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Jeniffer Castro, the Brazilian bank worker who became an overnight internet sensation for refusing to swap seats with a crying toddler on a plane, has now revealed she’s suing GOL Airlines and the passenger who filmed her.
The 29-year-old was filmed by the boy’s mother during a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Belo Horizonte on December 4 after she declined to give up her window seat.
The upset mother couldn’t understand why Castro refused to move to accommodate the crying child.
“Why doesn’t she want to change seats?” she can be heard asking behind the camera. She even went so far as to suggest that Castro had a disability that prevented her from moving or understanding what she was being asked.
Jeniffer Castro has sued GOAL Airlines and the mother who insisted she swap seats with her crying toddler
Image credits: ondavirall2.0
“I even asked if she has some kind of syndrome or something. If someone has a problem or some disability, we understand.
“I’m recording your face. This is disgusting. It’s the 21st century and people have no empathy for children.”
However, as Bored Panda previously reported, the mom’s attempts to shame Castro backfired spectacularly, with most people siding with the bank worker for refusing to give up her seat and labeling the mom as “rude” and “entitled.”
Image credits: jeniffercastro
Castro has since landed lucrative deals to promote different products, including cosmetics, sunglasses, and candy, and was even offered a personalized trip aboard a private jet.
Her Instagram account now boasts over 2 million followers, with her bio reading “First-time influencer.”
Speaking on the Cola Mais Podcast, Castro revealed she has taken legal action against the mother and the airline for their handling of the situation.
“Measures are now being taken,” she said on Thursday (January 23). “What I went through wasn’t easy.”
“They airline could have told the woman, ‘Sorry, you’re making this passenger uncomfortable,’” she shared, claiming that GOAL Airlines sided with the mom and failed to intervene.
Castro was recorded without her consent after refusing to give up her window seat for the child
Image credits: jeniffercastro
Image credits: Irina Schmidt/stock.adobe.com (Not the actual photo)
She continued: “The flight attendants could have asked me if I needed anything or if I was bothered by the passenger, but they didn’t. They stayed out of it.”
Recalling the incident, the influencer shared: “When I got on the plane, the child was in my seat. I said, ‘This is my seat,’ and waited for him to leave.
“A guy across the aisle said, ‘Change with him; you sit next to the aisle, and he’ll have your place.’ I said, ‘No.’
“The boy cried the entire flight; it was around 50 minutes. The mother was very rude.”
Her attitude sparked divided opinions, though the majority of people sided with Castro
Image credits: ondavirall2.0
According to etiquette expert Jo Hayes, the flight attendants should have intervened and told the mother to stop filming Castro.
“The airline should have stepped in and stopped the filming. Again, this is a major breach of privacy,” Hayes told Bored Panda in an email, adding that Castro had every right to refuse to swap seats with the toddler.
“Air stewards are responsible for dealing with these situations. Ultimately, who sits where is up to them. They should have dealt with the situation by either telling the mother of the child that there was no seat swapping, and to control the child.
“Or, perhaps they could have negotiated with Ms. Castro, and offered her an upgrade, or some form of reimbursement, in exchange for her swapping seats.
Image credits: jeniffercastro
“This should not have been left to unfold in the way it did – a passenger ‘pile-on’ on poor Ms Castro, making her feel awful,” the Australia-based expert noted.
“I support her legal action, and hope it is successful, and serves as a precedent for other entitled passengers to think twice before pressuring people to swap seats that are rightly theirs.”
Diane Gottsman, an etiquette expert at the The Protocol School of Texas, agrees that Castro had every right to keep her seat. It was up to the mother–and the flight attendants, had the situation escalated—to step in and use the situation as a learning opportunity for the toddler.
“If this was a medical, or emergency situation, of course the answer would be for the passenger to oblige and to please switch seats,” she explained to Bored Panda.
“This is the case of a toddler who is throwing an age-appropriate tantrum and a parent who did not properly address the situation in a tense, tight, public space.
Though the mom intended to expose Castro online, the video had the opposite effect, turning Castro into an influencer with millions of followers
Image credits: jeniffercastro
“Children cry and want their way, and fellow passengers must understand age-appropriate behavior, however, it’s up to the parent to comfort and redirect the young child.“
People could not believe the mother was framing Castro as the villain, with one commenting on the viral video: “Now I’ll buy all of the seats next to the windows just for someone to ask me and for me to say no.”
“It’s really a lack of empathy. The same thing happened to me with my son, who wanted the pilot’s seat—it’s incredible!” another joked.
“Great opportunity to learn that in life we don’t have everything we want,” wrote someone else.
“The airline should have stepped in and stopped the filming,” said etiquette expert Jo Hayes, adding that Castro had every right to stay in her seat
Image credits: ondavirall2.0
“Unfortunately, this is the reality of the world today. If a person does not do something that someone else wants it’s called lack of empathy. She has a right to keep her seat,” a fourth said.
While most netizens supported Castro, who maintained her composure throughout the entire incident, others had harsh words for the 29-year-old, questioning whether her actions truly made her deserving of fame.
“This is ridiculous; some people work for years to cultivate skills and become famous, and this woman gets it over nothing?” one user said.
“I just can’t understand the internet. One minute, it destroys someone’s life, and the next, it exalts them. Weird!” a separate person noted.
In a recent interview, the Brazilian influencer labeled the mother as “rude” and said she’s still trying to process the viral incident
@ondavirall2.0Uma criança fez um escândalo em um avião porque queria sentar na janela, essa passageira se recusou a ceder o assento para a criança. A mãe da criança, não gostou e começou a filmar a passageira, como se ela fosse a culpada da situação.♬ som original – Onda Viral
Castro said she is still “trying to process” the fact that people in Brazil recognize her and flood her social media page with thousands of messages, both positive and negative.
“I’m happy about all the support I received, although there were some online haters, too. I still don’t know how to feel about it,” she said in the podcast. “I’m still trying to process everything.”
GOL Airlines declined to comment on the incident.
“The flight attendant should have intervened,” one netizen commented
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