A lawsuit has been brought against American Airlines by a trio of black men, claiming racial discrimination and guilt by association after eight black passengers, none traveling together, were removed from a flight in Phoenix after a white flight attendant complained of body odor.
Eight Black Men Removed From One American Airlines Flight For Body Odor
Let’s review the facts, as outlined in the lawsuit:
- On January 5, 2024, plaintiffs Alvin Jackson, Emmanuel Jean Joseph and Xavier Veal boarded American Airlines Flight 832 from Phoenix (PHX) to New York (JFK)
- Prior to that date, the plaintiffs had never met, and they were not seated together on the plane, though all three had traveled on the same flight from Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) to Phoenix
- Before takeoff, an American Airlines representative approached the plaintiffs one by one and ordered them off the plane without explanation
- In addition to the three plaintiffs, five other black men were removed from the plane and no other passengers
- It “appeared” that every black man onboard was removed
- An American Airlines gate agent informed the passengers that they would not be allowed back on the aircraft because a white male flight attendant had complained about the body odor of at least one of the passengers
- The plaintiffs were not accused of having offensive body odor
- When the plaintiffs pointed out that it looked like they were being targeted simply because they were black, at least one American agent responded that she did “not disagree” [this is captured on video]
- Meanwhile, the captain announced onboard that the men had been removed due to their body odor
- Upon finding that there were no alternative flights to get the men to JFK, the men were allowed back onboard
- The flight took off with the men in their originally assigned seats
The only thing that is not clear to me based on the complaint or a CBS interview of the plaintiffs by Kris Van Cleave is whether only a single man was accused of body odor or whether multiple passengers were. If AA received a complaint about one black male passenger having offensive body odor, then the solution was not to remove all black men onboard, but to determine which one had the body odor and remove him.
This certainly looks like another case similar to the recent American Airlines and Lufthansa cases in which unrelated Jewish passengers were grouped together.
The plaintiffs are seeking punitive damages against American Airlines (i.e. a lot of cash) for the discriminatory conduct.
My Thoughts
I find it virtually inconceivable to defend the conduct onboard…I see no possible way unless every single black man onboard smelled, and that strikes me as virtually impossible.
Earlier this month I was on a late-evening flight from Chicago to Los Angeles. While seated during boarding, a group of four black men passed by me reeking to high heaven of marijuana. There would have been nothing racial about throwing them all off…the skunk-life smell was highly offensive…but they were seated together and traveling together.
This case appears very different. The three plaintiffs may have all begun their trip in Southern California but were not seated together and did not know one another.
You would think that if one or more of them did stink, it would be easy enough to identify them onboard. It is simply indefensible if they were all hauled off simply because of thier skin color..and that appears to be exactly what happened.
Can you imagine getting back on that aircraft with everyone looking at you as the reason for their delayed flight?
I’m quite sympathetic to the plaintiffs holding AA accountable for what appears to be very deplorable behavior by the gound staff in Phoenix (and potentially the flight attendant).
American Airlines says it is looking into the matter:
“We take all claims of discrimination very seriously and want our customers to have a positive experience when they choose to fly with us. Our teams are currently investigating the matter, as the claims do not reflect our core values or our purpose of caring for people.”
What a shame it did not look into this before the plaintiffs had to resort to a lawsuit…
* * *
One other issue that seems pertinent because this is a lawsuit about race.
One of the plaintiffs requested a first class upgrade but instead an “Asian woman” was upgraded:
American directed Plaintiffs to return to their original seats. Mr. Joseph requested a different seat, to avoid having to interact with the white male flight attendant. There was an available seat in first class that American could have given to Mr. Joseph. Instead, American staff upgraded an Asian woman to first class, and then allowed Mr. Joseph to take her assigned seat in coach.
I don’t like this part of the lawsuit. American Airlines follows a strict order for upgrades based upon AAdvtangae status and fare paid. This “Asian woman” was not upgraded due to her race, but because she was next in line for an upgrade.
And why refer to her as “Asian” as if she is foreign? I was at a dinner party recently in LA and an Australian woman asked a Japanese-American woman across the table, “Where are you from?”
Her (somewhat sarcastic) response? Pasadena, California.
So often Asian Americans are asked where they are from when many have been here for several generations. In this case, her parents were interned in Manzanar during World War II, making the question all the more offensive.
Don’t call whites or blacks American and Asian-Americans Asian…that’s offensive too.
CONCLUSION
The facts appear pretty damning toward American Airlines. I see no justification for the removal of eight black men unless every one of them stunk and there is no evidence to suggest that was the case. Quite the contrary, the fact that all were allowed back onboard makes it questionable that any of them stunk in the first place.
I expect the plaintiffs will receive a tidy settlement from AA and we might well see the other five black passengers join the lawsuit.
image: Outtten & Golden LLP
