'I was dress coded by a flight attendant and it left me on the brink of tears'

Daily Record

21-07-2025

"It was literally so embarrassing, just being s*** shamed in front of everybody"
A woman claimed she was "dress coded" and "sl** shamed" by a flight attendant for what she was wearing on a plane. Singer Jacy boarded a Southwest Airlines flight in 2022 wearing a corset top.
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Due to the hot weather, with the temperature around 39C at the time, Jacy and many of her fellow flyers were wearing light clothing. But she was left on the brink of tears after the confrontation.
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She alleges that the cabin crew member approached her in front of other passengers and asked her to cover herself up. Not only was she hurt by the comment, Jacy felt she was "more clothed than half the plane".
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In a TikTok recorded after the incident, she said that the majority of travellers were wearing shorts and tank tops due to the heat, so she didn't understand why she was picked out - or her outfit deemed inappropriate.
Another passenger, an actor called Melinna Bobadilla, stood up for Jacy - and claims she was thrown off the flight for doing so, The Mirror reports.
Both women turned to social media in the aftermath of the 'dress coding' incident to tell their stories. Jacy, who goes by the TikTok username @maybejacy, said she was approached before getting on the plane.
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She said that the flight attendant tapped her on the shoulder and asked whether she had a jacket or another item of clothing she could use to put over the corset top.
Jacy refused and the Southwest Airlines employee said she would get a T-shirt for the flyer to wear over her clothes. Jacy said she wouldn't wear it and boarded the plane as planned.
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Posting about the incident, she said: "I was literally going to cry. I was about to cry. It was literally so embarrassing, just being s*** shamed in front of everybody. If it wasn't for this lady [Melinna], my angel, I love her."
Her TikTok video has accrued more than 620,000 likes since being posted. In it, Jacy is sitting in her seat holding up the T-shirt in question.
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She wrote: 'Bro I got dress coded on a flight? Are we in high school? Are you upset about my shoulders? It's 102F? My torso is fully clothed. And it caused a scene because some sweet lady stuck up for me and then got kicked off the flight."
She captioned the video: "Give me my money back... or send me a bottle of expensive champagne."
Melinna has since come forward on X, formerly Twitter, to tell her side of the story. She alleged that the flight attendant "became defensive when I asked about what rules the young woman was breaking."
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According to Melinna: "She responded with 'She is wearing a corset and this is a family company. Some people find it offensive.' I then told the employee that I felt threatened and offended by the man directly behind me wearing a 'Let's Go Brandon' shirt, and she did not care."
She added: "Basically, Southwest Airlines s*** shamed a young woman of colour for wearing a tank top they deemed offensive, forced her to wear a company-issued sweater, removed me for questioning their misogynistic policy, exercised a double standard when enforcing an alleged offensive attire rule
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"The raggedy folks at Southwest Airlines in Sacramento disrespected two women of colour, endangered one by needlessly calling the cops, and went out of their way to protect a conservative white man. Yup, that tracks. Southwest Airlines is steamy, stale trash. Go out of business already."
Southwest Airlines replied to Melinna's thread, which has been widely retweeted, advising her to message them directly with any further details about her experience.
However, Melinna replied: "I don't have faith that this can be rectified via DMs Brenna, unless you are authorised to issue an official apology, reimburse me for all costs incurred related to booking new travel, and issue a check for damages and emotional distress."
Melinna went on to claim she had called up the airline, only to be placed on hold for more than an hour on two separate calls, meaning she was unable to resolve the matter. She also advised she will be seeking legal counsel.
The Mirror approached Southwest Airlines for comment when the story first came to light in 2022.
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