American Airlines has apologized to a passenger and offered her a refund after she called out the airline for forcing her to cover up an outfit they deemed inappropriate.
Tisha Rowe, a doctor from Houston, first tweeted about the incident on June 30, claiming she was “disgusted” and “humiliated” after being given the option to “cover up” or get off the flight.
“My shorts covered EVERYTHING but apparently was too distracting to enter the plane,” she tweeted. A photo of her outfit shows her wearing a strapless shirt and matching shorts. “When defending my outfit I was threatened with not getting back on the flight unless I walked down the aisle wrapped in a blanket.”
Here is what i was wearing when @AmericanAir asked me to deplane for a talk. At which point I was asked to “cover up”. When defending my outfit I was threatened with not getting back on the flight unless I walked down the aisle wrapped in a blanket. #notsofriendlyskies pic.twitter.com/AYQNNriLcq
— Tisha Rowe MD, MBA (@tisharowemd) July 1, 2019
She added that her son was left in tears, hiding under the blanket she was asked to wear.
“As a physician i know the negative impact of #racism on health and i am speaking up because i hope no one else has endure what i did because they don’t fit the mold,” she said. “We are policed for being black. Our bodies are over sexualized as women and we must ADJUST to make everyone around us comfortable. I’ve seen white women with much shorter shorts board a plane without a blink of an eye.”
Since first tweeting about the incident, Rowe has retweeted dozens of supportive responses, agreeing with her that she did nothing wrong and sending well-wishes to her son.
“Chase is too young to appreciate what is happening but on behalf of our tiny family the outpouring of love, the support, the demand for ACCOUNTABILITY is greatly appreciated,” Rowe tweeted Tuesday. “Thank You.”
In a statement to USA TODAY on Tuesday, American Airlines representative Shannon Gilson said the carrier was “concerned about Dr. Rowe’s comments” and had “reached out to her and our team at the Kingston airport to gather more information about what occurred.”
Gilson added, “We apologize to Dr. Rowe and her son for their experience, and have fully refunded their travel. We are proud to serve customers of all backgrounds and are committed to providing a positive, safe travel experience for everyone who flies with us.”
Read more at usatoday.com.
