Bebe Rexha tearfully posted on social media that a Lufthansa airport employee had “threatened” her in a “hate crime” because she speaks Albanian.
The 34-year-old singer posted a series of posts on Instagram at Munich International Airport claiming she was denied entry to her return flight to the United States.
“The supervisor of this Lufthansa flight is threatening me,” sobbed Rexha, her makeup smeared, and continued to claim that the reason was because she had spoken Albanian to a co-worker she thought was from Albania.
She captioned the video: “Lufthansa, I was threatened because I thought the security guard was Albanian. I spoke to him in Albanian and asked where I could get my ticket and now he’s banning me from flying.”
In a follow-up post, Rehxa added: “I believe this is a hate crime because I am Albanian.
“He wouldn’t let me take his name. He continued to psychologically abuse me to make me feel like he was more powerful than he was.”
The I’m doing well Singer also criticized other airport employees for not making any attempts to de-escalate the situation.
“None of the women at @Lufthansa intervened or said anything. He wouldn’t give me his name. But I just found out he works for ATSG, a document control service provider contracted by Lufthansa.”
Lufthansa has since commented on the incident and confirmed that it has contacted the pop star.
“We have contacted Bebe Rexha and are in direct contact with her to understand the situation. As an international airline, we connect people and countries around the globe. Our guests and employees come from all over the world,” a spokesman said, according to The Independent.
“Diversity and equal opportunities are core values of our company and our corporate culture. We do not tolerate any discriminatory behavior.”
Rexha later confirmed on social media that she had been contacted by the airline and asked them to conduct a “comprehensive investigation.”
“I have never been so emotionally drained. Lufthansa has sent me a direct message, but I urge them to launch a full investigation to find out who this man is who abused his power.”
“‘I’m sorry’ won’t be enough this time.”
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