If you decide to make an ass of yourself while flying, it may not be wise to advertise where you work as you insult and otherwise annoy a planeload of fellow travelers.
A man who has since been identified as Zachary Easterly was having a really bad day last week, as seen when he erupted on a flight scheduled from Philadelphia to Dallas, according to TMZ. It’s not clear what set the man off, though he was rumored to have been bothering a woman sitting next to him, but he reportedly started throwing the N-word around without care.
Easterly is seen being removed from the flight in a video making the rounds online and he is not going quietly, berating passengers and flight attendants. He can be heard admitting that he is “intoxicated,” which apparently brings out the worst in him.
While looking for his bag — he doesn’t seem to have a clue where he put it — Easterly comments to a flight attendant trying to assist him that he’s “a white man that picked a black bag because I’m racist.” He can be heard saying “they are kicking me off the plane because I’m racist,” and also boasts that it’s “a better bag than most of y’all can afford.”
Outraged that he is being removed, Easterly uses a homophobic slur to call everyone else on the flight “liberal f*****s,” and says he hopes they “crash the f**king plane.” As he exits the plane, Easterly turns and responds to someone to say he was a chemical engineer with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology company GlaxoSmithKline, adding that he would be quitting the job “this week.”
In a second video, Easterly is heard repeatedly shouting the N-word while being escorted off of the plane — the attendant in charge is a black woman.
“I’m a white male and I’m proud… F**k you, you n*****!” he screams at one point.
He continued to use the N-word once inside the terminal, and started to draw a crowd and eventually got into a confrontation, although this is not seen on video.
“Two men are seen tussling with Easterly at one point, and they even pin him down onto the ground — seemingly in an attempt to make a citizen’s arrest … you can hear them talk about police/security. It’s unclear if Easterly was ever detained or arrested,” TMZ reported.
At one point, according to The Daily Mail, Easterly said to someone that he will “put out my pistol and kill your f**king family’ and “I’ll slit your f**king throat!”
As for his comment about quitting his job… well, he did — just not of his own accord.
On Wednesday, GSK was notified of an incident involving an employee on a flight to Dallas. We immediately conducted an investigation and as of Thursday, he is no longer employed at GSK. The person’s behavior was reprehensible and does not reflect our company culture.
— GSK US (@GSKUS) September 2, 2022
“We immediately conducted an investigation and as of Thursday, he is no longer employed at GSK. The person’s remarks were reprehensible and do not reflect our company culture,” the company said in a statement to TMZ.
“At GSK, diversity, equity and inclusion is embraced and celebrated and we are committed in policy, principle and practice to maintaining an environment which prohibits discriminatory behavior and provides equal opportunity for all persons.”
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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