Three black men are accusing American Airlines of racial discrimination in a lawsuit filed after the airline removed the plaintiffs and five other black men from a flight.
They reportedly were told after disembarking that they were removed from the flight “because of a complaint about body odor,” but they said no one accused them of that on the plane. The men, who didn’t know one another, were later let back on the Phoenix-to-New York flight.
“We take all claims of discrimination very seriously and want our customers to have a positive experience when they choose to fly with us,” American said in a statement to the New York Times. “Our teams are currently investigating the matter, as the claims do not reflect our core values or our purpose of caring for people.”
A cellphone recording obtained by the outlet revealed an American employee agreeing with a man who had described the removal as discriminatory, saying they agreed. The men are requesting compensation for “fear, humiliation, embarrassment, mental pain, suffering and inconvenience” they endured, as well as punitive damages.
An attorney working with Public Citizen, Lauren Bateman, said the men were removed because they were black men.
WTF!
American Airlines threw 8 Black men off one of their flights.
Watch this insane video of what happened.
This is racist discrimination. That’s why we & @OuttenGolden are suing American Airlines on behalf of 3 passengers. pic.twitter.com/Q1YjOzOua6
— Public Citizen (@Public_Citizen) May 29, 2024
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“This case is on behalf of the three individual plaintiffs to seek a remedy for what they went through, but it’s bigger than that,” Michael Kirkpatrick, the lead lawyer working on the case for the Public Citizen Litigation Group, said. “What we’re hoping to accomplish with this case is some changes going forward where American Airlines will be reforming their practices and making a change in their culture.”
The case was filed in a Brooklyn federal court.