A rapper has accused American Airlines of racism after encountering an extended flight delay and cancellation.
Olubowale Victor Akintimehin, more commonly known as Wale, was flying from New York JFK to Los Angeles on American Airlines in first class.
His flight was delayed and eventually cancelled. He complained to American on Twitter.
But when American responded, Wale added a twist to the story, accusing AA staff of racism:
AA asked for clarification and Wale stated:
Here u go . Y’all racist and I wanna know what happens now. Megumi and Don is their names.
American told Fox News it is “concerned about the comments from Mr. Akintimehin” and “reaching out to him to gather more information about what occurred.”
American added:
Discrimination has no place at American Airlines. From the team members we hire to the customers we serve, inclusion and diversity is a way of life at American. Every day, our team members work to make American a place where people of all generations, races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, religious affiliations and backgrounds feel welcome and valued.
I don’t dismiss his claims, nor do I doubt passengers of color may experience the same sort of discrimination that I experienced when I was kid and was routinely told I was in the wrong line when boarding with first class passengers. Not the same thing, but I know gate agents make faulty assumptions based on appearance, including age and race. That does not excuse behavior, but that’s not necessarily racism…prejudice or ignorance is not the same thing as racism.
CONCLUSION
I’m writing about this now in hopes that the story will be clarified. Two agents could lose their jobs because of this. Hopefully the truth will come out.
Let’s see if the NAACP reinstates its “travel advisory” against American Airlines…
@ Matthew — Wale’s claims sound about as substantiated as Dr. Ford’s claims against Brett Kavanauagh. Interesting that he makes it sound like he flies AA in F transcon frequently, but is merely Platinum Pro. He should be EXP if that is true (would only take 7 round trips to earn 100,000 EQM). Maybe he wasn’t supposed to be in First Class after all.
So in other words. his claims could potentially be true?
Yes
I think you may want to look up the definition of “claim”, champ. I’m not sure you know what it means.
Per the Googler, the definition of claim is “state or assert that something is the case, typically without providing evidence or proof,” so I guess “unsubstantiated” is redundant.
“Sound about as substantiated as Dr. Fords claims”
Welcome sexual abuser.
“Prejudice or ignorance is not the same thing as racism”, except IT IS.
Prejudice against someone based on race IS racism. Just as prejudice against someone based on gender IS sexism.
“I experienced when I was kid and was routinely told I was in the wrong line when boarding with first class passengers”, therefore, I understand what it feels like to be discriminated against….. sounds very similar to “Victoria’s Secret Model said she could relate to models of color because she has to ‘highlight her hair every month’
No Cindy, prejudice is not racism. Racism is a belief in prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior. There is no evidence that was present here, even if he was discriminated against.
that is not how the word is commonly used and is an incomplete definition of racism. By your definition, only slave owners and Nazis are real racists, since most other racists don’t believe their own “race” to be superior (most of them realize that there isn’t really such a thing as “races”, since people aren’t dogs). What makes them racist is their prejudice. Just an example: somebody of Asian descent is being told to ‘go back to your country’. That doesn’t imply that either race is superior. It’s still a racist thing to say to someone, because it assumes that the asian-american person is not from here just because of how they look, and also makes it clear that they are not welcome here and people of their ethnicity should be expelled from the country. So, not implying that their race is inferior, and yet still racist.
Perhaps the word has morphed into that broader meaning, but the dictionary definition is still what I quoted above. I think the “go back to your country” example is prejudiced and may even be bigoted, but not necessarily racist.
So if it’s not racist where are they telling me to go back to if we’re from the same country?
If it’s not racist tell me the last time you saw two people of the same color and one tell the other “go back to your country” ?
I am Asian American and if someone told me to “go back to your country” because they assumed I was not a US citizen born in the States, I would of course be offended and upset.
I would think of them as narrow minded and offensive. But I would not think of it as racist unless it was clear that they didn’t like me because I am Asian.
Even if their belief is that America is only for white people, I would still not think of it as racist. Stupid yes, not racist.
People need to stop overusing words like racism, sexism, misogyny, and bigotry. They are powerful words that are meant to describe horrible beliefs. But the meaning is being diluted so that they are losing their meaning. Then what words will we use to describe truly horrible people?
Typical race card! SO TIRED OF THIS BS by certain people.
Fun with words!!
So the title of your story is “Rapper Accuses American Airlines Of Racism, But…it is really only racial discrimination.”
Racial discrimination – Racial discrimination refers to discrimination against individuals on the basis of their race.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_discrimination
sexism – prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the basis of sex.
Thank goodness… the dictionary does not include “the belief that one’s own gender is superior”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexism
Seems to me if the guy genuinely felt that he was subjected to overt racism, that would be the first complaint to be lodged. He wouldn’t initiate communication with AA for the purpose of whining about AA’s operational issues, and then throw in the racism accusation as some sort of afterthought.
This is not racism at all…..read the article! Prejudice against someone based on race is not racism! So tired of people playing the race card. So what if you get yelled at by flight attendant and been told to leave first class? You all should move to the back of the bus when being told to. It is maybe racism if and when you are shot by a police officer when you are in your own apartment.
By casting doubt that this is anything but racism, you are part of the problem.
ah – what if the police officer shot you only because of prejudice? Then it’s not racism. Apparently…
In your opinion, are all police shootings due to racism?
Your lack of competence is mind blowing. It’s a shame your kid has to have someone as color blind as a you to raise them. Oh well your not home most of the time anyway. She’ll probably do better with out you lol.
@CL It’s only racism if the AA employees said he doesn’t belong in first class becuase black peoples are not allowed to sit in first class.
If however they (allegedly) said he didn’t belong in first class becuase they assumed by his dress and demeanor and the color of his skin that he couldn’t possibly have bought a first class ticket, then they are not racist. They are being prejudiced against him and whatever parameters they used to make their judgment.
In order to solve problems you have to correctly identify the problem. If you wrongly identify the problem you will have wrong or inadequate solutions. That’s why being precise with words is important.
If everything is racist, then we are in danger of treating nothing as dangerous. It’s like those threat meters that the government used after 9/11. If everyday is red alert people just stop paying attention.
Do you not realize that’s what will happen and is already happening with so much of what people say today?
Not comment current AA case, because the only card that US blacks have is a racial card. Prejudice based on facts is not a racism. When 13% of total habitants make 56% of murders and 80% of crimes, it is precaution, not based on racism. I do not hate persons by race, I dislike them by their attitude and behavior. When 90% of total(gypsies) are thief’s, it is not racism to profile them. Before to demand something from others, start cleaning your own backyard/community.
This is racist behavior. Not merely prejudice. The assumption that a black man does not belong in first class is rooted in racist attitudes and discrimination.
@yousuf read my comment above