A woman was caught being racist on camera during her verbal spat with a wedding photographer and his Indian American family following their United Airlines flight arrival in Los Angeles, as evidenced by unsettling video footage.
Pervez Taufiq was travelling with his wife and three sons from Cancun when an unpleasant encounter occurred with another passenger on the transfer bus.
The incident began after the woman had allegedly harassed his son during the flight.
The recorded footage from November 24 captured the woman’s xenophobic outburst: “Your family is from India, you have no respect, you have no rules, you think you can push everyone, push, push, push,” she said. “That’s what you think you are. You guys are f**king crazy.”
When Taufiq referenced her earlier comments about curry, she threatened to record his “f–king tandoori ass.” The woman displayed offensive gestures and falsely accused him of racism when he requested her removal from the bus for her discriminatory behaviour.
Sharing this video on Instagram, Taufiq wrote, “Mortified we just went through this. This lady was harassing our son on the flight, unbeknownst to us , asking him if he was indian and making comments. When we landed in LA and got on the transfer bus, she told our son to “shut up” , I told her she doesn’t have a right to speak to my son that way and her husband got in my face trying to tell me to not speak to his wife. The remainder of this is what happened . I’m thankful United @united got her off the bus ultimately and a few fellow passengers stood up for us. Blown away these types of people still exist . As photographers we have seen a lot of, but this is one we could have done without .”
Taufiq, who was born and raised in Boston, described the incident to The Post as surreal. The initial interaction occurred during the flight when he checked on his 11-year-old son, who was seated separately from the family, New York Post reported.
The situation escalated on the shuttle bus when the woman allegedly told his children to be quiet. United Airlines staff intervened after a bystander confirmed the woman was the instigator, leading to her removal from the bus.
Taufiq and his wife, who photograph over 200 prestigious events annually worldwide, received numerous supportive messages, including one from journalist Katie Couric expressing sympathy for their experience.
United Airlines had not responded to enquiries about the incident as of Sunday evening.
