AMSTERDAM (JTA) — A Dutch human rights board found the national airline KLM guilty of discriminating against a woman who was moved from her seat because an Orthodox Jewish man wouldn’t sit near her.
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
The Human Rights College, a watchdog organization whose members are appointed by the king, made the ruling Thursday in a review of an incident from May 2019 aboard an airplane traveling from New York to Amsterdam, the AD news site reported.
KLM “made a gender discrimination against the couple by failing to provide a discrimination-free environment during a flight.”
Ronald van Raak, a lawmaker for the Socialist Party, submitted a complaint to the College after his wife was bumped from her seat because of the protestations of an Orthodox passenger who said he did not want to sit next to a woman. (This scenario arises from time to time on flights, where people usually do not have discretion over where they sit.)
KLM cabin crew asked the van Raaks to “cooperate in solving this problem” in order to “make the boarding process as smooth as possible,” the rights board said. “However, the Orthodox Jewish man was not held accountable for his behavior, nor was it made clear to him that there were discriminatory aspects,” it ruled, adding: “Also, the Orthodox Jewish man or company he was part of was not asked to cooperate in solving the seating problem.”
This ruling seems quite obvious. If the gentleman wanted special seating he ought to have arranged it himself.
What a chilul Hashem. Forget about the ruling, why would the airline accommodate the “Orthodox” man at all, just tell him to sit in his assigned/selected seat or get off the plane!
If he was so concerned, he could have bought two adjacent seats in advance. Or he could have gone to the guy crammed all the way back in the rear corner seat and offered to switch with him.
Yes the ruling is obvious . He could have arranged for his needs on his own by purchasing a whole row for himself and alerting the airline beforehand .
How longer are these these problems going to keep reoccurring? They have happened on El Al, United, Delta, and now KLM. The airlines could solve this problem by having an area specifically designated for males only, or females only, as well as areas designated for those traveling with small children. In that manner, the vast majority of these problems would be resolved.
Such a chilul hashem..im on these flights all the time. My father whom is a rav and a
Real yiras shmayim sits where his seat is and told me a chilul hashem is far worse then sitting next to a woman.
Should have thrown him off If you want special seating get a private plane.