Delta flight attendant didn't believe Black passenger booked first class even after checking ticket

Despite strides toward progress, discrimination based on race, gender, or socioeconomic status persists. Stories of exclusion frequently surface online, reminding us that the journey towards inclusivity is far from over. Last year, one such incident became viral on X (previously Twitter) when 16-year-old Mari Copeny (who goes by @LittleMissFlint) from Flint, Michigan pointed out a biased act by a Delta Airlines flight attendant. The Black teen, who is a philanthropist and activist, faced disrespectful treatment while boarding a Delta flight last year. 

Copeny wrote, "Hey Delta. Maybe check and educate your flight attendants on how not to roll their eyes when they see a black person with a first-class ticket." Not only did the flight attendant, whom Copeny mentioned as Lucy in the thread, roll her eyes, but also did not believe that the teen belonged to first class. "This woman just rolled her eyes after trying to direct us to the back of the plane when clearly our seats weren't there," Copeny added. The teen pointed out in the comments that this was the first time she had such a bad experience while flying with Delta. 

"This woman acted like she didn't want to move to let us through to our seats," Copeny added in the thread. She was frustrated that the flight attendant checked her ticket yet still directed her towards the back of the plane. People furious at the encounter suggested Copeny should have taken a picture of the flight attendant, but the teen didn't want to invade a stranger's privacy. However, she made sure that Delta knew the woman's name and was desperately waiting for a response from the airline. The post went viral with over 528K views and the airlines received backlash for the disrespectful experience. 

"These racists never learn until they are pointed out at the moment. You cared about her privacy, yet she wanted you to know exactly how she felt about you. Maybe the next Black person will expose her because it will happen again until someone does," commented @justice7x09. "It's a shame for employees of any place to act like this. They don't know anything about the people boarding their plane, yet they make assumptions. Good luck not letting this get spread around," wrote @FLTX1991. "That is absolutely rude and unnecessary! I'm so sorry you were treated like that anywhere. It's appalling!" added @tnamick.

After the post went viral with hundreds of people demanding answers from Delta, the airlines sent a response to Copeny. Thanking the passenger for bringing this issue to light, Delta emphasized in their email that their policies never supported racist practices. They issued an apology on behalf of the disrespectful Delta employee and pointed out that they failed to meet the expectations of their customers. Delta also promised to learn from this mistake and make her future flight experiences better.