A mom of six says she was asked to deplane a JetBlue flightĀ Wednesday in Orlando, Florida, because her toddler wouldn't wear a mask. The mother had been intending to return to her home in Brooklyn, New York, after boarding the flight bound for Newark, New Jersey. But instead, she found herself stranded and embarrassed at Orlando International Airport.
According to the New York Daily News, Chaya Bruck had just boarded the flight when her 2-year-old daughter, Dina, became uncooperative.
As anyone who has a 2-year-old knows, that's pretty much par for the course. But Dina wasn't just becoming squirmy in her seat or throwing a mild tantrum. She was refusing to wear her mask for the flight, which isĀ mandated by many major airlines for passengers 2 and older.
Months ago, this may have gone unchallenged, or even unnoticed, by flight staff.
But as virus cases have continued to rise dramatically in the US, safety restrictions for air travel have tightened. No mask, no entry has become the new mantra for restaurants, businesses, and airlines around the country. And in many cases, that's meant that "uncooperative" airline passengers have gotten the boot. (Yes, even if they're 2.)
When flight attendants approached Bruck about the issue, she attempted to explain the situation calmly.
But unfortunately, this wasn't a matter of negotiating — the rules are the rules, and before Bruck knew it, she and her six children were being ordered off the plane.
"It was horrible, the whole experience was traumatizing," Bruck told the Daily News on Wednesday afternoon. She spoke to reporters at Orlando International Airport, where she was still stranded.
Bruck likely felt stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Getting six kids to wear masks isn't easy, but getting a toddler to wear one can be next to impossible.
"I was trying very hard … [The other children] were wearing their masks with their noses covered," she said.
The mother also insisted that there seems to be some gray area with JetBlue's mask-wearing policy -- at least when it comes to young kids.
"It says (on JetBlue's website) that a child who cannot wear a mask does not have to wear a mask," she insisted. "I tried to tell them this, but they didn't care … They wanted me off the plane."
But according to the Daily News, the airline strengthened its mask policies earlier this month, along with many other major airlines. Their official rules now state that children younger than 2 are not required to wear a mask but anyone older does. (A spokesperson for the airline said this was actually updated on August 10.)
"All travelers 2 years and olderĀ must wear a face covering over their nose and mouth throughout their journey, including during check-in, boarding, while in flight and deplaning," the website now states.
"Masks with vents or exhalation valves are not permitted. Plastic face shields may be worn in addition to a face covering but not in place of one. Customers with conditions that prevent them from wearing a face covering should postpone travel until this temporary requirement is no longer in place."
Still, Bruck feels her 2-year-old should have made the cut for an exemption and insinuated that she had been unfairly targeted.
The mother and her children first boarded a flight to Orlando 10 days prior to Wednesday's incident, which was when she first exchanged words with a flight attendant about her toddler's refusal to wear a mask. That same flight attendant, she claimed, was on Wednesday's return flight.
"The minute he saw me today, he recognized me," Bruck said. "I heard him tell the other stewardesses about me."
"They came over to me and told me my daughter was 3 years old," the mother continued. "I told them she's 2 … I know how old my child is, she's going to be 3 in September."
From there, the interaction grew even more tense with another flight attendant, Bruck claims.
"She said, 'Are you getting off the plane or are you staying?" the mother recalled. "I told her, 'I'm not going, I want to go home' … But she just kept repeating [the question]."
Bruck also insisted that she never intended to be difficult and that she "wasn't making any trouble." She thought the flight attendants would have shown her some compassion, but it didn't seem to matter.
"Why did we have to experience such a thing?" she said. "I am a woman flying alone with six children … They didn't care."
Bruck said other passengers tried to come to her defense, asking the flight attendants to "Leave her alone!" but it was fruitless.
Fellow passenger Charzette Poinsette told the newspaper that the whole thing was uncomfortable and upsetting.Ā
"They were really nasty," Poinsette shared, adding that the mother was telling them she was trying to get her toddler to put the mask on but that itĀ "wasn't enough for them."
This isn't the first case of its kind to make headlines lately.
Last week, a Texas mother said she was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight when her 3-year-old with autism refused to wear his mask. In her case, she was flying home to Houston after visiting family in Midland, Texas. Just as she was settling in for the quick flight, a staff member had a word with her.
"We're getting close to the runway," she told ABC 13 at the time. "They're going over the security safety features and all that, and the flight attendant walks by and tells me that he has to put a mask on. So, I try to put the mask on him. He is 3 and has autism and sensory processing disorders, so he wouldn't keep the mask on."
The mother, who wished to remain anonymous, said she wholeheartedly agrees with the mask-wearing policy, but contends that in some cases — particularly those involving very young children, as well as those with special needs — some kind of exceptions need to be made.
As Bruck's story continues to make headlines, it's sparked quite the debate online.
Many people appear to empathize with the mother and believe that JetBlue went too far.
"I'm pro mask, I don't have kids," wrote one Facebook user. "But I do know that toddlers, especially under stressful situations like travel can be very difficult. This isn't right."
"To get a toddler to sit still on a plane is a challenge itself," wrote another person. "Poor mom. I isn't easy traveling with so many kids of all ages let alone a toddler."
Others argued that it's a safety risk, fair and square.
"Put the freaking mask on the kid," wrote one person. "It's for her own protection."
In fact, that's precisely how the folks at JetBlue seem to feel.
WhenĀ the Daily NewsĀ reached out to the corporation about Wednesday's incident in Orlando, the airline adamantly defended its mask policy.
"During these unprecedented times, our first priority is to keep crew members and customers safe, and we've quickly introduced new safety policies and procedures throughout the pandemic," said JetBlue spokesman Derek Dombrowski. "Children age 2 and over must wear a face covering, consistent with CDC guidelines, which say, 'masks should not be worn by children under the age of 2.'"
