Woman Dragged Out Of Southwest Airlines Flight Claims She Was Racially Profiled

Lawyers representing a woman who was in a viral video that showed her being dragged off a Southwest Airlines flight in Baltimore claimed Wednesday that her allergy to dogs was not life-threatening and that she was racially profiled.

At the time of the incident which took place Sept. 26 on Flight 1525 from Baltimore to Los Angeles, the airline told International Business Times: “Initial reports indicate the customer in the video stated that she had a life-threatening pet allergy but she was unable to provide the medical certificate necessary to complete travel. There was one emotional support animal and one pet onboard the aircraft.”

“Our policy states that a Customer (without a medical certificate) may be denied boarding if they report a life-threatening allergic reaction and cannot travel safely with an animal onboard. Our Flight Crew made repeated attempts to explain the situation to the Customer, however, she refused to deplane and law enforcement became involved,” it further stated.

However, in a statement from Hall & Sethi, a law firm based in Reston, Virginia, lawyers representing the 46-year-old Anila Daulatzai said the description of the incident by Southwest Airlines was inaccurate and that their client was targeted because was a “woman, a person of color, and a Muslim.”

“She survived sexism, racial profiling, and police brutality that fateful day. Her mistreatment was particularly distressing because she is presently pregnant with her first child,” the statement read.

Daulatzai, who is a professor Maryland Institute College of Art, also claimed that the airline never asked for a medical certificate and had discussed her non-life-threatening dog allergies with Southwest crew members soon after boarding the aircraft. She had agreed to sit in a seat away from the dogs.

“Despite trying to convince the crew that she would be completely fine on the plane, she was asked by another Southwest representative to leave the plane. Shortly thereafter the Maryland Transportation Authority Police pulled her from her seat by her belt loop, dragged her through the aisle exposed with torn pants, and humiliated her for the world to see in a now-viral video,” the statement read.

In the video, Daulatzai could be heard repeatedly saying “My dad has a surgery tomorrow,” as she was pulled down the aisle. She could also be seen stopping at one point to close her pants which seemed to have been unfastened during the struggle. As one officer reached toward her, she says: “What are you doing? You ripped my pants.”

As another officer pulled her from the row of seats and pushed her down the aisle, the professor yells, “I will walk off. Don’t touch me. I’m walking!”

Daulatzai was later arrested by the Maryland Transportation Authority Police and charged with disorderly conduct, failure to obey a reasonable and lawful order, and resisting arrest, disturbing the peace and obstructing and hindering a police officer, reports said.

Her lawyers in the statement claimed that the charges “had no merit.”

“We are disheartened by the way this situation unfolded and the Customer’s removal by local law enforcement officers,” the airline said in a statement. “We publicly offer our apologies to this Customer for her experience and we will be contacting her directly to address her concerns.”