90 Day Fiancé: Before The 90 Days season 5 star Alina Kasha is already a fan-favorite, but as the show goes on, viewers dislike her partner Caleb Greenwood more and more for how he treats her. The new season began with the Russian singer preparing to meet the Arizona-based meditation enthusiast in Turkey after a 13-year online friendship that apparently turned romantic. Alina decided to bring her best friend and roommate Elijah with her to Turkey, as she is a little person and needed some extra help navigating the new country in her wheelchair. Caleb didn't like the idea of bringing Elijah along to help, which instantly concerned viewers.
Alina and Elijah arrived at the hotel in Turkey before Caleb did, only to discover that Caleb had selected a hotel that was not very accessible. Fans were angry that Caleb hadn't considered Alina when booking the hotel; they were even more angry when Caleb said having to think about a hotel's accessibility for Alina was "overwhelming" for him. In the newest episode, Caleb was seen telling Alina she's "smaller than [he] thought." After pushing Alina in her wheelchair through the airport for a few minutes, he said his arm was "about to die" and suggested Alina "push him around" in the wheelchair instead. Alina said the interaction made her feel bad, and she hoped Caleb wasn't thinking it was "always going to be this hard with [Alina] and [her] wheelchair."
A quadriplegic Reddit user, Quadrupleawesomeness, called Caleb out for his behavior, referring to him as "ableist" and an "a***hole." The user said that they have never gone on a date with someone who treated them like a burden, but that is what Caleb did with Alina. The Redditor said of Caleb, "Why pretend you’re interested in someone your 'enlightened' self is only bound to complain about?" The user also accused him of using Alina's "disability for [his] benefit." Other Redditors in the comments agreed, called Caleb "vain" and accusing him of using Alina to simply get on TV and not really caring about her at all. "He put more thought into that terrible hiking backpack idea than he did about considering accessibility at the hotel," said another user.
Some fans think that both Caleb and Alina are seeking clout by being on the show. There are many viewers who believe that Alina was interested in being on 90 Day Fiancé purely to further her singing career. Lots of fans also noticed that Caleb seemed very eager to start making money on Cameo and thought maybe the show was more of an opportunity for him than anything else. Other viewers think that the two really did meet online 13 years prior to meeting in real life but that they are just friends. Upon meeting the Russian beauty for the first time, Caleb said that it was "jarring" to see her in person because they had only video-chatted "from the waist up." Skeptical of Caleb's intentions, many viewers noted that this is not the way most people would talk about someone they love.
Caleb previously responded to criticism from concerned viewers, claiming that the only criticism he received was from those who are not members of the disabled community. Before now, he said that he had only been receiving positive comments from people who are disabled or those who are close with a member of the disabled community. The newest season of 90 Day Fiancé: Before The 90 Days is still only in its first few episodes. Hopefully, the situation will seem less "jarring" to Caleb as the show goes on, and viewers will be able to see a happy ending for this couple.
90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days airs Sundays at 8 p.m. EST on TLC.
Source: Quadrupleawesomeness/Reddit