Mum's rage after airline worker mocked five-year-old daughter's unusual name

22 September 2023 , 12:02

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Traci Redford was furious after Southwest Airlines staff mocked her daughter's name (Image: ABC News)

A mum has been left fuming after airline staff laughed at her five-year-old's name - and she's blasted the company for their inaction. Traci Redford bestowed her daughter with the moniker Abcde, which is pronounced ab-city. According to Nameberry, Abcde was first recorded on the charts in 1990, when it was given to five baby girls. It was used consistently from 1997-2021, peaking in 2009 when 32 girls received the name.

The mother said her epileptic child was ridiculed by Southwest Airlines staff as they boarded their plane, leaving Abcde distraught. "She said 'Mum, why is she laughing at my name? And I said not everyone is nice and not everyone is going to be nice and it's unfortunate'," Ms Redford explained.

Ms Redford said her daughter was ridiculed by airline employees (ABC 7)

She said a check-in agent laughed in the family's faces at John Wayne Airport, and shared a photo of the daughter's boarding pass on Facebook. "The gate agent started laughing, pointing at me and my daughter, talking to other employees. So I turned around and said, 'Hey if I can hear you, my daughter can hear you, so I'd appreciate if you'd just stop'," Ms Redford told ABC.

"While I was sitting there, she took a picture of my boarding pass and chose to post it on social media, mocking my daughter." The mother said the Facebook post was actually brought to her attention by somebody who had seen it online, so she reported it to Southwest Airlines.

The boarding pass in question (ABC 7)

She claimed two weeks after the formal complaint, the airline hadn't done anything about the situation. Southwest Airlines eventually issued an apology but refused to reveal whether or not the agent had been fired or faced any other kind of disciplinary action.

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"We extend our sincere apology to the family. We take great pride in extending our Southwest Hospitality to all of our Customers, which includes living by the Golden Rule and treating every individual with respect, in person or online," the company said in a statement. "The post is not indicative of the care, respect, and civility we expect from all of our employees. We have followed up with the employee involved, and while we do not disclose personnel actions publicly, we are using this as an opportunity to reinforce our policies and emphasise our expectations for all employees."

Billie Schwab Dunn