Recently, news about Cathay Pacific stewardesses discriminating against passengers has drawn attention. Netizen “Little Sweet Potato 62755FCA” shared on Xiaohongshu (a social media platform) that on May 21, 2023, she took Cathay Pacific flight CX987 from Chengdu to Hong Kong and happened to be seated in the last row, near the area where the crew prepared meals and rested. According to her description, the Cathay Pacific stewardesses continuously complained about passengers not speaking English, using English and Cantonese, and even mocking and ridiculing them. Based on the audio evidence provided by the netizen, the flight attendants mocked passengers in English during private communication, deeming that passengers who couldn’t say “blanket” in English didn’t deserve to have a blanket, saying, “If you cannot speak blanket, you cannot have it” and “Carpet is on the floor.” Additionally, the stewardess mocked an elderly person with a child for not understanding human language and not knowing the Cantonese announcement that the safety signal light hadn’t been turned off and they should return to their seats. When a passenger in front of this netizen tried to ask the stewardess how to fill out the immigration form in English, they received an extremely impatient response. The netizen expressed heartache, sadness, and anger, questioning, “Why is there so much malice towards passengers who don’t speak English or Cantonese?” and “We don’t ask for extra service, why can’t they even show basic respect?” This incident sparked heated discussions in public opinion. Cathay Pacific issued two apology statements within one day, first stating that they had contacted the passenger to understand the situation and would handle the matter with a “zero-tolerance” attitude, and then in a statement signed by CEO Lin Shaobo, they announced the dismissal of three involved flight attendants and promised a comprehensive review. Judging from the public’s response, this incident is not an isolated case. The service attitude of Cathay Pacific stewardesses has long been characterized by accumulated grievances. Many netizens have revealed their experiences of being discriminated against by Cathay Pacific stewardesses in the past. The absurdity lies in the fact that the discrimination targets and causes are not simply limited to “poor English/Cantonese” or “mainland Chinese.” Based on the reactions of people from both sides of the strait and even Chinese in Southeast Asia, “Hong Kong people with poor English also face discrimination,” “Taiwanese people can also be discriminated against,” “I am Malaysian, Cathay Pacific stewardesses refuse to speak Mandarin,” and “Cathay Pacific stewardesses clearly understand Mandarin but pretend to only speak English.” Cathay Pacific stewardesses are all Chinese, yet they always “don’t understand Chinese.” Their discriminatory language and differential service attitude persist throughout the two-hour flight and have remained consistent over the past one or two decades, targeting the entire Chinese-speaking community regardless of region, treating outsiders as superior and looking down upon their own people. The reality of “On Cathay’s planes, as long as you’re not white, being good at English is not enough” reveals that “internalized discrimination” has deeply penetrated the Cathay Pacific cabin crew. Apart from feeling uncomfortable, heartbroken, and angry, it is also surprising and puzzling because the stewardesses’ actions not only contradict official policies and professional ethics but also defy basic business logic. Their behavior is purely detrimental to both themselves and the company’s profits. It is illogical from any perspective and ultimately confusing behavior that is unfavorable to their wallets.
