Woman Booted off Plane because of T-Shirt

[MrsMush99]

T-Shirt Caper

A Washington state woman intends to press a civil-rights case against Southwest Airlines for booting her off a flight in Reno after fellow passengers complained about a message on her T-shirt.

Lorrie Heasley, of Woodland, Wash., was halfway home on a flight Tuesday that began in Los Angeles, wearing a T-shirt with the pictures of President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and a phrase similar to the popular film, "Meet the Fockers."

 

[mindi77]

I'm sorry but isn't this suppose to be a free country? I mean it is just a t-shirt and I am sure if someone was wearing a shirt that had the pesident on it and it said something good on it this women wouldn't have gotten kicked off the plane.

I am so tired of people decideding what is right or wrong for others, Mind your own buisness it is a t-shirt and she likes it.

 

[Mabel]

I can't understand why anyone would want to walk around with a vulgarity printed on their shirt. What about my right not to have to see it, or to have my children see it?

 

[nanandjim]

I can't understand why anyone would want to walk around with a vulgarity printed on their shirt. What about my right not to have to see it, or to have my children see it?

Oh, didn't you know that the majority rights don't count in this country?? This woman is a LOSER and needs to GET A LIFE.

 

[Anngelique]

I can't understand why anyone would want to walk around with a vulgarity printed on their shirt. What about my right not to have to see it, or to have my children see it?

I agree Mabel and what about the freedom of the people who own the airlines? Don't they have the right and FREEDOM to choose what is acceptable and not acceptable on THEIR plane? People are always yelling freedom but they take away other's freedoms while they are at it. I have always been told to dress nicely on a plane because they have the right to refuse you service if you are not dressed appropriately. Sure, they can refund her money but to sue them? All she had to do was wear her shirt inside out. I am with the airliners with this one. I am SICK of vulgar people in the name of freedom and rights.

 

[Gabby]

I agree Mabel and what about the freedom of the people who own the airlines? Don't they have the right and FREEDOM to choose what is acceptable and not acceptable on THEIR plane? People are always yelling freedom but they take away other's freedoms while they are at it. I have always been told to dress nicely on a plane because they have the right to refuse you service if you are not dressed appropriately. Sure, they can refund her money but to sue them? All she had to do was wear her shirt inside out. I am with the airliners with this one. I am SICK of vulgar people in the name of freedom and rights.

Sorry Anngel... I disagree... Although I do not think the shirt appropriate myself, the time to say something was when she attempted to board the plane.. not after she had been allowed to board and fly .... and there is such thing as freedom of speech.... to have been refused to let board the plane in the beginning...would have been the appropriate way to have handled this.

 

[Anngelique]

Sorry Anngel... I disagree... Although I do not think the shirt appropriate myself, the time to say something was when she attempted to board the plane.. not after she had been allowed to board and fly .... and there is such thing as freedom of speech.... to have been refused to let board the plane in the beginning...would have been the appropriate way to have handled this.

But they told her to keep it covered and she kind of did but not really. I agree it would have been better to do when she boarded but it is NOT a law suit. That's part of America's problem, everyone sues over everything because their rights were violated but I believe the airlines have rights to. It is not a goverment entity it is a private business.

 

[Jeana (DP)]

The woman is a selfish jerk. There are hundreds of thousands of people left homeless by recent hurricanes and the best this woman can do is file a lawsuit because boo hoo hoo, they wouldn't let her wear her t-shirt. She needs to get a life and get over it. She agreed to cover the stupid shirt and then didn't stick to the agreement, so she had to suffer the consequences. I hope the jury throws the suit back in her face and makes her pay for the court costs and legal fees of the airlines. GEEZUS Christ, I hate stuipd people. :doh: :doh: :doh:

 

[Jules]

Sorry Anngel... I disagree... Although I do not think the shirt appropriate myself, the time to say something was when she attempted to board the plane.. not after she had been allowed to board and fly .... and there is such thing as freedom of speech.... to have been refused to let board the plane in the beginning...would have been the appropriate way to have handled this.

The way I read it, she was stopped before she boarded the plane. She agreed to cover up the shirt and was allowed to board. She had it covered and fell asleep. Whatever she used to cover herself fell off exposing the shirt.

ETA - the link above is not the one I read earlier on this that stated what I posted above. I'll look for the link.

 

[Luanne]

I don't believe in censorship, although I do believe in good taste. Although I think the shirt is funny, it's probably not appropriate to wear in public.

But I have to side with the t-shirt lady on this one. Maybe it's not the best choice of what to wear, but there is such a thing as freedom of expression....and those who don't like it don't have to look at it. Like George Carlin says (paraphrasing) "There's two knobs on the radio, one of them changes the station...and the other one turns it off" If you don't like what you're seeing/hearing, change the station, look away, etc.

 

[Mabel]

....and those who don't like it don't have to look at it. Like George Carlin says (paraphrasing) "There's two knobs on the radio, one of them changes the station...and the other one turns it off" If you don't like what you're seeing/hearing, change the station, look away, etc.

It's easy to change the station or even avoid shows that are unacceptable to you, but you don't know to look away from what someone is wearing until after you've already seen it. Using your logic, we might as well let people run around naked if that's their desire, and if anyone doesn't like it, don't look. A line has to be drawn somewhere. IMO, parading around in a shirt bearing the "F" word is crossing the line.

 

[Jules]

I hope the jury throws the suit back in her face and makes her pay for the court costs and legal fees of the airlines.

Ditto!! :clap: :clap: :clap:

What a waste of a court's time. :doh:

 

[Jules]

It's easy to change the station or even avoid shows that are unacceptable to you, but you don't know to look away from what someone is wearing until after you've already seen it. Using your logic, we might as well let people run around naked if that's their desire, and if anyone doesn't like it, don't look. A line has to be drawn somewhere. IMO, parading around in a shirt bearing the "F" word is crossing the line.

It would have been different had she been wearing it in a different setting also - say a bar full of adults. Walking through an airport with that on where there are ALL ages of people is wrong. I would have been very offended had my 9 year old son seen that.

 

[mindi77]

Personally I wouldn't have been offended...and it isn't anything like having the "F" word....unless it was quoted wrong. Was it meet the fockers or the "f" word? But I mean if were are going to throw a fit about a tshirt and say how inappropiate it is then we should tell that to all the stations on tv that air girls sone wild videos....I don't see anyone up in arms over those "vulgar" things. And if she did cover it up and she just feel asleep then that is crazy...I guess she should make sure she doesn't do anything else people just happen not to like.

I don't like seeing girls with there behinds hanging out of the low rider jeans but I am certainly not going to demand that they get off a plane...I can simply look away. As well as look away at the countless number of things i don't want to see.

 

[IslandGirl]

I think it's just like the ol' mom and pop businesses' signs that state they reserve the right to refuse service to anyone. If they can make morbidly obese people buy an extra seat on the plane for their carryon luggage (the "junk in the trunk"- their massive bodies), why not this internal control as well? It's sort of an inane argument for both sides involved, and the woman could have changed clothes had she been carrying her luggage along.

 

[tn_price]

Personally I wouldn't have been offended...and it isn't anything like having the "F" word....unless it was quoted wrong. Was it meet the fockers or the "f" word? But I mean if were are going to throw a fit about a tshirt and say how inappropiate it is then we should tell that to all the stations on tv that air girls sone wild videos....I don't see anyone up in arms over those "vulgar" things. And if she did cover it up and she just feel asleep then that is crazy...I guess she should make sure she doesn't do anything else people just happen not to like.

I don't like seeing girls with there behinds hanging out of the low rider jeans but I am certainly not going to demand that they get off a plane...I can simply look away. As well as look away at the countless number of things i don't want to see.

Unfortunately it wasn't Fockers - replace the o with a u and you got it. The woman has every right to own a shirt like that and wear it where appropriate; however I feel that an airport and airplanee where there could be children around isn't the place for blatant vulgarity. I heard the woman on the radio admitting she wouldn't want children seeing it, but refusing to accept any responsibility or regret for wearing it where children were. :waitasec:

 

[LinasK]

Okay, my response to this issue is going to be kind of complicated because I can see both sides of the issue...

On the one hand the woman knew her T-shirt was provocative when she wore it. Although I agree with her politically, and it probably did look hysterical, it's not verbiage I would want my young daughter to be exposed to.

That being said, her sweatshirt apparently fell off while she was sleeping. This is a free speech issue and if the airlines didn't agree, they shouldn't have let her board, rather than changing the rules mid-flight.

I think the other passengers have too much time on their hands to be so upset over a political statement, when there are much larger issues at hand these days such as religious intolerance, people needlessly dying violent deaths on the other side of the world and here at home, child molesters, and natural disasters to worry about.:twocents:

 

[Lady GL]

I don't like seeing girls with there behinds hanging out of the low rider jeans but I am certainly not going to demand that they get off a plane...I can simply look away. As well as look away at the countless number of things i don't want to see.

You may look away but a teenage boy to a middle-aged man won't. We get blasted by this everywhere and have become desensitized by it....is there any wonder there are more sexual predators in their teens and 20's against children under 12?

How far do we have to go before enough is enough? This woman was incredibly tacky. She has every right to voice her political views, but on a sleazy t-shirt? Please - she did it on purpose to cause a scene and probably and the lawsuit planned in advance.

How would anyone feel about a young man wearing a t-shirt in public of a naked woman spread eagle? A t-shirt with a woman being raped? Sexually mutilated? Is that still OK?

 

[Mabel]

She's got a lot of nerve, IMO, claiming the airline disrespected her when actually she disrespected every person who saw her wearing that t-shirt. This all could have been avoided if she'd turned the shirt inside out as requested or even if she'd put on her sweatshirt instead of "cuddling" with it while she tried to sleep. Who 'tries to sleep" before the plane even leaves the runway? I think there's more to the story than we're hearing. I think the woman was belligerent.

 

[mindi77]

You may look away but a teenage boy to a middle-aged man won't. We get blasted by this everywhere and have become desensitized by it....is there any wonder there are more sexual predators in their teens and 20's against children under 12?

How far do we have to go before enough is enough? This woman was incredibly tacky. She has every right to voice her political views, but on a sleazy t-shirt? Please - she did it on purpose to cause a scene and probably and the lawsuit planned in advance.

How would anyone feel about a young man wearing a t-shirt in public of a naked woman spread eagle? A t-shirt with a woman being raped? Sexually mutilated? Is that still OK?

I think that is completely different, rape and mutilation is not a political statement and obviously a naked women wouldn't be right because we have laws against people being naked in public. There are laws against everything that you mentioned, rape and mutilation are horrible and I don't think anyone would say yeah that is cool except freaks who do it. But I do know that there isn't any laws about free speech. Obviously if the "F" word was on it then yeah it was a bit tacky but seriously those other things are different.