A woman admitted she refused to give up her bus seat when a pregnant female got on board, but claims she had a good reason not to – and others agree with her
If you can, it’s usually common courtesy to give up your seat to someone who needs it more than you whenever you travel on busy public transport. This can include elderly people, those with disabilities who may not be able to stand for long periods of time, and pregnant women.
But one female has put her foot down and refused to sacrifice her seat on a packed bus for a pregnant woman who boarded after her. The woman claimed she had a good reason for refusing to move, even if it did anger the mum-to-be, and people have actually agreed with her.
In a post on Reddit, the 22-year-old woman said she has an invisible disability that means she can’t stand for long periods of time, so therefore needed her seat on the bus.
But when a pregnant woman got on a few stops later, she made a beeline straight for the young traveller and told her she “needed her seat”. The woman explained her disability and said she was unable to move, but the mum-to-be wouldn’t take no for an answer – even claiming she was “trying to harm her baby” by refusing to move.
The woman wrote: “I was sitting in a seat by the aisle, cramped between a school kid and a man with a massive backpack, when a pregnant woman (not heavily pregnant from what I could see) stepped into the bus. She took one look around, made a beeline for me and told me she needed my seat.
“No polite question, no please, no hello, just the demand to give up my seat. I explained to her that I had a disability and that I struggle standing, and that I would rather not be in pain.
“Without missing a beat, that woman began calling me rude and saying that I was trying to harm her and her baby by refusing to get up.”
Eventually, another passenger on the bus offered up their seat, and the mum-to-be was able to sit down. But when the woman later stood up to get off the bus, the other traveller couldn’t help but make a “snide remark”.
She added: “Some other woman then offered her seat, but I could feel for the rest of the ride that that pregnant woman was throwing glares at me. When I got up at my stop, she made a snide remark about how I was surely faking and that I could walk just fine.
“I just hate when some people feel like the world has to bend at their will just because they’re pregnant, and especially being so rude about the whole situation. I would’ve given up my seat no problem if I wasn’t disabled.”
Commenters on the post were largely on the poster’s side, with many saying the pregnant woman should have asked the school child or the man sitting in the same area if they would give up their seats instead.
One person said: “I know that it sounds a bit strange, but she chose to target you over a school kid and a man? And both the man and the school kid didn’t offer their seat to a pregnant woman?”
Another added: “I feel angry for you. I know how this would feel. I also cannot stand long without being in massive pain, but I use a wheelchair when I go out. If I were forced out of a seat and made to stand, I think I would end up falling down in pain.”
While a third posted: “Unfortunately, all you can do is ignore rude people to the best of your ability and know that hopefully you’ll never see her again! And don’t you just love that apparently NONE of the men on the bus stood up and offered her a seat automatically.”