Comedian Eric André Says He Was Racially Profiled at Melbourne Airport
Eric André detailed an incident he allegedly suffered while traveling through the Melbourne Airport in Australia over the weekend. The 41-year-old actor and comedian claimed to have been racially profiled while en route to Brisbane for work, which he opened up about in a candid video posted to social media.
"So, I've been on planes for over 25 hours. I flew from New York City to LA, then LA to Melbourne, then Melbourne to Brisbane to shoot something, I got detained," André recounted in the video, which he posted to both Instagram and TikTok. "I got pulled out of a lineup and put in a special line in Melbourne where I was sniffed thoroughly by a dog. Those dogs are pretty much ineffective."
"I've heard statistics like they're 80 to 90 percent ineffective at sniffing out whatever they're supposed to sniff out," he continued, fact checking himself in a caption overlaying the TikTok video that the actual statistic is closer to 75 percent.
"It's one of the many times I've been racially profiled at the airport," André noted, perhaps referring to a "dehumanizing and demoralizing" he claimed to have experienced at the Atlanta Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport in 2021. He filed a lawsuit against the airport along with comedian Clayton English in 2022, which was later dismissed. Earlier this year, the two comedians filed an appeal against the dismissal of the lawsuit.
"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," André warned. "They are searching Black, brown and Indigenous people. 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."
He also asked if anyone had any information regarding how often passengers of color are stopped compared to white passengers. André, who was born in in Boca Raton, FL, is of both Ashkenazi Jewish and Afro-Haitian descent.
"And 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 continued. "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 reasoned. "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."
"I'd love to dig up the statistics of what is coming out of that program," André added, asking again if anyone had any more information on the "Giuliani stop-and-frisk-esque nonsense program." "It's unethical and it's not safe—it's providing a less safe experience for Black, brown, indigenous, and immigrant passengers. It has nothing to do with safety, It has everything to do with racial harassment.
In an caption on the Instagram post, the Melbourne Airport addressed André, noting that 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 note stated. "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."
Given André's ongoing lawsuit with the Atlanta airport, it seems unlikely that this will be the last heard of the alleged incident in Melbourne.
