Plus-size model and body positivity advocate Tess Holliday claims she was left in a “state of shock” after a United Airlines flight attendant allegedly told her to lose weight during a first-class flight with her 9-year-old son.
The incident reportedly occurred this week on a flight from Tampa, Florida.
Holliday, 40, recounted the confrontation to People magazine and in a TikTok video. She said the incident began after she accidentally hit the flight attendant call button with her hip while using the restroom. When she exited, the flight attendant allegedly initiated a ten-minute conversation about her weight.
The attendant allegedly told Holliday that losing weight would be in her “best interest,” and then shared a story about his own “very, very large” sister who he claimed had recently faced discrimination on a flight. He reportedly told Holliday he agreed that his sister needed to lose weight, and stressed that the long-term effect of their size “isn’t good for our health.”
The situation reportedly escalated as the flight attendant tied the discussion to Holliday’s role as a mother. Holliday, who was flying first class with her son for what was a highly anticipated trip for the boy, claimed the attendant told her that “if I cared about my child that I would do something, that I would lose the weight.”
She also claims he added that because of her size, she was “kidding myself if I think that I don’t need to lose weight.”
Holliday stated she was “frozen” during the exchange and didn’t want to make a scene in front of her son. The conversation finally ended when another passenger approached to use the restroom, allowing Holliday to excuse herself.
Adding insult to injury, Holliday claimed that the same flight attendant later offered her son gummies to prevent him from being “tempted” by other snacks.
While Holliday acknowledged that some people might think the flight attendant was “just trying to be helpful,” she stressed: “That’s not the point. You don’t say things like that to people.”
In a follow-up comment, Holliday said she had contacted United Airlines, which stated they would pass the complaint along and speak to the team member.
Holliday emphasized that she does not want the employee to lose his job, but rather desires for United to be aware of the incident and potentially implement sensitivity training to prevent it from happening again.
