Earlier this month, an adorable little 3-year-old-girl named Lucy Forck and her parents were at the St. Louis International Airport on her way to Disney World in Orlando, Florida, when they ran into an issue with the TSA. The problems started when TSA agents decided to pat the child down and screen her wheelchair, which she uses because she has Spina bifida.
While Lucy was being screened, she began to cry, saying through her tears that she didn’t want to go to Disney World anymore, and her mother, Annie Schulte insisted on recording it — “The problem is I don’t allow anyone to touch my little daughter without being able to record it,” she said — but was told she wasn’t allowed to. But Schulte still managed to capture some of what was going on with her camera phone.
“The problem is I don’t allow anyone to touch my little daughter without being able to record it,” Schulte can be heard saying in the heartbreaking video footage. (See below)
In an interview with ABC News, Schulte said she knew something wasn’t right, which is why she wanted it on tape.
“To me it was pretty offensive because I was really tuned in when she said that, immediately I’m like, ‘OK, hold on, something doesn’t seem right.’ So I did tell her I was going to wait because I was going to grab my phone,” Schulte said.
The agents also refused to give Lucy back her stuffed animal even though she was crying for it.
Lucy’s father Nathan Forck believes that his daughter was “singled out, specifically because she is in a wheelchair.”
The TSA must feel as though they have done something wrong too, because they have issued a public apology to the family.
“TSA regrets inaccurate guidance was provided to this family during screening and offers its apology,” read the statement. “We are committed to maintaining the security of the traveling public and strive to treat all passengers with dignity and respect. While no pat-down was performed, we will address specific concerns with our workforce.”
Fortunately, this story does have a happy ending. Lucy and her family made it to Disney World, and Lucy got to meet Mickey Mouse! “We had a great time,” her dad Nathan said.
