Late last week, beloved children’s writer and Australian treasure Mem Fox had a particularly fucked up experience on her way to a literary event in the US.
The author of ‘Possum Magic‘ and ‘Where is the Green Sheep?’ was wrongfully detained at Los Angeles Airport, where, along with a number of other foreign visitors, was seemingly harassed for two hours by a man “heavy with weaponry” due to an entirely non-existent problem with her visa.
I am proud of my countrywoman Mem Fox who bravely kept quiet under Immigration questioning and didn’t tell them where the green sheep was
— Liam Hogan (@liamvhogan) February 25, 2017
Now, Fox has discussed the horrific incident with ‘The Project’ crew, who also investigated the seemingly exponential growth in aggression amongst US customs officials during US President and xenophobic sack of shit Donald Trump’s still quite short, month long reign.
She described how, after officials mistakenly thought Fox was working in the country instead of visiting, she was effectively harassed:
“They pulled me out of line, took me into a holding room, and what happened next was awful, it was just awful.“But it happened to every person, I saw an elderly Iranian woman shouted at, at full volume.“The treatment of the people in that room, while I was there, which I was observed, made me ashamed to be a human being.”
She then discussed how airport culture has changed since custom officials were given “turbo-charged powers“.
Since Trump began implementing “tough” (read: racist and unjust) immigration policies, people such as former Norway Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik and Muhammad Ali Jr have been subject to wrongful detainment.
Fox also discussed the cruel irony that her newest work, ‘I’m Australian Too,’ is primarily a celebration of diversity and acceptance.
“Number one, the new book, ‘I’m Australian Too’: all about welcoming strangers.“And irony number two, which was hysterical, was the conference I was going to in Milwaukee had the theme of humanity, diversity and inclusivity.”
But as horrific as her situation was, it’s important to remember that Fox got away relatively lightly considering she’s a white woman; as another Aussie writer, Maxine Beneba Clarke, pointed out, this isn’t a particularly novel experience for people of colour.
Okay please please be quiet abt Mem Fox now, it’s just offensive to those of us who battle airport security on a regular basis.
— Maxine Beneba Clarke (@slamup) February 25, 2017
Fox has also acknowledged how much worse this would have otherwise been, previously telling the ABC that:
“I am old and white, innocent and educated, and I speak English fluently.“Imagine what happened to the others in the room, including an old Iranian woman in her 80s, in a wheelchair.”
Christ we’re in for a shitty few years. Take care of each other there gang, or at the very least don’t be nationalist cockheads.
You can watch the full video below.
“The treatment of people in that room… made me ashamed to be a human being.” Mem Fox speaks about being detained in the US. #TheProjectTV pic.twitter.com/tToVWwRgLk
— #TheProjectTV (@theprojecttv) February 28, 2017
Source and photo: The Project.
