United kicks Nigerian woman off over white man's odor complaints
- 6 years ago
HOUSTON — A Nigerian woman is suing United Airlines after she claims she and her family were unjustly kicked off a flight in 2016.
According to the documents filed in court, Queen Obioma and her kids were flying from Lagos, Nigeria to Ontario when they encountered trouble on the Houston to San Francisco leg of their trip.
Obioma, who was in business class while the kids were in economy, found a white man in her seat. He refused to move despite repeated requests, so she sat in his spot.
The man got up as soon as she sat down, allegedly beelining straight for the captain to complain about Obioma's 'pungent' smell.
When she came back from the bathroom, the man blocked her from getting to her seat. She eventually managed to squeeze past him, only to have an attendant ask her to step outside.
He told her she was being booted off because the white passenger couldn't stomach her Eau de Nigeria. She explained who she was travelling with, only to have her kids escorted off the plane too.
The family waited five more hours before the next flight, which meant missed appointments and more money down the drain.
While United is actually allowed to throw out smelly passengers, Obioma is crying racial discrimination, claiming she was singled out and punished because of her black skin.
Something definitely smells foul, we're just not sure if it's United, Obioma, the white man, or all three. What do you think?
According to the documents filed in court, Queen Obioma and her kids were flying from Lagos, Nigeria to Ontario when they encountered trouble on the Houston to San Francisco leg of their trip.
Obioma, who was in business class while the kids were in economy, found a white man in her seat. He refused to move despite repeated requests, so she sat in his spot.
The man got up as soon as she sat down, allegedly beelining straight for the captain to complain about Obioma's 'pungent' smell.
When she came back from the bathroom, the man blocked her from getting to her seat. She eventually managed to squeeze past him, only to have an attendant ask her to step outside.
He told her she was being booted off because the white passenger couldn't stomach her Eau de Nigeria. She explained who she was travelling with, only to have her kids escorted off the plane too.
The family waited five more hours before the next flight, which meant missed appointments and more money down the drain.
While United is actually allowed to throw out smelly passengers, Obioma is crying racial discrimination, claiming she was singled out and punished because of her black skin.
Something definitely smells foul, we're just not sure if it's United, Obioma, the white man, or all three. What do you think?