MIAMI (JTA/VINnews) — Frontier Airlines is facing accusations of anti-Semitism after videos circulated online of the airline kicking a Hasidic family off a plane because of violations over its mask requirements.
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The family claims that its members were properly masked on the Sunday night flight from Miami to New York City, except for an 18-month-old baby, according to videos posted by OJPAC, an Orthodox Jewish advocacy group. Others who said they were on the flight recalled watching some people high-five after the family left the plane.
The airline says the baby was not the issue that prompted the eviction, and that adults in the group that was removed from the plane were not wearing masks.
The Anti-Defamation League’s New York-New Jersey office called for a “full & transparent investigation” of the incident.
Although what caused the eviction is unclear, videos posted by OJPAC show several Hasidic Jews standing in the aisle, all wearing masks. Multiple people say in the videos that the only unmasked passenger is the baby. In one video, a Hasidic woman says that kids briefly took off their masks to have a snack.
In another video posted by OJPAC, people said the airline staff high-fived after deplaning the family.
“I saw them high-fiving each other, and high-fiving and saying ‘A job well done to those Jews,’” one man said.
Frontier wrote on Twitter that the family did not comply with instructions from flight attendants.
“Members of a large group, including adults, refused to wear masks as flight 2878 was preparing for departure from MIA-LGA,” the airline tweeted. “Repeated requests to comply with federal law necessitated their removal from the flight. The issue did not stem from a child under 2.”
Members of a large group, including adults, refused to wear masks as flight 2878 was preparing for departure from MIA-LGA. Repeated requests to comply with federal law necessitated their removal from the flight. The issue did not stem from a child under 2.
— Frontier Airlines (@FlyFrontier) March 1, 2021
But others were quick to point out that the statement by Frontier Airlines are directly contradicted by videos and eyewitness accounts.
There are videos & eyewitness accounts that directly refute your position. Your staff took a manageable situation & embarrassed these people & then high five'd it. Your discrimination has been exposed & its ugly. An apology & crew suspension is a good start. Make this right. https://t.co/NLKvnAC69V
— Chaskel Bennett (@ChaskelBennett) March 1, 2021
NYS Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein also weighed in on Monday, calling for an investogation into the matter.
I just spoke with a passenger who was on the @FlyFrontier flight and heard firsthand about the outrageous and blatant anti-Semitic treatment of Orthodox Jews on this flight. The hateful behavior by the flight crew is inexcusable and must immediately be investigated. https://t.co/SBSqet3KZa
— Simcha Eichenstein (@SEichenstein) March 2, 2021
You can be 100% sure of one truth
Thy would never dare do this to a black family
Never
The only question I have is: according to the CDC you have to adhere to social distancing when indoors even with a mask. So if that’s the case, why dont airlines block out center seats and have less people fly??? Oh because they only follow the CDC guidelines when it works for them…
All of the airlines, not only Frontier, will dig in their heels, and seek to cover up wrongdoing. One time I had to complain to the U.S. Dept. of Transportation, about the behavior of a crew member, who didn’t like my bringing a wheel transport chair on board a flight, even though it was permitted by law (as long as there was room in back of the plane). It took one year for the Transportation Dept. to investigate and respond to my complaint. Ultimately, they stated that I was right, and that the airline (Southwest), should have better trained its employees. The silence from Southwest, concerning that letter from the U.S. Dept. of Transportation, about their flawed procedures, was deafening!!
There is something else that we see in the video (at least those who know Yiddish). There was disagreement among the Chasidim what to do. The young couple with the toddler with pacifier in mouth, Yanky and Sussy, were on their way off the plane, when they were stopped by an older family member (Yanky’s father in law?) who tells them strongly, multiple times not to get off, but rather to wait for the police to come to them. That escalated the situation. It seems that if they would have left, the plane may have proceeded. But with an open rebellion, and the bedlam that ensued, the whole flight was cancelled.
Two separate issues are being conflated here. The first issue is if there was violation of the mask policy, justifying ejection. A separate one is if flight crew celebrated after such ejection.
Witnesses for post-ejection celebration are not witnesses against any mask violation.
“ In one video, a Hasidic woman says that kids briefly took off their masks to have a snack.”
Why did you change what she said?
She said, and I quote (after 4:40 of the 9:53 length video clip), “the little kids wanted to eat, and they took off their masks for a few minutes”. So maybe next thing they will do is decide to nosh (snack) the whole flight and keep their masks off the whole time, as some Hasidim reportedly did on a recent flight. Would that be okay?
Stick to the facts and keep focus.
The airline crew is in charge of the plane. It is not supposed to be a free-for-all where everyone makes their own rules.
If crew are confronted with open rebellion by a group, and rejoice a bit after putting it down, that is not egregious misbehavior, just being typical humans.