A parent is claiming that the TSA shamed her daughter over an outfit that she was wearing.
Mark Frauenfelder, the founder of Boing Boing, claims that his 15-year-old daughter was traveling with a group of college students on a college tour and the parents weren't with her when a TSA agent verbally abused his daughter, but says she told him about what was happening through text messages.
Frauenfelder says his daughter was going through the security checkpoint where the TSA checks IDs at Los Angeles International Airport and his daughter says an agent was "glaring" at her and mumbling something. His daughter said to the agent "Excuse me?" and he said, "You're only 15, COVER YOURSELF!" in a hostile tone. The girl was wearing black pants, a white tanktop, and an open, black and red plaid shirt. Frauenfelder says his daughter was shaken up by the way the TSA agent treated her.
Frauenfelder posted a photo of his daughter's outfit and says it doesn't matter what his daughter was wearing because a TSA agent shouldn't be telling girls what to wear. "His creepy thoughts are his own problem, and he shouldn't use his position of authority as an excuse to humiliate a girl and blame her for his sick attitude," Frauenfelder said.
Frauenfelder explained the situation to his friend Maureen Herman, who is a co-founder for a women's rights advocacy group. Herman wrote a response to the issue on Facebook, which Frauenfelder explains why it was wrong.
"Absolutely inappropriate, harassing, aggressive, creepy, unprofessional, and Taliban-y thing that he did. "Cover up" is a dangerous cultural attitude that fuels more than rude comments. It's the foundation of the oppression of women, rape culture ("she was asking for it"), and the drive for reproductive control of women's bodies.
Hillary Clinton puts it well:
"Why extremists always focus on women remains a mystery to me. But they all seem to. It doesn't matter what country they're in or what religion they claim. They want to control women. They want to control how we dress, they want to control how we act, they even want to control the decisions we make about our own health and bodies.
Yes, it is hard to believe but even here at home we have to stand up for women's rights and reject efforts to marginalize any one of us because America needs to set an example for the entire world."
Frauenfelder and his wife have contacted the TSA and LAX and he says they're investigating the issue. He claims that supervising officer, Officer Murphy apologized over the incident and says he is taking it seriously.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
