A Texas mother, Jenna Longoria, traveling from San Francisco to Austin, claims she was removed from a United Airlines flight for mistakenly using the wrong pronoun for a flight attendant. The incident, which also involved her 16-month-old toddler, has sparked a heated debate on social media about pronoun usage and airline policies.
Incident leads to removal from flight
Jenna Longoria shared her experience on Instagram with her 20,000 followers, describing how she and her son were removed from the plane after she accidentally misgendered a flight attendant. “They are now forbidding us from boarding the plane,” Jenna recounted in her video, visibly distressed while holding her child.
According to Jenna, the situation escalated after she mistakenly referred to a flight attendant, who identifies as a woman, as “sir.” Despite apologizing for the slip-up, she explained that she was preoccupied with managing her toddler and their carry-on items. “I can’t even understand what is going on here … I was holding my son and he was having a temper tantrum. I had the car seat on my back and wasn’t really focusing on anything except getting my son’s car seat on the flight and getting him comfortable and safe,” she explained.
United Airlines’ response
United Airlines, however, offered a different explanation. They told The Post that Jenna and her family were denied boarding because they exceeded the carry-on baggage limit. Jenna disputed this claim on her Instagram, stating it was false and sharing a video identifying Gabriella, a flight staff member, who explained that the captain had decided to remove them from the flight for further investigation.
“They’re saying it’s a hate crime that I did and that I might not even be able to ever fly United again,” Jenna alleged.
Details of the misgendering incident
The incident reportedly began when Jenna thanked a flight attendant with “thank you, sir” while receiving boarding passes. The attendant, who identifies as a woman, became upset. Jenna continued down the aisle, but her mother was stopped and not allowed to accompany her. Despite trying to manage her son and clarify the misunderstanding, Jenna, her son, and her mother were ultimately not permitted to board, leaving their luggage and medications on the departing plane.
“I need you to know that because of this verbal altercation that you had with my staff, you got yourself put off this craft,” Gabriella reportedly told Jenna. “I don’t wanna put words in their mouths because I still need statements, but some transgender comments were made, derogatory comments about being a bigot not being on the aircraft. This is what I heard,” the official added.
The incident has prompted strong reactions on social media. “Sue sue sue. Unless such absurd requirement to use inane narcissistic words is written in the contract for airfare purchase, then the inconvenienced passenger should sue the airline for a massive amount of money for allowing their staff to impose their indulgences and ideology on customers,” one user commented on the video. “It’s about time these people had their pronouns tattooed on their forehead if it’s that important to them that a total stranger is able to call them the correct thing,” another added.
As the debate continues, this incident underscores the complexities and sensitivities surrounding pronoun usage in today’s society.