This story is too sad and unacceptable, especially if the requested external (or independent) investigation will confirm discrimination. In case you have not read about it yet, and if you wish, you can consult French media reports about it in both English and French (https://tinyurl.com/cz47cryz; nyurl.com/47e3edk9).
In sum, a French “holiday camp filed a legal complaint against Spanish airline Vueling over the expulsion of French Jewish teenagers from a Paris-bound flight“. The holiday camp organizers, the adolescents themselves, and some parents seem to report the following: the 50 young passengers, along with their summer camp counsellors, were forced off the plane in a psychologically degrading—and even physically violent—way. It seems that the latter took place after one of the adolescents of the group had sung a song in Hebrew, as reported by some parents (https://tinyurl.com/cz47cryz; nyurl.com/47e3edk9). Let’s keep in mind that they were returning home from vacation. So they must have still been in an excited or happy mood.
Of note, the airline company “crew requested the intervention of the Civil Guard police force” ( (https://tinyurl.com/cz47cryz; nyurl.com/47e3edk9). Wow. In Indian media, we can see a shocking picture or video of how the latter arrested a 21-year-old female counsellor of these teenagers—some of them were as young as 13 and even 12. The company claimed that it was because she refused to leave the airplane. It also claimed that the adolescents’ behaviour was disrupting (https://tinyurl.com/55hm6rp7).
Of course, we do not know all the facts yet, only the two sides of the story. Nevertheless, this saga is sad regardless of antisemitism or not or disrupting teen behaviour or not. Indeed, it is highly disturbing for different reasons, including humanity in general, human and passenger rights specifically, customer service, adolescent education, and human behaviour, namely civility or what looks like unmeasured use of violence.
To conclude on a musical note as usual, Bambi will allow herself to offer the “Hava Nagila” famous song to Vueling. Of course, it is in Hebrew and it is sung by a HIGHLY talented girl from Uzbekistan. Her name is Sofiya Fadeeva. Bless her voice!
