TV host and comedian Eric André just told his fans he was racially profiled during a layover at Melbourne Airport.
He made the claims in a serious Instagram Reel posted on Monday, saying the incident happened while he was travelling to Brisbane to shoot a project.
“I got detained and I got pulled out of a line-up and put in a special line in Melbourne where I was sniffed thoroughly by a dog,” he said.
He went on to warn his non-white followers to be cautious if they were travelling through Melbourne Airport soon, claiming: “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 travelling through Melbourne today, especially if you’re travelling Qantas International by Terminal 2, please be careful. They are searching Black, brown and Indigenous people.”
André said he had spent the last 25 hours travelling by plane, flying from New York to Los Angeles before making it to Melbourne and Brisbane.
Eric André has been working in comedy for over 20 years. (Image: Getty)
He asked followers for any leads on a discrimination lawyer in Australia, and queried if anyone had statistics or data on how many people of colour compared to white passengers were asked to go into the “dog-sniffing line”.
The comedian went on to ask any Australian productions or tours looking to hire him in the future to avoid sending him through Melbourne Airport by himself.
“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 said.
The Emmy-nominated host said he “shouldn’t be made to feel that I am not accepted by entering a country” and said he doesn’t believe it creates a “safer world” for anybody in Australia or Melbourne.
“I’d love to dig up the statistics on what is coming out of that [dog-sniffing] program… it has nothing to do with safety. It has everything to do with racial harassment,” he alleged.
Fans quickly took to the comment section to share their support, because this shouldn’t be happening.
Fans knew something was wrong when Eric André’s video started with such a serious tone. (Image: Instagram @ericfuckingandre)
“I’m so sorry that happened Eric. Melbourne is one of the most accepting states of all nationalities so I’m very pissed off and hurt that this happened to you. It’s not okay,” one person wrote.
“I’m so sorry this happens to you all the fucking time. It’s embarrassingly clear what they are doing,” another added.
“This is serious! You can see it on his face that he was disturbed,” a third wrote.
The official Melbourne Airport Instagram account left a statement in the comment section, saying they do “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 statement said.
“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.”
The Australian Border Force also left a comment, claiming that this wasn’t one of their detector dogs.
“We have confirmed that this was not an Australian Border Force detector dog or interaction. Here at the ABF we are really proud of our diverse workforce, especially at Melbourne Airport, and the work they undertake – both human and canine – to keep the country safe. We hope your stay in Australia is wonderful,” their statement read.
Feature Image: Instagram @ericfuckingandre
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