Another day, another example of Black women’s bodies being policed.
Case in point: A Black doctor claims an American Airlines flight attendant told her to cover up on a flight from Jamaica to Houston because her outfit was ‘too revealing.”
After the news of the incident went viral, officials from the airline apologized on Tuesday, telling Dr. Latisha “Tisha” Rowe that were “concerned about [her] comments.”
“We…reached out to her and our team at the Kingston airport to gather more information about what occurred,” American Airlines spokeswoman Shannon Gilson, adding, “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.”
But Dr. Rowe is not having it, stressing that she was “humiliated” and targeted” on her flight, because of her race and her curvy figure.
“To me, that felt like a slap in the face, because I felt appropriately dressed,” Rowe told CNN.
“But I’m being told indirectly, in front of my son that — you know, it felt like ‘you look like a slut, so let’s fix this.’ ”
That, and other passengers were wearing similar outfits, yet none of them were pulled to the side by staff.
“There were definitely other passengers wearing tropical attire, short-shorts. One was also a mother, traveling with a child and she said, ‘Your shorts are longer than mine and no one said anything to me,” Rowe recalled for Good Morning America.
While American Airlines also promised to refund Rowe for her tickets, she isn’t trying to hear that noise either.
Rowe is clear: She wants an explanation and a dress code policy that is clear and applies to everyone involved.
“I will be empowered to dress the way that I feel comfortable, dress the way I feel appropriate. If you are going to have a dress code, it should be applied equally to every person, to every shape, to every race,” the family physician stressed.
Now this story became public earlier this week when Rowe wrote on social media that while on her way to Jamaica from Florida last month, she was asked to deplane and wear a blanket over her romper.
“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”
As GMA pointed out, AA’s dress code policy is pretty “vague” stating dress appropriately; bare feet or offensive clothing aren’t allowed.”
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