Pregnant Prof Dragged Off Plane: "I Was A Brown Woman With A Hoodie"
BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- The 46-year-old Baltimore college professor dragged off a plane at BWI last week, is now sharing her side of the story.
Anila Daulatzai shared her side of the story of a recorded encounter with police on a Southwest Airlines flight, which she says was because of her appearance.
"They just didn't trust me," Daulatzai said. "I was a brown woman with a hoodie. When I boarded the plane, the first thing I asked the flight attendant was, how many dogs are going to be on this plane?"
Daulatzai, who is pregnant and a Maryland Institute College of Art professor, claims that question was a trigger for the plane's captain.
The Maryland Transportation Authority confirmed to WJZ that the captain called for police:
"Despite her clear attempts to resist a law enforcement officer, Ms. Daulatzai was professionally removed from the aircraft within the guidelines of the MDTA police."
Other passengers say before the situation escalated, Daulatzai complained about two dogs on board, including a service animal. Both witnesses and the airline said she told flight attendants she was deathly allergic.
Daulatzai's attorney said she "asked for the dogs to be removed from the plane, did not request an EpiPen, nor did she ever claim that her allergies were life-threatening."
The attorney blames the arrest on racism, sexism and police brutality. She wrote that officers "disparaged her, accused her of lying about her pregnancy and made racist remarks about immigrants."
MICA has not comment on the professor's arrest.
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