Not being brown is no protection against being profiled as brown [via UB]. You don’t have to be Muslim, you don’t have to be desi, you can even be Jewish and you can still be physically attacked by a vigilante passenger acting in the name of “security”:
Seth Stein is used to jetting around the world to create stylish holiday homes for wealthy clients… As he settled down with a book and a ginger ale, the father-of-three was grabbed from behind and held in a head-lock.
“This guy just told me his name was Michael Wilk, that he was with the New York Police Department, that I’d been acting suspiciously and should stay calm. I could barely find my voice and couldn’t believe it was happening,” said Mr Stein.
“He went into my pocket and took out my passport and my iPod. All the other passengers were looking concerned.” Eventually, cabin crew explained that the captain had run a security check on Mr Stein after being alerted by the policeman and that this had cleared him. The passenger had been asked to go back to his seat before he had restrained Mr Stein … He has since been told by airline staff he was targeted because he was using an iPod, had used the toilet when he got on the plane and that his tan made him appear “Arab”. [Link]
Tan + toilet use + iPod = suspicious passenger.So Wilk felt Stein was acting “suspiciously” because he was swarthy, used the toilet and had an iPod. Wilk complains to the Captain who runs a security check and says the passenger is OK. Wilk still attacks him anyway!
Are the other passengers concerned about this vigilante passenger who doesn’t listen to the Captain and who attacks innocent architects? No - they’re happy to have him on board, making them safer from the dark skinned man:
“This man could have garrotted me and what was awful was that one or two of the passengers went up afterwards to thank him,” said Mr Stein… Mr Stein said: “The other passengers looked and me and said, ‘What did you do?’ It was so humiliating. The fact is he [the police officer] was told I was OK and should have left me alone. [Link]
The story gets weirder - it turns out that “Wilk” may have lied about his real identity, which is fishy behavior for a law enforcement officer:
In a twist to the story, Mr Stein has since discovered that there is only one Michael Wilk on the NYPD’s official register of officers, but the man retired 25 years ago. Officials have told the architect that his assailant may work for another law enforcement agency but have refused to say which one. [Link]
Law enforcement is supposed to fight bad guys and act transparently, not attack civilians and hide their identities.
The airline apologized, sorta, but not really, blaming it all on “Wilk”:
American Airlines apologised to Mr Stein, who was born in New York, but withdrew an initial offer of $2,000 compensation on the grounds it would be an admission of liability. In a letter dated 30 May, the airline said it had done everything possible to try and protect Mr Stein.
It read: “Unfortunately, as in any public gathering, there may be occasions when a conflict arises between people or when one individual’s actions bother another… As our crew members may not always be witness to the inappropriate acts of a particular passenger, there may be a limit to what our crews can do to improve behaviour that is perceived as a nuisance.” [Link]
Yeah - having somebody grab you and put you in a headlock and go through your personal belongings is a “nuisance.” Would it have been a “nuisance” if it had been the other way around?
Stein, obviously, is suing the airline.
This is the reason why I reject the claim that Sikhs would not get attacked if people could better distinguish Sikhs from Muslims. Xenophobia is generic, bigots don’t care. Both as a matter or principle and practice, I prefer to advocate for everybody’s civil rights, not just those of my subgroup.
Note: The original story is dated October 2006.
More on Stein and his high end architecture practice: Firm website, other photos
Related posts: Same old story, Fear of flying, Flying while anybody through Vegas, What’ll get you interrogated, Would you turn down a quarter-million dollars?, Recycling While Brown, Speak American in America!, All brownz must speak English in this airport
