“We were discriminated against. The entire situation was racist,” — passenger Xavier Veal.
In January 2024, eight passengers on Flight 832 from Phoenix to New York were Black men. All of them were asked to get off the plane due to what flight attendants described as “offensive body odor.” Three of the men had been on an earlier American Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Phoenix, where no similar complaint had been made. The men didn’t know each other and weren’t seated together. It was coincidental, apparently, that every Black man was asked to leave the plane.
The three men from Los Angeles weren’t having it. One filmed the incident, and the three sued American Airlines, claiming racial discrimination. The video allegedly backs up their claim that race was a factor in their removal. When no other flights to New York had seats available, the passengers were reboarded after an hour’s delay.
CEO Robert Isom sent a letter to American Airlines employees, taking responsibility and stating the need to do better.
In a later statement, American Airlines stated the employees would be placed on leave while the incident was being investigated.
If only this were an isolated incident involving American Airlines. In 2017, the NAACP issued a travel advisory advising members not to fly American after receiving numerous complaints. An agreement was reached between the NAACP and American Airlines, calling for establishing an advisory council, which ended its work in 2023. The NAACP made calls for further action after the recent lawsuit was filed.
Ison promised that American Airlines would “focus on improving the travel experience for Black customers,” and would ensure, ensure “swift and transparent handling” related to allegations of discrimination or bias.
To be continued . . .
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This post was previously published on William Spivey’s blog.
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You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:
 White Fragility: Talking to White People About Racism |
 Escape the “Act Like a Man” Box |
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Photo credit: Unsplash
