A woman was forcibly removed from a Southwest Airlines flight after she informed the crew of a deadly allergy she had to service dogs which were on the plane.
The flight crew informed the woman, identified as 46-year-old Anila Daulatzai from Baltimore, that the service dog on the flight could not be removed, the Los Angeles Times reported.
She could not show medical papers verifying her allergies and law enforcement was called when she refused to exit the plane heading from Baltimore-Washington International Airport to Los Angeles. Another passenger recorded a video of the incident as Daulatzai was taken down the aisle of the plane by officers.
“What are you doing?” she yelled as officers attempt to escort her off the plane.
“My dad has surgery tomorrow!” she told them before yelling, “Don’t touch me!”
“Walk!” shouted the officer behind Daulatzai as he wrapped his arms around her chest.
The 46-year-old college professor was taken into custody and charged with disorderly conduct, failure to obey a reasonable and lawful order, disturbing the peace, obstructing and hindering a police officer and resisting arrest, according to Lt. Kevin Ayd of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police, the Times reported.
Southwest Airlines was “disheartened by the way this situation unfolded” and planned to reach out to Daulatzai, airline spokesman Chris Mainz said in an apology issued after the incident.
Bill Dumas, the Los Angeles resident who recorded the video, told the Times that other passengers seemed to think the “officers didn’t have another option.”
“It went from this very quiet conversation and suddenly erupted into this big physical confrontation,” he said.
While some passengers could be heard encouraging Daulatzai to cooperate and walk off the plane herself, others had no sympathy.
“Jeez, lady, get off the plane. Make the complaint later!” one man could be heard saying.
Daulatzai reportedly teaches at the Maryland Institute College of Art, a spokesman for the school confirmed to the Times. She is listed as a socio-cultural anthropologist in the Humanistic Studies department, according to her online bio and was previously a visiting assistant professor of Women’s Studies and Islamic Studies at Harvard Divinity School.
There was also little sympathy for the booted passenger online, unlike when United Airlines dragged Dr. David Dao off a plane when he refused to give up his seat in an overbooked flight in April.
I have a deadly pet allergy, but NO! I will NOT get off the plane. ? https://t.co/5RKmKfFYIc
— Brian McIver (@bmciver) September 27, 2017
Get over it passenger, pets are allowed on flights; take a shot for your allergies or drive. https://t.co/LOpRrQNii6
— Cricket (@AbsurdWeb) September 27, 2017
Let’s assume passenger at risk did continue her journey, she went to a life death convulsion, what would #SouthWest position be, Act of God?
— Hampton Brown (@hebrwn) September 27, 2017
If I had a true “life threatening” allergy to a pet, and saw one on the plane. You couldn’t get me off the plane fast enough. Not buying it
— Joe Coppola (@thor82405) September 27, 2017
This Southwest video has me heated. Learn the facts before you post some shit about boycotting. The passenger was in the wrong.
— B Padre (@RUTHLESSC0UTURE) September 27, 2017
In a completely different take, Vogue magazine covered the incident with a story headlined, “It’s No Coincidence That the Southwest Passenger Dragged Off a Plane Is a Person of Color.”
According to Vogue:
Yet, this incident highlights how, especially in Trump’s America, traveling inherently carries more risk for people of color. In an age when travel bans are continuously issued, revised, and contested, when it’s never clear which visa type will remain valid, it is no surprise that anyone who doesn’t pass as white could feel an increased pressure at the airport, no matter what his or her immigration status might be. I, for one, have had many discussions with black and brown friends since the start of this presidency about how to present ourselves at the airport.
Vogue even concluded that Daulatzai’s experience “reminds us that the risks a passenger of color faces do not start or end at the immigration line.”
Unreal.
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
- ‘So satisfying!’ Karma comes potty-mouthed ‘Kayak Karen’ after she berates other boaters - March 28, 2024
- RFK Jr talks media bias, addresses possible Libertarian ticket in wide-ranging interview with Chris Cuomo - March 28, 2024
- ‘Why are you doing this?’ Joy Behar panicked that ‘clown’ RFK Jr will hand the election to Trump - March 28, 2024
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
BPR INSIDER COMMENTS
Scroll down for non-member comments or join our insider conversations by becoming a member. We'd love to have you!