An Orthodox Jewish couple from Southfield, Michigan, are suing American Airlines after they were kicked off a flight last year over body odor complaints.
Yehuda Yosef Adler and Jennie Adlerfiled a lawsuit in a Texas district court on Tuesday, theDetroit Free Pressreported, claiming discrimination from the Fort Worth-based airline.
According tocourt documents, the couple were flying from Miami to Detroit with their 19-month-old daughter last January, when they were booted from the flight.
They claim in the lawsuit they had been sitting on the plane for under five minutes when an American Airlines staff member told them they needed to leave the aircraft due to an emergency.
American Airlines.Scott Olson/Getty Images
Reached for statement, a representative for American Airlines denied the Adlers’ claims, telling PEOPLE that the family was “asked to deplane after multiple passengers and our crew members complained about Mr. Adler’s body odor.”
Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty
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American Airlines “took care of the family,” the rep added, providing hotel accommodations and meals. They were rebooked on a flight to Detroit the next morning, the rep said.
As for the odor complaint, Mr. Adler said in the lawsuit that he showered that morning. The papers also claim that the Adlers surveyed 20 people at the boarding gate, all who said they could not detect a noticeable smell.
They are seeking punitive damages, claiming that because of the situation they’ve suffered “trauma, stigmatization, severe mental and emotional distress, depression, despair, repugnance, embarrassment, public humiliation, damage to personal and professional reputation, anxiety, fear, and apprehension associated with airports and flying, loss of appetite, insomnia, and migraines.”
“The Adlers are being pressured to see their race and religion as inferior to that of Whites, dirty and unwelcome,” the lawsuit states.
A scheduling conference is slated for May 29,The Detroit Free Pressreported.
source: people.com
