Mom sues Southwest Airlines for 'blatant racism' after being accused of trafficking her daughter

A mother has filed a lawsuit against Southwest Airlines, accusing the carrier of 'using racial profiling' against her daughter.

On 22 October, 2021, Mary MacCarthy and her 10-year-old daughter Moira flew from San Jose Airport, California to Denver for the funeral of MacCarthy's brother.

However, their journey took a turn when they were allegedly met by 'armed police' when the plane landed in the Colorado city.

The lawsuit - filed by MacCarthy on Thursday, 3 August, 2023 - claims a Southwest Airlines employee called the police to 'report McCarthy for suspected child trafficking'.

The mom says she and her daughter were met by 'armed police' upon landing in Denver and taken off 'separately' for questioning, as per FOX 11 Los Angeles.

They were later released after MacCarthy explained they were in Denver for her brother's funeral, but 10 days later, the mom claims she was contacted by the Denver Police Department's human trafficking unit.

YouTube/ FOX 11 Los Angeles

MacCarthy is accusing the airline of 'blatant racism,' arguing her daughter suffered 'extreme emotional distress' as a result of the incident.

"The only basis for the Southwest employee’s call was the belief that Ms. MacCarthy’s daughter could not possibly be her daughter because she is a biracial child," the lawsuit claims.

Furthermore, the lawsuit alleges the employee reported MacCarthy to police without trying to talk to her first 'which would have raised suspicions in the mind of a reasonable person'.

YouTube/ FOX 11 Los Angeles

MacCarthy is seeking unspecified compensatory damages - listed by Newsweek as 'economic damages, compensatory damages, punitive and exemplary damages' - for legal fees as well as the emotional distress the incident has caused her daughter.

MacCarthy told the outlet: "To this day, when Moira and I are out in public - and especially at airports or on planes - I'm hyperaware that we might be judged and reported for any interaction we have with each other.

"It's a strange feeling to be on alert about your most basic behaviors with your child, and it's exhausting. As for Moira [who is now 12], she still clams up and doesn't want to talk about what happened."

Getty Images/ Daniel Knighton

MacCarthy's attorney, David Lane, states the mother hopes the lawsuit will not only see the pair receive compensatory damages, but also lead Southwest Airlines to reflect on how it trains its employees.

MacCarthy told FOX 11 Los Angeles at the time: "If you're going to make allegations about possible human trafficking also stop and check your own racial biases. And if you're training your employees [...] train them in how to avoid racial profiling.

"This type of traumatic incident happening to a child shouldn't be happening in the US."

Lane adds: "Just as the police are constitutionally not permitted to stop-and-frisk young men of color based upon their race, corporate America is similarly not permitted to resort to such profiling to use law enforcement to stop and question racially diverse families simply based upon their divergent races, which is what Southwest did."

FOX 11 Los Angeles

At the time of the incident, the airline stated, as per Newsweek: "We were disheartened to learn of this mother's account when traveling with her daughter.

"We are conducting a review of the situation internally, and we will be reaching out to the customer to address her concerns and offer our apologies for her experience traveling with us."

A spokesperson for Southwest Airlines told UNILAD: "We don't have anything to add right now on this pending litigation."

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact Stop Hate UK by visiting their website www.stophateuk.org