TSA destroys prominent Malian musician's custom-made instrument

[mfcorey1]

One of Mali's most prominent musicians has criticized the Transportation Security Administration after his "impossible-to-replace" instrument was destroyed by agents at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Ballaké Sissoko told NBC News via email that his custom-made kora — a 21-string bridge-harp used extensively in West Africa — was "totally destroyed."

"Normally they just open the flight case because of the strange shape of the instrument and case," he said. "This time, they disassembled and broke it."

Calling it a "terrible situation," he added that he hoped "to get an apology at some point."

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/tsa-destroys-prominent-malian-musician-s-custom-made-instrument-n1131301

[Kali]

1. fuckers

[Leghorn21]

2. Terrible TERRIBLE situation

Apology and replacement, please

jfc

[democratisphere]

3. Shouldn't have to dismantle the instrument when there is all

types and kinds of x-ray equipment.

[msongs]

4. and bomb/drug sniffing dogs nt

[crickets]

11. +1

[dchill]

6. Trump's Shitty Assholes.

[KT2000]

7. this makes me furious

They were ignorant agents with a mean streak - and racists. Of course the instrument cannot be easily replaced but those agents should pay for the attempt. This man makes beautiful music on that instrument and those agents cannot even appreciate that.
This deserves a bill on congress to compensate this man and an apology.

[DFW]

8. These cave men acted deliberately in a destructive manner

These musical instruments are not made of materials that show up as potential dangers on any of their scanners. I once had a guitar that couldn't be replaced damaged by airline staff, and only because the man who built it was still alive (no longer the case) was I able to get it restored. He built me a new neck for nothing, as he was sicked at what the airlines had done to his artistry. That the TSA should willfully destroy an irreplaceable folk instrument is not to be pardoned.

[malaise]

9. These ignorant fools are sick

[safeinOhio]

10. The day the music died.

Really

[MineralMan]

12. A disgusting display of racism and culturism.

Instead, they should have asked him to play it for them to demonstrate that it was just a musical instrument.

That's what happened to me when I entered Turkey on my way to the USAF base where I had been posted. I was carrying a 5-string banjo in its case. Turkish customs pulled me aside and made me open the case. It was embarrassing, because I had packed underwear in the case to protect the instrument from being damaged.

Instead of dismantling the banjo, they asked me to play it. The reason was to show that I wasn't importing it into the country to sell it. So, I took it out of its case, trying to keep the underwear from falling all over the table. Then I put my thumb and finger picks on, re-tuned the banjo a little, and played "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" for them. Immediately a small crowd of customs workers gathered around. So I played a couple of other bluegrass tunes and got a little applause before replacing the banjo in its case and leaving the airport to find a taxi.

That is what customs needs to do - not destroy a musical instrument. Get a free concert from the musician carrying the instrument.

Those people should all be fired, and the government should pay to cost of replacing or repairing that man's instrument. But, see, he's black and from Africa, so it doesn't matter.

Feh!

[Baitball Blogger]

13. Something is going on with TSA.

Maybe they're getting tougher because of calls to privatize? But this also plays in their hands.

[spanone]

14. In the future, he should bypass this country until it finds it's soul.

There will be no apology.