Don’t you dare speak Arabic, warns stand-up comedian and actor.
What would happen if you speak an Indian language while traveling on a plane or passing through a security check at an airport in the US? Definitely, you will have to go through tough secondary security check and may miss your flight if the immigration officials are not satisfied with your attire or language.
Passengers from Asia and Middle-East are often racially profiled on the basis of their dress, language, or manners. In the wake of several incidents involving brown-skinned people being racially profiled, Indian American comedian Aasif Mandvi has come up with a video advising people about “Flight Safety Instructions to Brown People”.
The video offers “Flight Safety Instructions to Brown People” ahead of this year’s holiday season in the ninth episode of “Celebs Have Issues,” a Huffington Post original series where famous people use comedy to raise awareness about important issues.
“First: Do not speak Arabic in the airport, around the airport, or really anywhere you can hear an aeroplane. If you must speak Arabic in the Uber on the way to the airport, just throw in any white sounding words: Coldplay, Farmer’s Market, Open Dialogue,” says Mandvi.
Even babies are not free from strict rules. Wearing suspicious clothing like scarves, and shawls may also lead to troubles.
“If your plane ticket is stamped with SSSS, congratulations, you’ve been chosen for secondary screening selection. You’ll be taken to a secondary room for more screening but don’t worry, all your friends will be there.”
Making aggressive movements like yawning, sweating, whispering, talking loudly, pointing, and even holding breath are not acceptable while flying. It is better to remain silent all time.
The video has gone viral on social media. “To me, it’s not even offensive anymore. I just laugh at when I get “randomly selected”, wrote a user.