Few of us think about what we're wearing when we board a flight, which is why one woman's experience is so surprising.
A Seattle burlesque performer said she was asked to change out of her shorts before boarding a plane home from Boston because they were deemed inappropriate.
Maggie McMuffin told WTHR that before she was about to board the May 18 JetBlue flight, an employee approached her, saying the black-and-white striped shorts were too short and she needed to change.
"It's obviously subjective," she said of the airline's opinion of her outfit, noting that she wore the shorts on a JetBlue flight from New York to Boston the same day without issue.
She told the staff she didn't have anything else to change into, so they suggested she buy something at the airport.
The other option was to be booked on another flight, she told Kiro 7.
She ended up spending $22 USD on some sleep trunks and took her scheduled flight.
In a statement to Kiro 7, JetBlue said that the flight and on-board crew discussed McMuffin's getup and decided that her "burlesque" shorts might offend families on the plane.
"While the customer was not denied boarding, the crew members politely asked if she could change. The customer agreed and continued on the flight without interruption," they said.
"We support our crew members’ discretion to make these difficult decisions, and we decided to reimburse the customer for the cost of the new shorts and offered a credit for future flight as a good will gesture.”
"Sexism is alive and well in this world. How does what Maggie was wearing effect her ability to fly? It doesn't."
When the outlet asked if McMuffin would have been allowed on board if she refused to change, a spokesman said they couldn't address a hypothetical situation.
In a Facebook post defending the performer, friend Molly McIsaac expressed her anger at JetBlue's actions.
"Sexism is alive and well in this world. How does what Maggie was wearing effect (sic) her ability to fly? It doesn't."
What do you think? Were her shorts inappropriate? Let us know in the comments below.
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