It’s a question of etiquette: should you give up your seat for someone who is elderly or pregnant, even if it’s a seat you paid for? This dilemma was presented on the “Am I The A**hole?” Reddit forum, where a Redditor named michaeldonelly sought the opinions of fellow Redditors on whether they were wrong for not giving up their seat to a pregnant woman.
The responses were surprising.
The Reddit user explained that they had booked an aisle seat in the second to last row due to their medical issues that sometimes required quick access to the bathroom. Despite feeling sympathy for the pregnant woman, they believed it wasn’t fair to be asked to move from the seat they had paid for.
What was even more surprising was the lack of support the Redditor received. Neither the flight attendants nor their family members offered any assistance. The flight attendants refused to mediate the situation, and there were no other available seats to facilitate a swap.
The majority of Redditors agreed with the original poster, believing that they were not in the wrong. Some even felt that the flight attendants should have intervened to help. As one person commented, “This is not a subway or bus where seats are free and you can easily move around… OP paid extra for his seat. No and absolutely no.”
So, was the Redditor wrong in not giving up their seat? The consensus among Redditors seems to be no. While it’s always courteous to offer your seat to someone in need, it’s also important to consider personal circumstances and the fact that the seat was paid for.
