Christine Rodriguez says she traveled regularly for work, but claims that in the past month and a half, her hair has been searched three times at different airports in Canada. He says that at first, he didn’t do very well. “It was the first time in my life that they asked me OK, we need to check your hair and I’m fine… And I kind of laughed,” says Rodriguez. The third time it happened, it was no laughing matter. “I said, ‘OK this is ridiculous,’ I was a little upset,” Rodriguez explained. READ MORE: Human Rights Commission investigates racial discrimination at Madisons That’s when he says he decided to file a complaint with CATSA, Canada’s Aviation Safety Agency. Story continues below ad Rodriguez says she has been searched at airports in Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. She says the searches were always done after she went through the body scanner at security while wearing a ponytail. “It’s absurd at first, because I can’t hide anything in my hair,” Rodriguez said. She believes the practice is discriminatory and challenging because there is a history of discrimination or unwanted touching for people who have curly hair. “So the whole idea of touching your hair for people with afro hair becomes a very touchy subject, and in this case, it just doesn’t seem necessary,” Rodriguez explained.
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Rodriguez would like CATSA to offer more sensitivity training to its employees. Trending Stories
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The Race Relations Action Research Center agrees. “Black women’s hair has always been viewed by many authorities as problematic, unprofessional, unsightly and therefore not very businesslike,” Niemi said. “We’ve had cases in the past where black women’s hair has become an issue in the eyes of employers and in the eyes of security officers.” Story continues below ad Niemi recommends that anyone who is subject to a pat down because of their hair at a Canadian airport and believes it is being discriminated against should file a complaint with the Canadian Human Rights Commission, as CATSA is under federal jurisdiction. “It is going to find ways and means to protect the human rights of the individual, especially when it feels that the search is intrusive and biased, but also through the complaint seeking remedial measures to prevent the situation from happening again in the near future,” said Niemi. added.
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Meanwhile, CATSA claims they have not received Rodriguez’s complaint and cannot begin an investigation without it. They say they have received five other complaints in the past two years related to bumps after a person’s hairstyle triggered an alarm on the full-body scanner. “In the event that a passenger raises an alert during the full-body scan process, the alert must be resolved before the passenger is allowed through security screening,” wrote Suzanne Perseo, spokeswoman for CATSA. “There are many options available to passengers, one of which is private search. For security reasons, we cannot comment on dangerous items found during the screening process.” Perseo went on to say that when an issue is identified, they work to investigate and review the passenger screening process and ensure procedures are followed and additional training is provided for screening staff if required. Story continues below ad As for Rodriguez, she says she’s traveling again this weekend and is worried she’ll be searched again. “I think every time it happens I’m going to continue to file a complaint,” Rodriguez said. She says the goal is to make sure it doesn’t happen to her or anyone else again. 4:17 Black hair care: Canadians open up about their hair journeys Black hair care: Canadians open up about their hair journeys – February 15, 2020 © 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
