friedman said that the video wasn’t meant as any hate towards anyone. She explained how after she refused to give up her seat, she suggested that the passenger ask someone behind the bulkhead to switch seats.
“I think they’d be super pumped to sit up here so that the three of you can be together,” she said. “To which, of course, I just got the look.”
Friedman recalls how the woman was talking about her and giving her the side-eye.
“Why is it on everybody else to accommodate everybody?” she asked. “If this was something different and we were on the bus and we had to give up a couple of seats for a couple of stops, yeah sure, obviously. Elderly, pregnant women, people that look like they need help. Yeah, absolutely. But no, no.”
@maresasd Replying to @acdaniel1987 ♬ original sound – Maresa Friedman | Strategy
Some people clearly didn’t agree.
One TikTok user posted a video response saying, “Who cares if you move your seat so a family can sit together? But you’re going to be so elitist and be like, ‘No, I got my seat.'”
However, the majority of people are siding with Friedman.
“I heard something and it was worth repeating,” wrote one user. “If they wanted to be together as a family, why didn’t they just switch with some[one] in coach?”
Another commented, “The true villains are people that buy tickets anticipating others to move and accommodate their family.”
Where do you stand on the issue?