By Zoe Papadakis | Wednesday, 29 October 2025 12:44 PM EDT
Model and body-positivity advocate Tess Holliday has revealed that she was told to “lose weight” by a flight attendant while traveling with her son on a United Airlines flight departing Tampa, Florida.
Holliday told People that the incident occurred in the first-class cabin when she accidentally pressed a call button while using the restroom. “I was in the restroom, and my hip hit the flight attendant call button,” she said. When she emerged, the flight attendant began discussing her travel with her child, stating, “losing weight would be in my best interest.”
According to Holliday, the flight attendant referenced his sister, whom he described as “very, very large, probably [Holliday’s] size,” claiming she had also faced discrimination while flying. He reportedly advised both women that long-term health effects of their body types were “not good.” The conversation lasted approximately 10 minutes.
“I didn’t want to make a scene because my son was flying with me, but I was in a state of shock,” Holliday said. Her 9-year-old son was traveling in first class for the first time and had been watching “Lilo & Stitch” before the incident.
After landing, Holliday contacted United Airlines to report the encounter, expressing no desire for the flight attendant’s termination but suggesting sensitivity training. The airline apologized, and Holliday referred the company to the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance. She noted the timing was “ironic,” as she had recently spoken to students about body confidence at an event promoting her new book, “Take Up Space, Y’all.”
Holliday, a longtime advocate for plus-size representation, also criticized the growing use of GLP-1 weight loss medications, stating they have made it harder for curvy models to find work. “Society has moved to a place where thinness is in, and body positivity is no longer popular for many brands,” she said during an Oct. 24 appearance on “Good Morning Britain.”
