'I've had children too': Elderly woman takes priority seat from heavily pregnant commuter with a cast on her ankle

A story about a 34-weeks-pregnant woman who was forced to stand on the subway after an elderly passenger took the priority seat reserved for expectant mothers has stirred controversy online — made worse by the fact that the woman also had a cast on her ankle.

A video posted Saturday to the social media platform Threads showed the pregnant woman, identified only as A, standing in a subway car with her ankle in a cast.

A said she boarded the train and limped toward the priority seat for pregnant women, only to find an elderly woman had already sat down in it.

"We made eye contact as she sat down, but she looked away," A said, describing the moment.

A companion traveling with the elderly woman reportedly nudged her to give up the seat, but the woman refused, saying, "I've had children too." With no other seats available in the car, A ultimately had to stand for the entire ride.

Online commenters reacted with a mix of disbelief and frustration. "What's even more shocking is that nobody in the regular seats gave up their seat either," one user wrote. Others said they could not understand how someone could sit in a priority seat after seeing a visibly pregnant woman, while several noted the irony of the elderly woman's remark: "If she's had children herself, she should know better than anyone how uncomfortable that is." One commenter called the behavior "the height of shamelessness."