The racist speech of a passenger on Ryanair triggers a British police investigation

LONDON (Reuters) – British police opened an investigation after a man suspected of racist violence of being the victim of racist aggression against an old black woman on board a Ryanair flight had turned the corner this weekend. The airline has been criticized for its handling of the incident.

The unidentified man insulted him after complaining of being disturbed while he was trying to reach his seat aboard.

"Do not talk to me in a fucking foreign tongue, stupid ugly cow," says the man to the woman before a man in the row behind asks him to stop.

"I'll go on as long as I can with that dirty black bastard," he retorted.

Ryanair said it was aware of the case and reported it to the police. The chief financial officer of the airline refused to comment on the story.

"The Essex police are serious about bias-based crimes and we want all incidents to be reported. We are working closely with Ryanair and the Spanish authorities as part of the investigation, "said the police in a statement.

The video was taken by another passenger while the plane was waiting to take off from London Stansted Airport on Friday in Barcelona.

After the argument, the woman was finally removed from her seat. A flight attendant seems to indicate to the man that he will discuss the incident with his supervisor, but the passenger is left in his place.

"I saw the airlines come to a standstill, and the police called and the passengers escorted off planes at a lower cost," said David Lawrence, who recorded the video, on BBC Radio.

The police investigation comes as the Irish low cost carrier, the largest in Europe, announced Monday a 7% decline in profits in the first half of the year. Ryanair is grappling with the consequences of recent strikes, high fuel costs and intense competition. [nL8N1X2110]

The British Home Secretary resigned earlier this year due to the treatment of Caribbean "Windrush" migrants invited to Britain after the Second World War, but without documents and basic rights. This scandal has exposed persistent racial inequalities in British society.

Lawrence added that the woman with whom he is in contact belonged to the Windrush generation and that the frequency of such racist abuse made people insane.

"If the roles had been reversed, if it was a black man who was abusing an elderly and disabled white woman, I know the result would have been completely different," he said. declared.