Florida Man Kicked Off Plane for Wearing Panties as Facemask

A Florida man is being compared to Rosa Parks after getting kicked off a plane for wearing bright red women's thong panties as a mask. Adam Jenne of Cape Coral has been wearing the thong as his mask to protest mask mandates and travel rules requiring people to wear masks on airplanes. Technically, the red thong meets the requirements of a cloth facial cover in compliance with mask mandates which is why he has gotten away with it at least a dozen times until a United Airlines flight crew decided to re-invent the definition of a mask. Under the new definition of a mask, which seems to include just about any cloth face cover other than women's underwear, Jenne was not in compliance according to the flight crew.

After Jenne was kicked off the plane other passengers left the plane in protest outraged at the United Airlines flight crew for kicking a man off a plane for wearing a mask. One passenger asked, "Did he just get kicked off for wearing a mask?" After confirming he said, "I’m out of here, forget it. I’m out of here." Several other passengers followed. United Airlines later issued a public statement in support of the decision saying, "The customer clearly wasn’t in compliance with the federal mask mandate and we appreciate that our team addressed the issue on the ground prior to takeoff, avoiding any potential disruptions on the air."

To make sure that I am right about the ejection being unjustified I looked up the federal mask mandate. The mandate outlines the requirements of masks, "The following are attributes of masks needed to fulfill the requirements of the Order. CDC will update this guidance as needed." Followed by these bullet points:

- A properly worn mask completely covers the nose and mouth.

- Cloth masks should be made with two or more layers of a breathable fabric that is tightly woven (i.e., fabrics that do not let light pass through when held up to a light source).

- Mask should be secured to the head with ties, ear loops, or elastic bands that go behind the head. If gaiters are worn, they should have two layers of fabric or be folded to make two layers.

- Mask should fit snugly but comfortably against the side of the face.

- Mask should be a solid piece of material without slits, exhalation valves, or punctures.

Source: https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/masks/mask-travel-guidance.html

Upon further review it appears that the thong covered the nose and mouth, the fabric appears thick enough not to see through it, it was fastened to his ears/face with elastic, it appeared to fit snugly as well as comfortably, and appears to be a solid piece of material without slits. The only possible argument we could see the airline making would be that the thong is not made with two or more layers of fabric, but as far as we can tell it appears to be made of either two or more layers or a thick layer capable of preventing people from seeing his face despite being stretched. I believe that it meets the above requirements absent a showing that it wasn't as thick as it appears.

In addition to the above, the CDC has a second bulleted list of things that do not qualify as masks:

- Masks worn in a way that does not cover both the mouth and nose

- Face shields or goggles (face shields or goggles may be worn to supplement a mask that meets above required attributes)

- Scarves, ski masks, balaclavas, or bandannas

- Shirt or sweater collars (e.g., turtleneck collars) pulled up over the mouth and nose.

- Masks made from loosely woven fabric or that are knitted, i.e., fabrics that let light pass through

- Masks made from materials that are hard to breathe through (such as vinyl, plastic or leather)

- Masks containing slits, exhalation valves, or punctures

- Masks that do not fit properly (large gaps, too loose or too tight)

The thong clearly covers the nose and mouth, is not a face shied, goggles, scarf, ski mask, balaclava, bandanna, shirt or sweater collar, made from loosely woven fabric, knitted, does not allow light to pass through, is not hard to breath through, contains no slits, exhalation valves, or punctures, and fits properly. Clearly the panties are not on this list.

Conclusion

Adam Jenne appears to be the Rosa Parks of the COVID era.