Naming your baby is probably a tricky proposition. You may be torn between impulses to select a baby name that honors a relative but also giving the kid their own identity. One mother wanted their child to have a VERY unique name and possibly went a little overboard. Maybe Traci Redford was having trouble naming her daughter, so she was possibly inspired by the alphabet.
She named her daughter “Abcde.” No. Really. This actually happened. Dafuq?Traci took her 5-year-old daughter Abcde on a Southwest Airlines flight from John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, to El Paso, Texas. Allegedly, a Southwest Airlines agent at the gate mocked the little girl’s name. The employee reportedly took a photo of the girl’s boarding pass and posted it to social media. Just thank our lucky stars that Abcde’s brother HIJK, pronounced “Hijack,” wasn’t on the same plane, that would have been a major problem.
“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,’” Redford told ABC7. The mother is now claiming that the agent engaged in “name shaming.”
Her daughter's name is Abcde (pronounced Ab-city). @ABC7 pic.twitter.com/iHpBPoakYI
— Veronica Miracle (@ABC7Veronica) November 28, 2018
“It was actually brought to my attention by somebody who had seen it on Facebook and reported it to Southwest Airlines. And after two weeks of doing a formal complaint, Southwest hadn’t done anything.” Southwest Airlines has since apologized for the incident, but did not indicate if any disciplinary action would be taken against the gate agent. There are rumors that Southwest will name the rows of seating after Abcde as an offer of goodwill.
Southwest Airlines has apologized after a gate agent reportedly mocked the name of a passenger’s 5-year-old daughter a few weeks ago. The girl’s name is spelled “Abcde” but is pronounced “Ab-city.” Ab City?
Hopefully, Abcde doesn’t gain weight because then it will be pronounced “Obesity.” Parents, please take naming your children serious, this is for the rest of their life, not some vanity license plate. Hopefully, Abcde doesn’t use her name as her password.
“The post is not indicative of the care, respect, and civility we expect from all of our Employees,” Southwest said in a statement. “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 emphasize our expectations for all Employees.”
If the agent was pointing and laughing at a 5-year-old that’s pretty messed up, but there’s a high probability that she was making fun of the mother for purposely naming her daughter after the alphabet. That crazy part is that there have been 339 girls named “Abcde” in the United States between 2000 and 2017, which is 338 more than I anticipated. No word on how many boys have been named “LMNOP,” pronounced “Elemenopi.”
The internet voiced their opinions as the internet does — with snark and funny jokes, most at the expense of the mother.
— Anthony Jeselnik (@anthonyjeselnik) November 30, 2018
— Paul Sacca (@Paul_Sacca) December 1, 2018
Girl.
— apollho creed 🖤✨ (@its_britney) November 29, 2018
— Chris D'Elia (@chrisdelia) November 29, 2018
— Lisa (@CatchingHorses) November 29, 2018
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) November 30, 2018
— mary sissyswitchmas🎄 (@missunitedface) November 29, 2018
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) November 29, 2018
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) November 30, 2018
— ♛Steven Reyesʕ•̬͡•ʔ (@KiddRican1) November 29, 2018
Having such a unique name is probably fun for a few years or so. Then by the time you’re 16 you’re sick AF of explaining your ridiculous name. You probably have a script written out in your head explaining how your name is pronounced “Ab-city” and people always are nice to your face and say, “Wow, what a unique name.”
The moral of the story is that if you purposely name your child some wacky name to get attention then you can’t be surprised or “outraged” when said wacky name brings uncalled for attention, positive or negative.
Please enjoy the “Substitute Teacher” skit from the brilliant Key & Peele.
[Fortune]
