Black Woman Calls Out Abu Dhabi Airport Staff For Unfair Treatment

A person of colour often faces casual racism in various places, which could deeply impact an individual’s mental well being. Recently, Efe Isaac shared her troubling experience on Threads after she faced racism at Abu Dhabi airport. While waiting in the priority lane for her flight, the Black woman was asked unnecessary questions and treated unfairly compared to other passengers due to her appearance. The flight attendant wrongly assumed that she did not belong in the priority lane and asked her to move to general boarding. The discrimination didn’t stop there, as Isaac, along with another Black passenger, faced additional issues during the security check when their tickets were scanned.

The woman wrote, “I am standing on the priority lane about to board my flight at Abu Dhabi airport and the attendant goes, ‘Ma’am this way,’ pointing to stay on general boarding. I refused to move. Then he goes, ‘You’re in priority?’ I said ‘Yup,’ then he goes ‘Okay, you can stay here.’ I said, ‘I am already here.’ Then he goes to attend to the next person. The automatic assumption that I belong to general boarding or economy every time I fly first or business is ridiculous.”

“As we walked to the point where you scan your boarding pass, there was another black guy with dreads in front of me. The attendant lady did not even look at him, she went about her business as we both stood there. I think me and the guy had some type of telepathic communication at that moment. We just walked right past the scanning to the Plane. We knew,” the woman added.

Efe Isaac isn’t alone, as other social media users in the comments section shared their own disturbing experiences with racism.

A user noted, “It happens everywhere: Dubai, China, the Philippines, most EU countries. They’re always profiled. It’s so unfair.”

Another shared, “Any person of colour knows very well what you have been through. We continue to be judged by the colour of our skin.”

“It’s so hard to believe that this stuff happens, not that I don’t believe you, just that it’s crazy,” a comment read.

An individual shared, “I was pulled out of the customs line entering the UK at Heathrow (arriving from the USA) & forcibly marched & locked in an “examination room” for an hour with no explanation. Then accused of “possibly carrying the Ebola Virus”! I had to undergo a medical exam by a random doctor,”

One more added, “So sorry this happened to you .I experienced something similar on an Emirates flight from Dubai. She didn’t bother to look at my ticket, just pointed to where the economy sat.”

Since the woman shared it on the platform, it has garnered over 5000 reactions.