A British woman has ignited a storm on social media after criticising Marks & Spencer employees at London’s Heathrow Airport for speaking in Hindi. The incident has sparked widespread backlash online, with netizens labelling her actions as discriminatory and completely unnecessary.
The woman, identified as Lucy White, describes herself as a Public Policy Specialist. According to her now-viral post on X (formerly Twitter), she had just landed at Terminal 3 of Heathrow Airport and stopped by an M&S outlet. There, she overheard three employees having a conversation in a language she didn’t understand.
White later discovered they were speaking in Hindi, one of the most widely spoken languages in India. Unsettled by this, she asked them what language they were using, and upon receiving confirmation, she allegedly recorded their conversation and gathered their names with the intent to report them to Marks & Spencer.
“I asked them ‘What language are you speaking?’ They responded ‘Hindi’. I have a voice recording and their names to report to M&S. We must confront them every time,” she wrote in her post.
Her comments quickly drew criticism from social media users across the world. While a few tried to understand her perspective, the overwhelming majority questioned the logic behind her outrage and pointed out the normalcy of using one’s native language among colleagues.
One user commented, “I don’t see the issue with this. If I go to France with my wife, I’ll speak English with her it’s our native tongue. What am I missing here?”
Another post read, “What arrogance. If they’re not dealing with customers, what’s the problem? Did you speak fluent Spanish during your entire holiday in Spain?”
Others noted that it’s common for multilingual workplaces to have staff speak in their own languages when not addressing customers. “So long as they’re not addressing you in Hindi, why is it your business? Staff are allowed to talk to each other in their own language while doing routine work,” a user added.
An individual even drew from personal experience: “I’ve worked with three Polish colleagues for over 20 years. They speak to each other in Polish and to me in perfect English. I don’t see why that should be a problem for anyone.”
The incident has reopened conversations about linguistic freedom, inclusivity in the workplace, and whether personal discomfort should outweigh multicultural norms, especially in a diverse environment like London’s Heathrow Airport.
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