An army veteran was removed from a Delta Air Lines flight for wearing a t-shirt with a supportive message. Catherine Banks, who was traveling from San Francisco International Airport to visit her “marine sister,” was asked to leave the plane by a flight attendant, who deemed her shirt “threatening.”
The incident took place on Wednesday, October 16, leaving Banks, a Bay Area veteran, feeling embarrassed after being asked to disembark in front of fellow passengers. The male flight attendant also instructed her to remove her top, though she wasn’t wearing a bra.
Banks told NBC about the incident, saying: “A male flight attendant called out, ‘Ma’am, ma’am.’ I looked around to see who he was addressing, and realized it was me. He then told me I had to get off the plane, which left me confused about what I had done.”
It wasn’t until she was off the plane that Banks learned the issue. On the jet bridge, the flight attendant explained that her t-shirt was inappropriate for the flight. The shirt didn’t have offensive language but instead carried a message important to Banks: “Do not give in to the war within. End veteran suicide.” Despite the positive message, she was removed from the flight.
To put her message into context, statistics on veteran suicide are alarming: Stop Soldier Suicide reports that veterans are 72% more likely to die by suicide than non-veterans, with over 6,000 veteran suicides annually for the past two decades. Since 2001, more than 131,000 veterans have died by suicide, including 6,392 deaths in 2021.
Banks recalled the upsetting exchange: “He told me my shirt was threatening. I replied, ‘Are you serious? I’m a Marine Corps vet visiting my Marine sister. I’ve served 22 years in the Marine Corps and 15 years in the Air Force.’ He responded, ‘I don’t care about your service or hers. You’ll only be allowed back on the plane if you take it off now.’”
Banks was forced to change into a sweatshirt on the jet bridge before being allowed back on the flight. However, she was moved from her paid extra legroom seat to a standard seat at the back, and the delay caused her to miss her connecting flight.
A Delta Air Lines spokesperson responded: “The matter has been resolved with the customer. We appreciate her patience as we continue investigating the incident, and most importantly, we are grateful for her service to our country.”