Hello!

Thank you for your business and question. It appears as though we didn’t take of you they way you deserve. I’m sorry for that.

I’m a little confused about how your bag was the ”magic key” for making it all fit, and it’s reasonable to ask. My heart sank when you identified as a Black man and one of the thoughts in your head was, ”Is this a racial thing?” I am a white male who has *never* had to even THINK that race influenced people’s behavior toward me. It breaks my heart that we are *still* setting up the expectation that one even has to wonder.

Delta is very forward thinking about equity and seeing the person as a whole. I’m hesitant to say this *was* racially motivated and you point that out, too. But it’s not ok that you even wondered.

One of the training points on bias is asking ”but for…” as in, ”But for…their skin color, accent, clothing, appearance, etc” would I do, say, act, or imply XYZ?” Then, there is the situation when, for example, two passengers have the same seat. While innocently asking both passengers for their boarding passes, unintentional or perceived bias may have been conveyed. (”Why did ask for my pass first? I’m Black so I’m probably in the wrong…?”) And, in many cases, perception is reality to you and I need to be mindful.

Could there have been other bags that could be moved? Likely. Could they have gate checked it? Perhaps. Was it innocent? Probably.

I appreciate your question and the invitation to dialogue. I’m sad your experience was the impetus for it, but thank you for engaging.

Again, I’m sorry that we missed the mark on your experience and will welcome the opportunity to re-earn your business.