This is so totally unacceptable. So, security checked him over, realized he was not at all a threat – and they STILL wouldn’t fly him to his destination? Seriously? WTF?? How is this even legal? I understand if a flight attendant has strong suspicion of something, then there are reasonable grounds for action – but just because someone spoke Arabic? Again, WTF?? This is totally unreasonable.
According to the article, “The airline gave him a refund and put him on another flight hours later.”
It’s mostly unacceptable because of the way TPM wrote it up.
Thank you! Yeah, that was a sensationalist way to do it. I’m disappointed in that. I want the all the truth – not half of it. Thank you, @frankly_my_dear.
Still it must have been a harrowing experience for him. Imagine escaping Saddam’s Iraq and winding up in Trump’s America.
Hey Southwest, if you consider speaking Arabic on your planes to be “potentially threatening comments”, do us all the courtesy of making it clear…so we know where we stand.
Maybe alongside federal marshalls, you should consider flying linguists on all your flights.
What should disturb people was the airline’s response to what this young man was put through, corporate speak at its most heartless and coldest. They would not think twice about treating another passenger in this disrespectful manner in the future, and all based one passenger’s paranoia. I retired from a major airline shortly before 9/11 and I saw paranoia even then, and passengers who didn’t know what they were observing still influenced management’s handling of passengers and sometimes crew members who had nothing wrong.
“We regret any less than positive experience onboard our aircraft,” Southwest said.
You and I are thinking along the same lines – I immediately went to Trump and his assholiness. I’m sorry this young man was put through it. I hope Southwest finds that they need to write this man a sincere apology. I do understand how difficult it must be to be a flight attendant or airline employee and have to deal with all kinds of shit. I’m curious as to what the airline will do with this particular employee – additional training, perhaps, in how to spot just an asshole being an asshole or someone who is genuinely afraid (legitimately or not)? Seriously, the industry needs to deal with this problem, as it happens more than we are told. I knew someone years ago to whom it happened (and, yes, it was Southwest). He never received an official apology or anything resembling an excuse.
Getting kicked off a plane for saying “If God wills” in ANY language is unacceptable.
How would you feel being in that guys shoes?
I don’t think it’s because of how TPM wrote it up. Had it been me, I would not be particularly over joyed that I got a refund and flew several hours after being interrogated by the FBI because I spoke some Arabic.
Southwest is Mrs darr’s and my usual airline. I’ve never encountered this sort of behavior from them. Beatty, I would agree an apology from the airline is in order. A refund and flight later would not mollify me were I in that guy’s shoes.
After all, the guy was put thru an interrogation from the FBI. It should have been apparent quickly that “Inshallah” is not a dangerous comment by itself.
maybe southwest could charge a $25 fee for anyone who feels the need to speak arabic on a flight.
Or pass out a translation of the conversation so all concerned can be on the same page? This level of fear has a source. I think it wears a comb over and loves to build walls to separate people.
When I lived in California, I used Southwest often and I never had an issue (me personally). Somewhere around 2003-4, a friend of mine (born and raised in Tehran) was held off a flight for pretty much the same reason as this guy. He and his brother were flying back from Southern California, and someone didn’t like their looks (they dressed like me – blue jeans, sneakers, nice shirt, etc.). They have dark olive complexion and an accent. I’m guessing he and his brother may have been speaking Farsi, but I don’t remember. Anyway, they were held over and didn’t make it home until four hours later. Southwest did fly them home, but (from what I can remember) they never received an official apology. I’m not even sure they got any of their fare refunded. I just remember being shaken by it because he was a good friend and wouldn’t hurt a fly. I think I was more pissed off than he was.
According to the writeup in Gawker the woman reported him because she mistook “inch’Allah” for “shahid” or martyr. Which means she has a few “notions” of Arabic pulled from Islamophobic sites — just enough to think she knows something, but far too little to realize just how little she knows. I mean, how could she miss “inch’Allah” which is one of the most common things people say? (Hell, even I say it with my Arab friends.) And the point is, the airline workers and everyone up to the FBI listened to her just because she felt uncomfortable that he looked at her the wrong way? Imagine it was a black person who looked at her funny and she got it into her head that he was a potential rapist. How does it happen that one person’s twisted view activates a whole mechanism of intrusion and humiliation against which there is no appeal (even if they did put him on another flight later)? Southwest owes this young man a public apology and indeed, more than that. And that woman should be warned against inconveniencing whole planeloads of fellow passangers on a whim in the future.
Wow, Southwest has studied well and mastered the “Republican Apology.”
This doesn’t even rise to the level of a Republican apology. Even Republicans don’t consider “Tough Shit” to be an apology.
darrtown: This level of fear has a source. I think it wears a comb over and loves to build walls to separate people.
give teddy his due. he also excels at the fear thing.
inshallah. oops. that could get me tossed from a southwest flight.
100% agreed!
Thank you for this comment!!