Comedian Eric André says he was racially profiled at the Melbourne Airport in Australia.
On Sunday (August 18), André shared on video on Instagram, where he revealed that he was "detained" at the airport as he was wrapping up a 25-hour trip involving stops in Los Angeles, Melbourne, and Brisbane, Australia.
André said he was "pulled out of a lineup and put in a special line," where he was "sniffed thoroughly by a dog."
"Those dogs are pretty much ineffective," he said, adding "It's one of the many times I've been racially profiled at the airport. So this is a message for all Black, brown, and Indigenous people traveling through Melbourne today, especially if you're traveling through Qantas International by Terminal 2: Please be careful."
"They are searching Black, brown and Indigenous people," André continued. "Please let me know if anybody knows the names of those officers with the dogs or what that program is. If anybody has information on a discrimination Australian lawyer, I'm all ears."
In Sunday's video, André asked his followers if they could send him data on how many "people of color they put into this dog-sniffing line" compared to their white counterparts.
"Anybody hiring me to work in Australia going forward, whether it's a production or a tour, please don't make me go through the Melbourne Airport alone," André said. "Please provide a police escort or some type of security escort for me, or have me fly into Brisbane or Sydney directly. I do not feel safe in the Melbourne Airport. I do not want to be humiliated or racially discriminated against anymore at these airports."
"I don't want to cut my hair and wear a three-piece suit so that I'm treated like a first-class citizen," he continued. "I shouldn't be made to feel that I am unaccepted by entering a country. Shame on the people at the Melbourne Airport that have this cockamamie procedure. I doubt it yields any safer world for anybody in Melbourne or Australia."
The Melbourne Airport responded to André's Instagram post, saying it "does not tolerate racism in any form."
"We are following up your complaint with the Australian Border Force (ABF) and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) who are in charge of processing all international arrivals at Melbourne Airport and other Australian international gateways," the response read. "Melbourne Airport is proudly the gateway to one of the most multicultural cities in the world. We welcome ALL passengers to Melbourne, and we expect everyone to be treated equally."
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