American Airlines faces discrimination lawsuit after kicking 8 black men off flight

Three black men have filed a lawsuit against American Airlines, alleging they were victims of “blatant and egregious racial discrimination” after being kicked off a flight.

In a lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court, the three plaintiffs — Alvin Jackson, Emmanuel Jean Joseph and Xavier Veal — claim they and five other black passengers were kicked off an American Airlines flight from Phoenix to the airport International John F. Kennedy of New York. in January “for no good reason, based solely on their race.”

The eight men did not know each other and were not seated together on the flight.

According to the lawsuit, an American Airlines representative approached each of the eight men and told them to leave the plane and return to the gate in order to get a new reservation.

“In fact, once they arrived at the bridge, they saw that several other black men were also being removed from the plane. In fact, it appeared to plaintiffs that American had ordered all black passengers on Flight 832 to get off the plane,” the lawsuit states.

Once the eight men got off the plane, they finally discovered the reason for their removal: an employee told the men that someone on the plane had complained about body odor. Jackson, Joseph and Veal say they were not told they had body odor, according to the lawsuit.

When the three men pointed out that they were being treated unfairly because of their race, an American Airlines staff member said she “did not disagree,” the lawsuit states.

The eight men were finally allowed back on the plane nearly an hour after the airline determined there were no available flights to JFK Airport that evening.

“The plaintiffs then had to reboard the plane and endure stares from the largely white passengers, who considered them the cause of the significant delay. They suffered throughout the entire flight home, and the entire incident was traumatic, upsetting, frightening, humiliating and degrading,” the lawsuit states.

In a statement to NPR, American Airlines said it takes all allegations of discrimination “very seriously” and wants its customers to have a “positive experience” when flying with it.

“Our teams are currently investigating this matter because these allegations do not reflect our core values ​​or our purpose of caring for people,” the airline said.

Jackson, Joseph and Veal say what happened to them was “wrong” and that their experience flying with the airline left them embarrassed and humiliated.

“Imagine a flight attendant ordering every white person off a plane because of a complaint about a white person. This would never happen. But this is what happened to us,” the three men said. “There is no explanation other than the color of our skin…clearly it was discrimination.”

The lawsuit is the latest in a series of recent incidents in which the airline has faced allegations of racial discrimination.

In February, a Chicago woman said she was discriminated against after a flight attendant allegedly confronted her while she was using the plane’s first-class restroom.

Pamela Hill-Veal, who is black, says that while she and her family were flying first class on Feb. 10 from Chicago to Phoenix, one of the American Airlines flight attendants stopped her as she was returning in her seat – and accused her of snapping. the toilet door.

“The flight attendant stopped me as I was returning to my seat and told me that I had ‘slammed the bathroom door and not to do it again since the passengers were sleeping on the plane’.” Hill-Veal said in an interview with NPR. She said she never slammed the door.

In a statement to NPR, American Airlines said it has been in contact with Hill-Veal to learn more about her experience.

“We strive to ensure that every customer has a positive travel experience and we take all allegations of discrimination very seriously,” the airline said.

When asked if it planned to change its staff training or policies, the airline did not respond.

In 2023, the company drew criticism after two separate incidents – one involving track star Sha’Carri Richardson and another involving musician David Ryan Harris – made headlines.

Richardson was forced to leave her American flight following an argument with a flight attendant. Richardson said the flight attendant was harassing her and trying to intimidate her, Axios reported.

In a statement to Axios, the airline said it was investigating all allegations of discrimination, adding: “American Airlines strives to provide a positive and welcoming experience for everyone who flies with us, and we take allegations discrimination very seriously. »

And in September of that year, Harris, who was traveling with his two mixed-race children, claims he was stopped and questioned at Los Angeles International Airport after an American Airlines flight attendant suspected him of trafficking. of children.

After the incident, Harris released a statement that he said was given to him by American: “We and our flight attendant realized that our policies regarding suspected human trafficking were not being followed, and through coaching and counseling…our flight attendant realizes that their interaction and observations did NOT meet the criteria that human trafficking was taking place.

Concerns about discrimination have followed Americans for several years. In 2017, the NAACP, the nation’s oldest civil rights organization, issued an advisory warning Black travelers to be cautious when flying on American Airlines.

The airline’s president responded by stating that the company “would not tolerate discrimination of any kind”, and the notice was lifted the following year.

Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, told NPR that the details of the latest lawsuit filed are “troubling.” He encourages the black community to continue to “stand up and speak out” against discrimination.

“Let’s be clear: Traveling as a Black person should not be characterized by humiliation and disparate interruptions. While we recognize a brand’s ability to evolve beyond past mistakes, part of that evolution includes a continued accountability for any deviation from core values,” Johnson said.