The female head of Australia’s major air carrier was suspected of being a terrorist at a U.S. airport because a security guard refused to believe a woman could run an airline.
Qantas Airways chairman Margaret Jackson has said she was detained and frisked at Los Angeles airport last year after a search revealed she was carrying aircraft diagrams in her briefcase.
“The guy said ‘Why have you got all of this?’,” she said. “And I said, ‘I’m the chairman of an airline. I’m the chairman of Qantas’. And this black guy, who was, like, eight foot tall, said, ‘But you’re a woman’.”
After proving her identity, Jackson produced paper with her letterhead on it and wrote a note to the guard, whose name was Bill. “And I wrote, ‘Dear Bill, this is from the chairman of Qantas, who is a woman’,” the newspaper reported.
No comment.
paul t. made an extremely good point. What color did the man’s skin have to do with anything? This says a lot more about Margret Jackson and can her account of the dialog be entirely accepted.
Some things I was wondering about. Why would the Chairman of an airline be going through normal security checks? Would she not be flagged as a VIP and quite possibly be coming through the Airline’s entrance? Did she not have a business card to show instead of finding some letter head paper? Why doesn’t she have some Quantas identification in the first place?This should have been something the guard would be expected to see.
The more I think about this, the more I am wondering about what really took place.
In fact neither paul t nor Pat have made a good point about Margaret Jackson’s comment. In case you haven’t noticed, as a group particularised by physiology, black people tend to large and well-developed physical stature. Recall your best athletes for the last century?
For Chairman Jackson to say that this ‘tall black guy’ confronted her, she was using the language for emphasis. Let’s not be too PC at every minor incident, people; there’s a bigger world to fry.
And, BTW – follow the leader, you Yanks: it’s Qantas – no ‘u’. Queensland And Northern Territory Aerial Services – from about 1920. Look up what the references are. (Hint: it’s OUTSIDE the magnificent USofA.)
Why would the Chairman of an airline be going through normal security checks? Would she not be flagged as a VIP and quite possibly be coming through the Airline’s entrance?
You expect the CEO to use the employee entrance?
The TSA has setup “VIP” screening-lines in the terminals – at taxpayer expense?
Why should a foreign national get VIP treatment by our govenrment’s employees upon arrival at her initial port-of-entry into the US?
The TSA “frequent traveler” program doesn’t even start until this summer. [And you need to fly at least weekly to qualify?? Details won't even be published by the TSA until Jan 20th]
http://www.informationweek.com/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=175803263
Did she not have a business card to show instead of finding some letter head paper? Why doesn’t she have some Quantas identification in the first place?
From the article:
“After proving her identity, Jackson produced paper with her letterhead on it and wrote a note to the guard, whose name was Bill.”
She had ID, she just seems to have wanted to vent some of her frustration by giving Bill a “momento” of the occassion. I enjoy imaging what she really wanted to write.
The more I think about this, the more I am wondering about what really took place.
Agreed. We are jumping to conclusions based on a “report” regarding an anecdote told to a “media conference in Beijing”. Shame on us.
The screeners are being expected to do the job requiring a degree of intelligence while being paid the equivalent of a moron.
Agreed.
Who in their right mind would want a job as a screener??
Dubya would only approve of the nationalization of the screeners if they were not given the traditional protections [whole nother rant] of civil service workers.
All the Bureaucracy and none of the perks. Awesome!!
Your job involves adding to the frustration of everyone you screen, so you can be assured of an endless stream of smiling, friendly faces – all day, every day. Sweet!!
Where do I sign-up??
Hey, if a senator from the Philippines could be detained at the airport, why not a white old woman who claims she’s an airline head?
After 9/11 the remark was: If these terroristic acts change the way of life for Americans, by being over-diligent in flagging its citizens and visitors — then the terrorists have won. These “terrorists” should have thought how their people would be permanently altered and not just how to win oil deals.
Although from a different country, different social strata, different lifestyle, and more humble accomplishments, through mutual Australian friend, have come to know Ms. Jackson personally. “Old?” Sure, if you’re 20; if you’re 80, she’s actually quite “young”. As raw a deal as minority races have been dealt for the past several hundred years or in times of war, pretty certain the longest standing “discrimination” is that applied to “the weaker sex”. She is actually a very warm, humble, “normal” person and as a result, a stranger well may have difficulty believing she had earned her internationaly acknowledged accomplishments despite “being a woman”. Sorry, folks; she ain’t no bigot and is a VERY nice person. I’m fortunate to know her and you might want ot consider that, being “normal”, she probably was just frusttrated at how ludicrous “Bill’s” concern was.
Quantas? It’s ‘Qantas’.
Chairperson? She’s the Chairman of Qantas.
CEO? No, she’s the Chairman of Qantas.