Originally Posted by gcashin

Those rows are priority seats (normal seat, just happen to be at the front of the aircraft) and can only be reserved by Altitude status members, of Latitude fares as far as I'm aware. Distinction status doesn't do anything for you as far as seat selection.

If you do a dummy booking with Latitude, those priority seats will show available, but they are only available on Flex/Tango fares if you have Altitude status, so will show as blocked if you select Flex or Tango.

Your options are:
Pay for a preferred seat (bulkhead, exit row)
Pick an available economy seat (keeping in mind you won't have access to the priority seats at the front)