Several weeks after security officials detained the son of boxing legend Muhammad Ali at a Florida airport, asking him if he’s Muslim, he was stopped again at another airport ― this time in Washington, D.C.
According to Muhammad Ali, Jr.’s lawyer Chris Mancini, Ali was stopped and questioned at Ronald Reagan National Airport for about 20 minutes Friday, March 10, the New York Daily News reports. As for the cause for alarm, Mancini claimed officers were skeptical about his identification but that Ali, 44, was finally released after producing his U.S. passport.
Meanwhile, TMZ reports that while Ali was in possession of his Illinois ID, it wasn’t sufficient for the agent who then put him on the phone with Homeland Security. The Transportation Security Administration also tells the entertainment news site that the delay was not 20 minutes — only 11, adding Ali was never “detained.”
In a separate statement, TSA claimed that agents were concerned about a “large piece of jewelry” Ali was wearing. He was then given a “targeted” pat down and “cleared” to travel. The Department of Homeland Security seconded TSA’s claims that Ali was only delayed for about 11 minutes, the New York Daily News reports.
On way home on DOMESTIC FLIGHT Muhammad Ali Jr. detained AGAIN by @DHSgov. Religiously profiling son of ‘The Greatest’ will not make us safe pic.twitter.com/KO3IVnRFax
— D Wasserman Schultz (@DWStweets) March 10, 2017
Later on, a photo surfaced via social media, featuring Ali and congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida’s 23rd District, posing on a plane. “On way home on DOMESTIC FLIGHT Muhammad Ali Jr. detained AGAIN by @DHSgov. Religiously profiling son of ‘The Greatest’ will not make us safe,” the tweet reads.
What are your thought’s on Ali’s second round of “questioning” in just over a month? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
