Southwest Airlines has been accused of racial profiling by a California mom who had been stopped by police at the airport while traveling with her biracial daughter. She was reportedly suspected of human trafficking after passengers and staff had reported her for suspicious behavior.
Los Angeles resident Mary MacCarthy traveled with her 10-year-old daughter, Moira, from California to Colorado last month. They were on their way to see family after they received news that MacCarthy's brother had died.
After a stopover in San Jose, MacCarthy said they boarded a Southwest Airlines flight. She realized that she and her daughter wouldn't be seated together. During the flight, MacCarthy had asked attendants to help her to be seated with her daughter, who was visually sad because of the passing of her uncle.
When they arrived in Denver, MacCarthy and her daughter were reportedly stopped by Denver police officers. They were then taken to a separate location where they were interrogated.
MacCarthy said she was shocked that they were questioned by police, especially since she only knew about her brother's death the night before. She added that her daughter was also frightened by the ordeal and scared of the police. MacCarthy said her daughter couldn't stop crying.
The police that questioned them had assured them that nothing was wrong, and they only wanted to question them because they were reported for acting suspiciously before and after boarding.
A California woman is accusing Southwest Airlines of racial profiling, saying she was accused of human trafficking while traveling with her biracial daughter.https://t.co/a61xQjAwTi — CNN (@CNN) November 8, 2021
The Denver Police Department said both mother and child were immediately cleared and let go. Officials said the officers who stopped the two responded to reports of "possible child trafficking," as reported by a Southwest Airlines flight attendant.
MacCarthy said she has already hired a lawyer to help her hold the airline "fully accountable" for their actions. She said that she had already given the airline plenty of time to contact her and apologize. MacCarthy wanted the airline to send a written apology and to reimburse her for their tickets. She also demanded that the airline provide her with additional compensation for the trauma they had imposed on her and her daughter.
MacCarthy's attorney David Lane said the incident would have never happened if the child was White.
