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‘I’m not a villain’: Woman defends herself for refusing to swap plane seats so family could sit together

‘I’m not a villain’: Woman defends herself for refusing to swap plane seats so family could sit together


A Delta Air Lines passenger has taken to TikTok to defend herself after refusing to move seats for a family on a plane.

“No you can’t have my seat!” wrote US-based Maresa Friedman, posting a video of herself looking annoyed on a flight.

“I am not a villain for moving from the seat in first class I paid full fare for,” ranted the TikTok user.

In a series of videos, Ms Friedman explained that a family had asked her to move from her seat (on what appeared to be a domestic Delta flight) so that they could sit together.

She insisted that being a parent did not give people the right to order other passengers to move around the plane.

“I’m also a mom, so it’s called PLANNING AHEAD,” said Ms Friedman in her captions.

Frequent flyers were quick to applaud her, with user Lacey Harrison writing: “I don’t give up my seat anywhere ever on a plane. I reserved it early enough to get what I wanted. Your loss if you didn’t.”

“Thank you! As a child free person I get shamed for not moving. I paid full price. I’m not moving,” replied Britt.

“Lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part,” wrote a follower with the username Kristi.

“This happened to me.. I replied with no.. put my AirPods back in while she stood there for 15 minutes talking at me.. I don’t move for kids or anyone,” said another user.

The video has already had 1.4 million views, attracting 111,000 likes.

Ms Friedman later posted a seat plan of the Delta plane she had been on, showing the two-two configuration of seats in the Comfort Plus section that she’d booked at the front of the cabin.

Later she posted another follow-up to the story, saying that “going viral for the wrong thing” can “eff up all of your great plans”.

She also responded to a fellow TikTok video which accused her of being elitist, saying: “Maybe there are specific reasons as to why I choose my seats, perhaps my disability being one of them.”

In a last video on the subject, Ms Friedman said: “Well, it’s clear that people feel very strongly one way or the other as to whether I should have given up my seat.”

She reiterated that she had “certain reasons” for not moving that included “a disability that I shouldn’t have to justify to anyone”.

“If you’re triggered,” she added, “this is a you thing.”

“I’m travelling three…

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