Catherine Banks had just settled into her seat on the plane when a flight attendant informed her she would need to get off the plane because the shirt she was wearing was “threatening.”
“A male flight attendant was saying, ‘Ma’am, ma’am.’ I looked around, like, ‘Who was he talking to?’ And it was me. He said, ‘You need to get off the plane,’ and I was like, ‘What did I do?’” Banks told KNTV.
Banks, a Marine Corps veteran, complied, though she said it wasn’t until she reached the jet bridge that she learned why she had to get off the plane.
“He said that shirt you’re wearing is threatening,” Banks said. “I said, ‘Are you kidding me? I’m a Marine Corps vet. I’m going to see my Marine sister. I’ve been in the Marine Corps for 22 years and worked for the Air Force for 15 years. I’m going to visit her.’ He said, ‘I don’t care about your service, and I don’t care about her service. The only way you’re going to get back on the plane is if you take it off right now.’”
