Imperial Valley Press

2 Muslim men from Texas say American Airlines profiled them

- In this Thursday photo, Abderraoof Alkhawalde­h (right) speaks during a news conference at the Council on American-Islamic Relations DFW office in Dallas. lyndA

DALLAS (AP) — Two Muslim men from Texas say American Airlines profiled them and canceled their flight after crew members said they “didn’t feel comfortabl­e” flying with the pair.

Abderraoof Alkhawalde­h and Issam Abdallah said they filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Transporta­tion against the Fort Worth-based airline, asking the federal agency to investigat­e the incident. The men say American Airlines discrimina­ted against them Saturday for appearing Muslim and Middle Eastern during a flight from Birmingham, Alabama, that was headed to Dallas-Fort Worth Internatio­nal Airport.

The pair says flight attendants reported them because a crew member noticed Abdallah flush the toilet two times while in the airplane restroom, according to a letter the men’s attorney sent to the DOT. The men also waved to each other on the plane.

“It was the most humiliatin­g day of my life,” said Abdallah, who spoke Thursday at the Dallas-Fort Worth chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

The passengers were put on a later flight. Alkhawalde­h and Abdallah were questioned and searched by the FBI and the Transporta­tion Security Administra­tion before they were cleared to board.

“I have taken hundreds of flights — and to be treated with such disrespect, suspicion, to be questioned in public and to be singled out and followed around in front of other airport customers — I am really worried as to what my next flying experience will be,” said Alkhawalde­h, adding that he flies with American often and is an AAdvantage Executive Platinum member, the company’s highest frequent flier ranking.

American Airlines spokeswoma­n LaKesha Brown said the flight was canceled as a result of “concerns raised by a crew member and a passenger.”

“American and all of its regional partners have an obligation to take safety and security concerns raised by crew members and passengers seriously,” Brown said in a statement. She added that American is reviewing the incident and has reached out to the men “to better understand their experience.”

Saturday’s flight was operated by independen­tly owned Mesa Airlines, which handles some flights for American Airlines.

“The safety and security of our customers is our top priority, and we are conducting a thorough investigat­ion of this matter,” Mesa spokesman Jack Heller said Thursday.

American Airlines has been criticized before over its treatment of passengers who are people of color.

The NAACP issued a travel advisory in October 2017 for American Airlines after a string of incidents in which black passengers said they were discrimina­ted against on flights.

In June, a Miami doctor said he was removed from an American flight for his Arab and Muslim appearance and for using a phone during takeoff. He is now suing the airline in federal court. That same month, a black doctor and founder of a telemedici­ne service said an American Airlines crew called her romper inappropri­ate and told her to cover up or risk being kicked off her flight back into the U.S. from vacation in Jamaica.

On Thursday, Omar Suleiman, founder of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research in Dallas, said the profiling of Muslims is increasing, particular­ly at airports and on planes.

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