Shocking Allegations: Acclaimed Musician Accused by Airline of Trafficking His Own Sons

A Black musician with collaborations with John Mayer and the Dave Matthews Band is now receiving an apology from American Airlines after he claims he was wrongly accused of trafficking his own kids. David Ryan Harris, aged 55, took to Instagram on September 23 to share his experience. He stated that he flew with his sons Truman and Hendrix from Atlanta to Los Angeles on September 15. However, upon arrival, they were met by four police officers at the gate. According to Harris, a flight attendant had expressed concerns about his children, who are biracial, being unresponsive during an interaction. “We’re met, embarrassingly so, by this AA employee and police officers. [They] questioned my kids,” Harris explained in a video.

Following the incident, Harris reached out to American but did not receive an initial apology. It took the airline more than a week to respond. In a subsequent Instagram post, Harris shared his disappointment, emphasizing that the flight attendant could have easily checked the passenger manifest or even conducted a simple Google search to see his social media accounts, which clearly showed him with his children. Harris also pointed out that there was no mention of child trafficking during the incident.

American Airlines has since issued an apology for the incident. In a statement shared by Harris, the airline admits that their policies regarding suspected human trafficking were not followed and extends a heartfelt apology from the flight attendant involved. Although Harris commended American for finally reaching out, he expressed his frustration at having to publicly shame the airline before receiving a response. Additionally, he called for airlines to implement mandatory ID checks for young travelers to avoid flight attendants having to make assumptions.

As a result of the incident, Harris has launched a petition on Change.org calling for mandatory ID checks for children traveling with parents. This issue is not isolated, as a similar incident occurred in October 2021 when a white mother traveling with her biracial 10-year-old daughter on a Southwest flight also faced accusations. “I hear all the time from parents that this is happening to,” said Mary MacCarthy. “Clearly, something is wrong with the training flight crews are undergoing.”