If Your Hair Is Nappy, the TSA Is Not Happy

When commenting on various hairstyles popular in the Black community, comedian, Paul Mooney joked, "If your hair is relaxed, White people are relaxed. If your hair is nappy, they aren't happy."

That sentiment seems to be no joking matter at the Transportation Security Administration. In July of 2011, Laura Adiele had her "poofy" hair molested by the TSA.  Most recently, Isis Brantley of Dallas was at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta on September 19, 2011. She made it through a TSA checkpoint only to be stopped again to have her afro searched. Apparently, the TSA was concerned Isis Brantley's hair might contain explosives.  The intrusive search left Brantley feeling humiliated and outraged.

We can all rest easy, because the threat of Isis Brantley's exploding afro has been eliminated. It turns out Isis Brantley was not a terrorist and did not hide any explosives in her hair. She is a hairstylist, who proudly wears her hair natural.

The TSA simply has to find a better way to handle situations like this. There is an abundance of technology that can be used to detect explosives. It is completely unnecessary for the TSA to be poking around in people's hair.  The TSA does stuff like this because they can, and they want to show you they are in charge.  Think about it this way, when a unifromed federal officer is rummaging around in your hair, is there any question about who is in control?

TSA Searches Black Woman's "Poofy" Hair

Now the Transportation Security Administration is concerned with your hair, especially if it "poofs from the body." Actually, the TSA's official policy is apparently now to "examine anything that poofs from the body."

When Laura Adiele, a Black woman, attempted to board a flight at Sea-Tac Airport in Washington, she went through the TSA's full-body scanner. After accepting that dose of radiation, Laura Adiele was pulled aside for a pat-down. The TSA was not comfortable with her hairstyle (or perhaps they found it arousing) and they wanted to run their fingers through it.

Laura Adiele objected at first, but the TSA was not going to let her on her flight until they got to feel-up her hair, so she eventually complied. The TSA then spent some time rifling through the woman's hair. Of course, they found absolutely nothing, and Adiele got to board the flight and arrive at her destination with tussled hair.

So, even with all of their metal detectors, cameras, full-body scanners, explosive sniffers etc., the TSA cannot determine if a woman's hair is a threat to public safety or not without actually running their fingers through it. In reality, the TSA could have easily used their devices to rule out the woman's hair as a threat. When the TSA does stuff like this, they do not do it because they have to. The TSA does this because they can.

While the TSA was busy messing around in this unfortunate Black woman's threatening poofy hair, how many foreign nationals do you suppose walked right through TSA security wearing Muslim head-coverings?