Black Passenger's Suit Says Flight Crew Reported He Was Allegedly Trafficking His White Wife

[Jilly_in_VA]

A Black passenger who flew with American Airlines in 2022 claims in a lawsuit that he and his white wife were wrongly imprisoned after crew members reported to local authorities that they suspected him of trafficking his wife.

On Sept. 13, 2022, retired police officer Anthony Williams boarded a flight from Phoenix to Miami for his honeymoon with Katsiaryna Shasholka. A fellow passenger told American Airlines employees that he believed Shasholka was being trafficked, according to the lawsuit filed last week in the Southern District of Florida.

The airline employees who took the passenger’s report did not question Williams or his wife but instead reported him to law enforcement, the lawsuit says. When they landed in Miami, Williams and Shasholka were escorted off the plane by American Airlines employees.

Williams and his wife say they were humiliated and confused as other passengers walked past them as they were made to wait at the airport, according to the lawsuit. The two were then questioned together by police.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/black-passenger-american-airlines-accused-trafficking-white-wife_n_67894849e4b088524807e450

Look for more of these incidents in the new administration.

[regnaD kciN]

1. I don't think it's even a matter of "the new administration"...

Pretty sure it's standard policy nowadays to take any accusation of sex-trafficking absolutely seriously and "let the police decide."

Yes, it seems pretty damn discriminatory, but imagine what the blowback would be if they simply questioned the couple, were told that no trafficking was going on, and then it turned out the woman was being trafficked. ("American Airlines had a chance to stop a woman from being sex-trafficked, but allowed her abuser to walk free!&quot When it comes to matters like that, the likelihood is that a zero-tolerance policy will be standard for the duration, and would have been even if Harris had won.

[JI7]

2. I'm not sure I blame the airline crew

but the passenger that made the accusation is probably the type that calls police if they see a black kid playing outside.

[Blue_Tires]

3. That's just a case of "flying while black"

Of course it was not the job of the airline employees who took the passenger’s report to ask questions; they believed the report was in good faith and passed it along to law enforcement like they were trained to do... The airline needs to out who made the report, though...

[JustAnotherGen]

4. I would agree

When people make accusations - they should have the guts to show their face and name.

Then again, my parents were run off the road when my mom was VERY pregnant in Fort Knox KY in 1971. Black male, white woman. It colors my perception and perspective.

I don't think our white peers who are liberals/progressives have really let it sink in that Black folks are back in the 1920's. Dangerous times Blue Tires. Stay alert.

[B.See]

5. Exactly... flying while Black

Would this have happened if the wife were Black? If both were white? Or even to a white person traveling with a Black minor? The answer is NO, and we know it.

Presumably, the husband and wife HAD to have presented documentation before even boarding.

The passenger was just trying to start the usual hate based racist sht. And the airline became party to it.

Sue the --- it out of em.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

6. Agree 100% n/t

[struggle4progress]

7. I took my young niece to a museum many years ago and was reported to police

by someone else visiting the museum as a suspected kidnapper. We were eventually stopped and questioned. The police wanted to know who the young girl was and why she was with me: I let go of my niece's hand and told the police to ask her; she said I was her uncle; and things settled down. The upthread comment seems about right -- you don't want police to ignore such accusations, although you do want them to be appropriate and even-handed when investigating