A guy who asked a woman to stop speaking Spanish on a flight was soon put in his place as everyone around him started speaking Spanish in response.
Author Jaime Primak was travelling to New York City on an early morning flight earlier this week when a fellow passenger requested she stopped speaking in Spanish.
Business Insider report Primak was raised in New Jersey, however she is bilingual in English and Spanish – as are nearly 12 million other people in the US.
At our beloved @WGAEast #WGAstaffingboost #wga pic.twitter.com/N2JdtmuZHR
— Jaime Primak (@JaimePrimak) July 17, 2019
Considering there’s also 41 million native Spanish speakers in the country, according to the BBC, I think it’s safe to say the use of Spanish is a common occurrence, however apparently the rude man on Primak’s flight just couldn’t bear the thought of hearing foreign words.
The author took to Twitter to recall her experience, writing:
This man just asked me to “please stop speaking Spanish” on this plane to NYC (in his defense it’s very early and he’s racist).
It’s not clear whether Jaime immediately responded herself but she explained other people on the flight were quick to rally around her to make the man regret his ridiculous request.
The author said another passenger also started speaking Spanish, as did the flight attendant, to prove to the rude man he had no right to try and stop Primak from speaking whatever language she wanted.
She went on to express her delight at the resulting situation, saying:
The man next to him STARTED SPEAKING SPANISH and then the flight attendant and my GOD i have never wanted to get up and dance more than i do now.
This man just asked me to “please stop speaking Spanish” on this plane to NYC (in his defense it’s very early and he’s racist) so the man next to him STARTED SPEAKING SPANISH and then the flight attendant and my GOD i have never wanted to get up and dance more than i do now.
— Jaime Primak (@JaimePrimak) July 16, 2019
Twitter users showed their support for Primak after she shared her story on social media, with many saying they would have joined in with speaking in a whole range of languages in order to make the man as uncomfortable as possible.
One person wrote:
I can’t speak Spanish but would probably have started swearing at him in a variety of other languages. I had a rather international upbringing & can swear in French, Dutch, German, Arabic, Turkish & Hong Kong Chinese.
Another Twitter user said they would have showed their support despite the fact they can’t actually speak Spanish, writing:
I don’t even speak Spanish and I would have gone at it just to annoy this guy
I can’t speak Spanish but would probably have started swearing at him in a variety of other languages. I had a rather international upbringing & can swear in French, Dutch, German, Arabic, Turkish & Hong Kong Chinese (had a Chinese roommate at school)
— Kirsty Farnfield ♿️ (@scrapchallenge1) July 17, 2019
I don't even speak Spanish and I would have gone at it just to annoy this guy
— William D. Adler (@williamadler78) July 17, 2019
Hope you kept speaking Spanish. There are over 800 languages spoken in NYC. This will be him. pic.twitter.com/f6pBWERz3S
— Darryl Wharton-Rigby (@whartonrigby) July 16, 2019
Hopefully the whole experience will have taught the man to leave others in peace in the future, no matter what language they’re speaking.
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.