On her flight from Hawaii to Texas, 25-year old Brittany Oswell was said to have felt dizzy. According to New York Times, she began to speak with slurred speech and become more and more disoriented. She then fainted and the doctor on board assumed less of what her condition really was, saying it may have been a slight panic attack. However, on this flight, Oswell had suffered from pulmonary embolism and cardiac arrest.

About an hour later from the incident, Oswell had thrown up on other flight attendants and even herself. The doctor then urgently requested to the flight crew and pilot that they land the plane immediately to receive medical attention at the nearest airport, and instead the pilot disregarded the doctor’s request to divert the plane as soon as possible. Three days later, Oswell had passed at Baylor Medical Center in Dallas.

Recently, the news on her death surfaced the web and many were enraged by this action taken by the pilot. People then connected this to racism and pointed out that people pay less attention to the lives of colored people especially in times of need; even comparing this to the time when the dog died on a United flight, saying more people cared about the time than when a woman of color passed away on an American Airlines flight. This idea made more grow to despise the incident. Lauren Bui (11) saw this go viral online and addressed that “this should not happen to anybody, no matter what the conditions are.”

Two years later, the family of Brittany Oswell still felt angered that their daughter had to die so terribly and all because of the pilot. Still, they are struggling with her death. Currently, they are suing and pressing charges against the pilot for making such a close-minded decision. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, made by the family argues for her death that the airline was ultimately irresponsible and contributed majorly to her death. and an onboard defibrillator and blood pressure monitor were faulty. According to Brad Cranshaw, the attorney representing Oswell’s family, the doctor had requested to land three times (Business Insider). Additionally, it was noted that the medical equipment on the flight was not working properly in order to aid Oswell, thus leading to the doctor asking for immediate landing.

Hopefully, the Oswell family will get the justice they deserve for their daughter and her wrongful death. It is upsetting that people will disregard another person’s life when it is on the line and no one should have to suffer like that.