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Actor And Designer Waris Ahluwalia Kicked Off Plane Because Of His Turban
Posted On Feb 08 2016
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When airline personnel asked Ahluwalia to remove his turban, he said, “That is not something that I would do in public”.
“They waited until everyone boarded the plane before they did the secondary security check on me”, he said, adding that they went through his bag and made him remove his shoes and sweatshirt while conducting a fully body check.
“About the situation of passenger Waris Ahluwalia, Aeromexico reports that he was asked to submit to screening and inspection before boarding, in strict compliance with TSA protocol”, the spokesperson said in an email to HuffPost.
The incident happened during additional security checks before a flight from Mexico City to NY.
But Ahluwalia, who you may remember from his roles in I Am Love, The Darjeeling Limited, and the Denzel Washington thriller Inside Man, was told he’d have to find a different flight on a different airline.
After missing the flight home, Ahluwalia posted a selfie with his plane ticket on Instagram.
Ahluwalia said he would remove his turban if he were taken to a private screening room, he told the News, but that request was denied.
Aeromexico told teleSUR that USA security policies prevented the Sikh man from boarding his flight in Mexico City.
When he refused he was told that he would have to find another plane. One user wrote, “This is outrageous”.
Aero Mexico did not apologize but said, “We sincerely regret any inconvenience caused by this incident”. Ahluwalia posted this to his Instagram page. “Dear NYC fashion week”.
Ahluwalia has refused to fly with Aero Mexico again until they issue an apology and promise to train their staff on how to respectfully work with Sikh passengers. Don’t start the show without me.
In 2013, Ahluwalia appeared in a Gap ad as part of the brand’s “Make Love” campaign. In the movie, Ahluwalia gets roughed up by police who see his turban and believe he’s a terrorist.
“As long as this keeps happening, I’m going to keep dealing with it”, he said.
