Woman slams airline for calling her 'Miss' instead of 'Doctor': 'This was not about my ego'
A doctor who slammed Qantas for calling her “Miss” is receiving public backlash — however, she said she was trying to highlight “everyday sexism.”
After tweeting at the Australian airline, Siobhan O’Dwyer responded to criticism on Twitter, writing, “This was not about my ego.”
Copping so much flack for this tweet. This was not about my ego. It was about highlighting one of a thousand instances of sexism that women encounter every day. It’s not about the title, it’s about the fact that this wouldn’t have happened if I was a man. https://t.co/1XHvQIb2iZ
— Dr Siobhan O'Dwyer (@Siobhan_ODwyer) September 2, 2018
O’Dwyer was boarding a Qantas plane when a flight attendant reportedly looked at her boarding pass — which said “Dr. O’Dwyer” — and instead addressed her as “Miss O’Dwyer.”
“Do not look at my ticket, look at me, look back at my ticket, decide it’s a typo, and call me Miss O’Dwyer,” Dwyer shared on social media. “I did not spend 8 years at university to be called Miss.”
Hey @Qantas, my name is Dr O’Dwyer. My ticket says Dr O’Dwyer. Do not look at my ticket, look at me, look back at my ticket, decide it’s a typo, and call me Miss O’Dwyer. I did not spend 8 years at university to be called Miss.
— Dr Siobhan O'Dwyer (@Siobhan_ODwyer) August 31, 2018
O’Dwyer is a senior lecturer in Aging and Family Care at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom with a PhD.
Her original tweet received more than 8,000 likes and sparked a conversation about casual sexism, with passionate opinions supporting the academic.
However, she has also received a barrage of hate mail from outraged members of the public. According to a recent post, she has asked Twitter to filter out threatening messages. “Sincere apologies if you’ve contacted me for a legitimate reason & not had a response,” she wrote on Thursday. “In an effort to filter out the vitriol, Twitter has inadvertently filtered out some of the kindness & genuine enquiries. Bear with.”
When asked about the specific incident, Qantas commented on their crew’s behavior in general. “We are extremely proud of our cabin crew who respectfully serve our customers day in and day out and play a vital safety role,” A Qantas spokesperson told Yahoo on Thursday. “Our crew treat all passengers with the utmost respect, regardless of age, gender, and occupation.”
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