Brothers file lawsuit against US Airways over alleged discrimination

DENVER, April 15 (UPI) -- Two African-American brothers have filed a lawsuit against US Airways alleging they were not allowed to enter first class unless they changed their clothes.

Miles and MacCraig Warren were flying home from Denver to Los Angeles after a funeral in August when the incident happened, the New York Daily News reported.

At the airport, a US Airways employee told them they could not be seated in first class until they changed out of the sweatshirts and jeans they were wearing and into button-up shirts, nicer shoes and slacks, the lawsuit alleges.

"They were told that this was the policy if you wanted to ride in first class," lawyer Rodney Diggs told the New York Daily News.

The brothers decided to follow the dress code and changed; however, once they were on the plane, they saw a white man and a Filipino man in first class dressed in jeans and sweatshirts.

"They were very upset when they saw the other two gentlemen sitting right across from them," Diggs said. "This is definitely racial discrimination and a violation of their civil rights."

US Airways spokesman Todd Lehmacher said the airline is reviewing the case.

"We welcome customers of all ethnicities and backgrounds and do not tolerate discrimination of any kind. We take these allegations seriously," Lehmacher said in a statement.