Woman Filmed Refusing To Swap Seats With Toddler Considers Suing Passenger

Jeniffer Castro isn’t the first person to stand her ground when asked to give up a reserved seat for a child, and she likely won’t be the last.

However, the 29-year-old from Brazil now says she plans to take legal steps against the toddler’s mother, who recorded the moment on her phone and shared it online. The video quickly went viral, fueling a heated debate over airline seat etiquette.

The incident

On December 4, 2024, Castro boarded a GOL Airlines domestic flight in Brazil and found that a young child was sitting in the seat she had booked.

The child’s mother explained that they wanted to sit by the window, but Castro pointed out that she had specifically chosen and paid for that seat. As a result, she asked them to move so she could take her rightful spot.

The situation escalated when the mother pulled out her phone and began recording. In the footage, she can be heard saying: “I’m recording your face, this is disgusting. It’s the 21st century and people have no empathy for children.”

Now, Castro has decided to share her perspective on what really happened that day and has hinted at possible legal action against the mother.

‘Measures being taken’

Speaking on the Cola Mais Podcast, in an episode released on January 22, Castro was asked whether she was considering suing either the airline or the woman who filmed her.

Without providing specific details about what actions she might take, she simply stated: “[Translation] Measures are now being taken. What I went through wasn’t easy. The flight attendants could have asked me if I need anything, or if I was bothered by the passenger, but they didn’t. They stayed out of it.”

Castro explained that when she boarded the plane, she politely informed the mother that the window seat was hers and waited for the child to move.She continued: “A guy across the aisle said ‘Change with him, you sit next to the aisle and he’ll have your place’,”

After finally taking her seat, she described the mother as being ‘very rude’ toward her. Meanwhile, the child continued crying for the duration of the roughly 50-minute flight from Rio de Janeiro to Belo Horizonte.

The video of the interaction quickly spread online, drawing a wide range of reactions. While some sympathized with the mother, many people defended Castro’s decision to keep her assigned seat.One Facebook user commented: “She is well within her right not to move! I’m sick of self-entitled parents,” Another person added: “I would sue everyone who filmed me against my will. Just saying.”

Another weighed in, saying: “As a photographer… I need permission for everyone I have a picture of or they can sue me for this. You need permission of everyone that you have pictures of and videos of… I think people have forgotten this fact in this age of social media.”

A third commenter firmly agreed with Castro’s stance, arguing: “She paid for it, it’s her seat. The toddlers parent’s poor planning doesn’t constitute an emergency for the lady so nope,”