‘A racist assumption’: Mixed-race family stopped after Southwest Airlines employee suspected human trafficking

Mary MacCarthy and her 10-year-old daughter, Moira, were stopped by constabulary astatine the Denver International Airport aft a Southwest Airlines formation attendant reported them arsenic a imaginable quality trafficking case.

A pistillate and her 10-year-old girl were stopped by constabulary astatine Denver International Airport past period aft a formation attendant flagged the duo arsenic suspicious, an presumption the pistillate said is racist.

Mary MacCarthy, who is white, and her 10-year-old daughter, who is Black, flew from San Jose, California, to Denver connected Oct. 22 to beryllium with household aft the abrupt decease of MacCarthy’s older member the nighttime before. When they arrived successful Denver, they were met connected the pitchy span by a Southwest Airlines worker and 2 Denver constabulary officers.

At first, MacCarthy thought the constabulary were determination to archer her astir different decease successful her family. The 2 officers started talking to MacCarthy and her daughter, Moira, separately. The officers wanted to question MacCarthy and her girl due to the fact that a Southwest Airlines worker had reported them arsenic suspicious and MacCarthy arsenic a imaginable quality trafficker, according to a Denver constabulary study and MacCarthy’s account.

“The serviceman said, ‘We’re talking to you due to the fact that you were reported to the aviator for suspicious behavior,’” MacCarthy said. “And it instantly occurred to maine what was going on. This is the benignant of concern that mixed-race families and families of colour look each the clip portion traveling.”

MacCarthy explained wherefore they were traveling and that the girl, who sobbed done the incident, was so her daughter. The officers and worker fto her spell aft MacCarthy explained wherefore she was traveling.

MacCarthy said she is not aggravated astatine however the officers and Southwest worker treated her connected the pitchy bridge, but astatine the Southwest worker connected the level who reported her without immoderate speech oregon contact.

The formation attendant who reported MacCarthy told constabulary she was suspicious due to the fact that the 2 were the past to committee the level and due to the fact that MacCarthy asked different passengers to determination truthful her girl could beryllium adjacent to her, according to a transcript of a constabulary study obtained by The Denver Post done a records request. The attendant besides reported that the brace did not talk during the flight.

MacCarthy said they boarded the level past due to the fact that they were assigned the past boarding radical and that the passengers connected the level did not person a occupation rearranging their seating. MacCarthy said she and her girl did not talk overmuch during the formation due to the fact that she was trying to drawback up connected mislaid slumber and her girl was listening to an audiobook.

“The full happening is based connected what I judge to beryllium a racist presumption astir a mixed-race family,” MacCarthy said.

Mixed-race families person made aggregate nationalist complaints astir being questioned arsenic quality trafficking suspects portion flying successful the United States.

A achromatic Phoenix man flying location from abrogation with his family, including his adopted Chinese daughter, was stopped by constabulary aft a Southwest formation attendant reported him arsenic suspicious. A Black pistillate from Aurora flying with her adopted achromatic sister was stopped by constabulary successful Dallas aft a rider connected a Frontier Airlines formation reported her to hose unit arsenic a imaginable trafficker.

Cindy McCain, widow of Sen. John McCain, in 2019 apologized aft incorrectly claiming she stopped a quality trafficking transgression erstwhile she reported a pistillate traveling with a toddler of a antithetic ethnicity astatine the Phoenix airport, saying the brace “looked odd” and that “something didn’t click with me.” Phoenix constabulary aboriginal confirmed McCain reported a pistillate but said they investigated and determination was nary grounds of a crime.

MacCarthy wants an apology from Southwest for its employee’s racist presumption astir her and her daughter.

The constabulary study connected the incidental besides angered MacCarthy due to the fact that the officers wrote MacCarthy “did not privation to springiness immoderate information.” But MacCarthy gave an mentation of wherefore she was traveling and gave the officers her identification, she said. A video she recorded of portion of the enactment shows her explaining her travel.

Southwest’s media squad declined to reply circumstantial questions astir the incident, including who reported MacCarthy and her daughter, the ground of that person’s suspicions and what signs Southwest employees are trained to look for arsenic grounds of trafficking.

“Southwest regrets that this household reports thing little than a affirmative acquisition portion traveling with us,” the institution said successful an emailed statement. “The customer’s study has been shared with Southwest’s Customer Relations Team, and they volition beryllium pursuing up with the lawsuit directly.”

Southwest Airlines in 2019 announced it would supply online grooming to each of its employees connected however to place quality trafficking and what steps to instrumentality if trafficking is suspected. Public-facing employees, similar pilots and formation attendants, be further training.

The full incidental astatine the airdrome made an already hard time adjacent harder for Moira, MacCarthy said.

“She conscionable benignant of clams up erstwhile we speech astir it,” MacCarthy said.