Ronald Young Jr.

You also get priority boarding, which is a nice perk when you want to have maximum control of where you're sitting. You do have to pay for the second seat. You receive the refund after you travel, or you have to risk asking at the gate before boarding and have to hope there's room to do it. Bridget paid the extra money and did it online.

But when she got to the airport, she ran into some trouble once again when talking to the ticketing agent.

But when she got to the airport, she ran into some trouble once again when talking to the ticketing agent.

But when she got to the airport, she ran into some trouble once again when talking to the ticketing agent.

The gate agent was able to get Bridget one seat on the plane, just one, which put Bridget back in the position she was in during her original trip, at risk of having someone humiliate her while traveling. Bridget wasn't going to put up with this again.

The gate agent was able to get Bridget one seat on the plane, just one, which put Bridget back in the position she was in during her original trip, at risk of having someone humiliate her while traveling. Bridget wasn't going to put up with this again.

The gate agent was able to get Bridget one seat on the plane, just one, which put Bridget back in the position she was in during her original trip, at risk of having someone humiliate her while traveling. Bridget wasn't going to put up with this again.

Bridget successfully got on the plane with priority boarding and got the reserved seat next to her, and by all accounts had an uneventful trip home, which is exactly what should have happened the first time.

Bridget successfully got on the plane with priority boarding and got the reserved seat next to her, and by all accounts had an uneventful trip home, which is exactly what should have happened the first time.

Bridget successfully got on the plane with priority boarding and got the reserved seat next to her, and by all accounts had an uneventful trip home, which is exactly what should have happened the first time.

But I really hate this experience for Bridget and this story really bothers me because Southwest, at least anecdotally, is supposed to be the best airline for fat folks and they're not even getting it right.

But I really hate this experience for Bridget and this story really bothers me because Southwest, at least anecdotally, is supposed to be the best airline for fat folks and they're not even getting it right.

But I really hate this experience for Bridget and this story really bothers me because Southwest, at least anecdotally, is supposed to be the best airline for fat folks and they're not even getting it right.

Bridget tried to follow the rules and was met with several layers of obstacles and was required to advocate for herself in a way that most fat folks don't necessarily have the energy for when they're just trying to get to their destinations. That's not to say that the open seating and customer of size policies and priority boarding aren't great. They are.

Bridget tried to follow the rules and was met with several layers of obstacles and was required to advocate for herself in a way that most fat folks don't necessarily have the energy for when they're just trying to get to their destinations. That's not to say that the open seating and customer of size policies and priority boarding aren't great. They are.

Bridget tried to follow the rules and was met with several layers of obstacles and was required to advocate for herself in a way that most fat folks don't necessarily have the energy for when they're just trying to get to their destinations. That's not to say that the open seating and customer of size policies and priority boarding aren't great. They are.

And there are plenty of fat folks who have benefited from these policies and flown comfortably. But Bridget didn't, and others won't, I'm sure. And also, this is a policy of one airline. An airline that, like Hannah Sampson said, is subject to the whims of shareholders and has to make money.

And there are plenty of fat folks who have benefited from these policies and flown comfortably. But Bridget didn't, and others won't, I'm sure. And also, this is a policy of one airline. An airline that, like Hannah Sampson said, is subject to the whims of shareholders and has to make money.

And there are plenty of fat folks who have benefited from these policies and flown comfortably. But Bridget didn't, and others won't, I'm sure. And also, this is a policy of one airline. An airline that, like Hannah Sampson said, is subject to the whims of shareholders and has to make money.

Which means we're depending on them to do right by their passengers, and we have to hope that the right and comfortable policy aligns with the most lucrative one. So unless Congress puts pressure on the FAA to make the airlines do something, there's no guarantee that policies that may benefit fat folks and honestly all folks, like open seating, won't go away. Because open seating is going away.