Posted on 07/17/2014 4:16:15 PM PDT by Signalman
A Jewish woman was ejected from a JetBlue flight after arguing about the Israel-Hamas conflict with a Palestinian passenger. The Jewish woman, physician Lisa Rosenberg of New York, was asked to leave the July 7 John F. Kennedy Airport-bound flight from Palm Beach International Airport not long after concluding a telephone conversation about Israel’s conduct in the conflict. Another passenger, who overheard the conversation, began arguing with Rosenberg. “I was saying how it was good Israel found the students that killed the Palestinian teenager and how it was exemplary not making them into heroes, but seeking to publicly try them,” Rosenberg told the Palm Beach Post. “I said any other country would have made these students out to be martyrs and celebrating them.” After the phone call concluded, Rosenberg said a woman approached her, identified herself as a Palestinian, and the two then had an “ugly, racially driven altercation” in which the other woman called her a “Zionist pig,” according to media reports. But a commenter on the website Gothamist, who identified herself as the passenger who confronted Rosenberg, said that Rosenberg “was the only person yelling and actually said a Palestinian on the flight was a ‘danger to her’. She was removed from that flight for making a scene, refusing to sit in her seat and not complying with staff. Other passengers , if they come forward, will verify this.” JetBlue confirmed that it asked Rosenberg to exit the plane, which was still on the ground in Florida and said that Rosenberg’s account is not accurate. “The story presented in no way reflects the reports from our crew, whose decision to remove the customer we support,” the airline said in a statement. A JetBlue spokeswoman told JTA that the details of the incident, including the identity of the other passenger, could not be disclosed “for privacy reasons.” “A crew member may request a customer to deboard and be re-accommodated if the crew member feels as though the safety of the plane or customers on board is impacted, or the customer on board is unable to comply with in-flight instructions or obstructing a crew member’s duties,” corporate communications manager Morgan Johnston said. Rosenberg flew back to New York the next day, but not on JetBlue.
“I just was completely outraged that I would be asked to leave a plane, being a Jew,” Rosenberg told ABC’s local affiliate in Palm Beach County.
As much as I hate to say it they did the Jewish chick a favor. I would not ever want to fly with a muslim on board.
Too bad Mel Gibson wasn't on that plane. The other passengers would have really got a show.
The key here is simply NOT to get into useless arguments with people who are not interested in listening - and especially not at airports where you’ve gone past the checkpoints ... :-) ...
Note to JetBlue booking department: maybe try to avoid seating Jews and Palestinians next to each other in the future!
Right, arguing with them can backfire and make you look bad.
That’s why it’s better to quietly get a flight attendant’s attention, maybe while you are near the restrooms, and say you are worried because you heard that Muslim passenger in seat 39A talking on his cell phone before takeoff about “jihad” in Arabic.
Never talk politics or religion in mixed company. Simple rule, old rule, effective rule. Airlines have enough problems without putting people having screaming arguments onto their planes.
Why wasn’t the Palestinian woman who butted in and started the argument kicked off the airplane also? Hmmmmm?
Maybe they weren’t yelling and screaming and acting the fool.
So the anti-Semitic JetBlue bounced the Jewish person and allowed the Palestinian to stay on board. Great PR ....I wonder how many Jewish and pro-Jewish people won’t fly with them anymore.
Just sent them a rocket - so to speak. I hope everyone does.
Lots of self hating, liberal Jews will choose Jet Blue first after this ruckus.
“Maybe they weren’t yelling and screaming and acting the fool.”
No, she was just the precipitating factor in why the altercation took place. Words can be weapons also. My guess is I would go ballistic if I were Jewish and some Pali b*tch came up to me and called me a Zionist Pig.
It’s the main airline to Miami.
I think it would be wise to avoid being short-sighted and labeling Jetblue as "anti-semitic" over this incident.
Flight crew doesn’t necessarily know why a fight started, they only know who’s fighting. In the world of sports they have an axiom about that: the action draws the ref’s attention, the reaction draws the penalty. If the flight crew sees you screaming at me and refusing to sit down they’ll kick you off, they don’t know if I did something to deserve it or not, what they know is you’re yelling and screaming and won’t sit down. Going ballistic is the path to letting the other one win, she’s lucky she just got kicked off, technically what she did (disrupt a flight) is a felony. If you want to win you’ve got to keep your cool.
Customer: Jane C*******
LevelTwo: General Concerns:
Comments: I read where you bounced a Jewish doctor off one of your flights when she was involved in an argument with a Palestinian passenger. It's interesting you bounced the Jewish person but not the Palestinian. That was great PR on your part. So how many Jews and pro-Jewish people won't fly on your anti-Semitic airline any more? With competition the way it is you would have thought ... but, then, I guess you didn't .....
Regards, Jane C********* Alaska Airlines Frequent Flyer American Airlines Frequent Flyer QANTAS Airlines Frequent Flyer. Response Required:
This is what they sent back:
To: JaneC@*************** Re: email received Thursday,07/17/14 8:12 PM,
Dear Jane, As New York’s Hometown Airline, we’re no strangers to diverse opinions and cultures. After all, New York is THE cultural melting pot of the world, and New Yorkers are world renowned for their ability to share their opinions. We’re also proud to have customers and crew members that represent this rich mix of cultural backgrounds. So being a forward thinking airline with the deepest respect for the various cultures and beliefs of our 30 million customers a year, you can imagine our crew members’ collective pain when we’re accused of discriminatory practices.
The story presented by a customer is certainly riveting, and we understand that many who have read it feel entitled to get all the juicy details. However, out of respect for the privacy of our customers – even those who tell stories we don’t necessarily agree with – we will not share additional details for public discourse and will only say that the story presented in media reports in no way reflects the accounts from our crew members or customers on board.
We recognize that many observers of the story desire all the details so they can make their own judgments, and for many their opinion will be set regardless of any additional detail shared. We just request those who do feel the need to pass judgment take a moment to reflect on any of their past experiences with JetBlue and our award winning service, and think about the diversity of the 80,000 daily customers we serve before taking every story you see as fact.
JetBlue does not engage in discrimination on any basis. Maintaining the highest standards of safety for all of our customers and crew is our primary concern and JetBlue’s fundamental value. The decision to remove the customer from the flight in this instance was made in support of that value.
Sincerely, Jennifer F. Customer Commitment Crew JetBlue Airways Crew member 66391
I thanked them for their boiler plate response.
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