Dr. Tamika Cross, a black woman and OBGYN from Houston, was on a returning flight home and Delta Airlines initially refused her to see another passenger who needed medical attention because a flight attendant didn’t think she fit what a doctor looked like.
Cross details the flight attendant’s initial response to her raising her hand to help a fellow passenger was, “oh no sweetie put ur hand down, we are looking for actual physicians or nurses or some type of medical personnel, we don’t have time to talk to you.”
Due to disbelief and lack of credentials at the time, she was further questioned about where she worked, her specialty, and why she was flying from Detroit. Cross answered impatiently as the passenger was still needing medical attention while she was being questioned. Meanwhile, a white male approached the flight attendants and was immediately allowed to help and Cross mentions that he shows no credentials either. He fit the description of what the flight attendants thought doctors look like.
Despite the condescending comments from the flight attendant, Cross still worked together with them to benefit the passenger. Attempting to reconcile, the flight attendant offered “sky miles”, but Cross refused them.
During her layover for her next leg of the flight home, Cross published the account on Facebook and it went viral, accumulating 45,000 shares. Other black women in the medical field were quick to support Cross and exchange their own stories. The popular tags, “#ThisIsWhatADoctorLooksLike” and “#TamikaCross” sprung up and gained traction on Twitter when news of the story broke. Black women in the medical field began posting selfies in their scrubs and even graduation gowns as a way to remind others of their visibility in their field while supporting Cross.
Delta Airlines has announced an investigation after Cross made a formal complaint with the company stating, “The experience Dr. Cross has described is not reflective of Delta’s culture or of the values our employees live out every day.”
As for why Cross didn’t seek out the initial compensation of air miles, Cross explained that, “Whether this was race, age, gender discrimination, it’s not right.”
