Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Woman humiliated by airport bra incident

A woman said she was humiliated at an Oakland, Calif., airport when confronted by Transportation Safety Administration officers about her underwire bra.

Nancy Kates said she was en route to visit her mother in Boston when her bra set off the metal detector at Oakland International Airport, attracting the attention of TSA officers, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday.

Kates said she was subjected to an intrusive search by a female officer.

"The woman touched my breast. I said, 'You can't do that,'" Kates said. "She said, 'We have to pat you down.' I said, 'You can't treat me as a criminal for wearing a bra.'"

She said the TSA agents allowed her to walk through the metal detector a second time after removing her bra and the device was not triggered. However, she said a search of her carry-on luggage caused her to miss her flight. Kates said she was considering possible legal action against the airport.

"It's actually a little funny in a way, but a sad, sad commentary on the state of our country," Kates said. "This is bigger than just me. There are 150 million women in America, and this could happen to any of them."

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