TSA Tries To Shame Teenage Girl

This photo depicts a 15-year-old high school student who had the misfortune of being the target of reported inappropriate comments from a male TSA worker at Los Angeles International Airport. 

Photo credit: Mark Frauenfelder (a.k.a. dad),
boing boing

The agent, who remains nameless and faceless in the media reports that I have read, reportedly showed hostility toward the girl and made angry comments about the outfit she was wearing--the outfit shown in the photo on the left.

According to the girl's father, the TSA agent was "glaring" at her, then  stated, “You’re only 15. Cover Yourself!” 

In no particular order, here are some of the reasons why I find this incident so disturbing: 

1. The adult, male TSA worker seems to be taking an unhealthy interest in the body and attire of an underage girl.

2. This is another blatant reminder that airline passengers are forced to interact with TSA agents (even creepy ones) if they want to fly.

3. The TSA worker’s job allows him to demand personal information from citizens (which is how he knew the girl’s age) then use that information for his own purposes (such as making his “You’re only 15” statement). 

4. This TSA worker dredges up concerns about possible underlying perversions of TSA agents (many of whom I’ll assume are not perverts) who carry out invasive body scans and intimate hands-on searches of airline passengers.

5. This TSA worker cannot keep himself from having sexualized thoughts about an underage female passenger who did nothing to provoke this unwanted attention. (You know that old ‘she was asking for it’ argument that always rears its ugly head?) 

6. This TSA worker seems to be paying more attention to an underage girl’s body and clothing than to the general safety of the airport.

7. Despite having two witnesses who heard the worker’s derogatory comments to the girl, the TSA did not immediately relieve him of his duties.

 

8. The girl’s clothing is totally appropriate for a teenager which makes me question the possibly devious mindset of this TSA worker.

9. Anyone who so angrily voices their righteous opinions about what other people should/shouldn’t wear, how they should/shouldn’t behave, and how they should/shouldn’t look clearly aims to control, abuse, humiliate, and shame the person they are judging. In this case, shame falls squarely on the shoulders of the male TSA worker, not on this teenage girl who was so embarrassed and frightened by the incident that she reported it to her father.