Chaos Aboard El Al - Israeli Fail!!
At one point in history, working for the airlines was a glamorous profession. Beautiful, young and sophisticated flight attendants served passengers who were flying in high style, and for many it was even a big social event. A level of class and service was expected, and airlines delivered. Now, it has become one of the most thankless, mind numbing jobs on the planet. I know because I used to work for United Airlines before I became a lawyer. Dealing with annoyed, angry, drunk and frustrated passengers on a consistent basis is mentally draining and requires the highest level of patience, which I sometimes lack in my older years.
El Al, the national carrier of Israel, is legendary for its top notch security. However, security screening has absolutely no impact on abhorrent human behavior, which becomes more difficult to control at 35,000 feet above the sky. Last week, chaos ensued on an El Al flight from New York to Tel Aviv, when a group of ultra-Orthodox Jews boarded the flight to celebrate Rosh Hashanah in the Holy Land. Hundreds of the men demanded that other passengers switch seats, claiming they can't sit next to women on the long flight due to religious beliefs. Some of the men even offered to pay female passengers to move seats, but most refused. In some cases, because they didn't want to sit apart from their spouse, in others simply to make a statement that they didn't condone the extreme behavior of the men. Once the flight took off, most of the ultra-Orthodox men remained in the aisles, refusing to take their seat next to a woman. One fellow passenger called the flight an "11 hour nightmare!" Flight attendants couldn't serve drinks, meals, etc. because the aisles were blocked by the ultra-Orthodox Jews. Here's a photo from Twitter:
Now there are numerous petitions and complaints filed against El Al, with many claiming the airline promotes gender discrimination. In one article, a frequent flier of El Al claims this wasn't an isolated incident. She states that similar problems have occurred on past flights, with an increase in disturbances over the past few years. An American woman even sued El Al, claiming a flight attendant moved her to the back of the plane to accommodate one of the ultra-Orthodox passengers.
Of course, I respect and support all humans' rights to practice their religion. However, religious beliefs should never interfere with the civil rights of others. In any modern culture, freedom of flight and movement is a basic human right. So, El Al is in a difficult situation given its core client demographic.
What do you think? How would you react if you were on this flight? What should El Al do? Further information about this flight can be read on the following news sites: DailyMail UK, Washington Post, The Guardian, Jewish News, Haaretz and many other publications.
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