<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="4379717" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="eric-andre">Eric Andre</keyword> says he was "racially profiled" while at Atlanta Airport on Wednesday. </li><li>He tweeted he was stopped by plainclothes <keyword id="11098" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="police">police</keyword> officers asking to search his luggage for drugs.</li><li>The county police department said in a statement that it was a "consensual encounter."</li></ul>Eric Andre says he was "racially profiled" at the Atlanta Airport by two ununiformed police officers.The comedian <a href="https://twitter.com/ericandre/status/1384943592712585219">tweeted</a> on Wednesday that the officers stopped him as he was about to board a flight from the <keyword id="6383835" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="delta">Delta</keyword> Terminal at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, adding that <a href="https://twitter.com/ericandre/status/1384948210649780227">he was the only person of color in the line</a>."They stopped me on the way down the bridge to the plane for a 'random' search and asked they could search me for drugs. I told them no. Be careful," <a href="https://twitter.com/ericandre/status/1384943592712585219">Andre tweeted</a>.In a follow-up tweet, Andre said while the police let him board the plane and <a href="https://twitter.com/ericandre/status/1384946743981260802">he was "fine now,"</a> he wanted to report the incident.<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-Eric Andre (@ericandre) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1384954525233078272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2021</a></blockquote>Andre also tweeted at the Mayor of Atlanta, <keyword id="9114358" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="keisha-bottoms">Keisha Bottoms</keyword>, on Wednesday asking for help.Bottoms responded to Andre right away, writing that she was "sorry" to hear about his experience and was working to find out which agency was involved.<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-Keisha Lance Bottoms (@KeishaBottoms) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1384971871117094917?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2021</a></blockquote><h2>The Atlanta Police Department said they had no involvement in the airport incident in a statement shared on Twitter</h2>Although Andre initially speculated that he might have been stopped by officers from the <a href="https://twitter.com/ericandre/status/1384953922138394629">Atlanta Police Department</a> (APD) or the <a href="https://twitter.com/ericandre/status/1384966035049263107">Drug Enforcement Administration</a> (DEA), the police department of Clayton County, where the airport is located, confirmed its officers were the ones who had interacted with Andre at the airport.A preliminary statement from Clayton County Police Department <a href="https://twitter.com/ZacOnTV/status/1385029830333378560">shared on social media on Wednesday</a> added that the DEA and the APD were not involved in what they described as a "consensual encounter."In its <a href="https://twitter.com/Atlanta_Police/status/1384982998349754373/photo/1">own separate statement</a>, APD said that "multiple law enforcement agencies" operate within the airport."Members of APD's Airport Drug Interdiction Unit do not randomly approach travelers and ask to search them," the statement read."Searches are conducted based on some type of evidence or indication of criminal activity," it added.<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1384982998349754373?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2021</a></blockquote><h2>The police department whose officers were involved told Insider such interactions 'occur frequently'</h2>In a longer statement shared with Insider via email on Thursday, a representative for the Clayton County Police Department said that the whole exchange between Andre and the officers "lasted for approximately 2 to 3 minutes, and he was able to make his normally scheduled flight on time."The statement said that Andre (who they described as "cordial, personable and pleasant to speak with") had consented to have his luggage searched and shared his travel plans with the officers, who ultimately chose not to go through the bags."I would like to reiterate that Mr. Andre was never placed in handcuffs or detained at any point during their interaction," the statement said, in part."Our preliminary findings have revealed that Mr. Andre was not racially profiled," it continued.Andre tweeted that it was "misinformation" that he had consented to have his bags searched, in response to the earlier version of the statement shared <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ClaytonCountyPD">on the Clayton County PD's Facebook page on Wednesday</a>, adding that the police department "violated my rights."<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-Eric Andre (@ericandre) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1385041171387273216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2021</a></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-Eric Andre (@ericandre) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1385043811080949765?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2021</a></blockquote>"I really hope that the @ClaytonCountyPD stop their racial profiling tactics at @ATLairport. I wish they owned up to it instead of creating more lies about what happened," Andre tweeted on Thursday morning. "They're not creating a safer environment - just using the War on Drugs as an excuse to harass and oppress POC."<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-Eric Andre (@ericandre) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1385239954578571266?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2021</a></blockquote>

Eric Andre says he was 'racially profiled' at the Atlanta Airport by two plainclothes police officers

<ul class="summary-list"><li>After the <keyword id="277141" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="New-York-Mets">New York Mets</keyword> said Yoenis Céspedes failed to report to the team's Sunday game in Atlanta, it was announced the outfielder is opting out of the 2020 season. </li><li>ESPN reported Sunday afternoon general manager Brodie Van Wagenen said in a statement reported by multiple outlets that Céspedes "did not reach out to management with any explanation for his absence," but the team later said there was no concern about his safety. </li><li>Van Wagenen later told reporters after the Sunday game that Céspedes was opting out "for COVID-related reasons," but the decision came as a "surprise" to the team. </li><li>Céspedes went 0 for 4 in the team's 7-1 loss on Saturday against the Atlanta Braves. </li></ul>New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Céspedes is opting out of the 2020 season for "covid-related" reasons, general manager Brodie Van Wagenen said after the team's Sunday afternoon game. Van Wagenen described the decision as a <a href="https://twitter.com/Joelsherman1/status/1290020752905736194">"surprise,"</a> according to reporters who were present for the announcement. Céspedes sparked concerns earlier in the afternoon when Van Wagenen said the team was unable to contact outfielder Céspedes after he failed to attend the team's Sunday game against the Atlanta Braves, <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29584055/mets-unable-get-contact-yoenis-cespedes">ESPN reported</a>."He did not reach out to management with any explanation for his absence," Van Wagenen said in a statement reported by ESPN. "Our attempts to contact him have been unsuccessful."Céspedes has been the Mets' <keyword id="9689273" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="designated-hitter">designated hitter</keyword> this season, including for the team's Saturday game against the Braves, going 0 for 4 in a 7-1 loss, but was not listed in the original lineup for Sunday's afternoon game, according to the outlet.Céspedes, a two-time <keyword id="133010" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="MLB">MLB</keyword> All-Star, sparked headlines in January when it was reported he fractured his ankle while on his Port St. Lucie ranch when a wild boar charged at him, causing him to fall and suffer multiple fractures in his right ankle, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wild-boar-reportedly-responsible-for-yoenis-cespedes-ankle-injury-2020-1">Insider previously reported</a>.<a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28417760/report-wild-boar-yoenis-cespedes-ankle-injury">ESPN</a> reported at the time that the incident caused the Céspedes to lose out on some of his salary, alleging he had breached his contract by participating in a prohibited activity.Céspedes returned to the roster this season after missing much of the past two years due to a series of leg problems. <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/sports/articles/2020-08-02/mets-say-cespedes-absent-from-ballpark-no-reason-given">The Associated Press reported</a> that since he didn't begin the season on the injured list, his salary rose from $2,222,222, which was prorated from $6 million before this year's abbreviated schedule, to $4,074,074.Read more: <a href="https://www.insider.com/st-louis-cardinals-coronavirus-mlb-marlins-phillies-2020-7">MLB has already canceled 16 games in one week because of COVID cases as the Cardinals become latest team with positive tests</a><a href="https://www.insider.com/philadelphia-phillies-positive-coronavirus-cases-after-miami-marlins-game-2020-7">The coronavirus has now hit the Philadelphia Phillies just days after playing a Miami Marlins team battling their own outbreak</a><a href="https://www.insider.com/okc-thunder-sean-roberts-tax-break-layers-kneel-anthem-2020-8">An Oklahoma lawmaker threatened to pull tax breaks for the Oklahoma City Thunder if the players kneeled during the national anthem</a>

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Eric Andre says he was 'racially profiled' at the Atlanta Airport by two plainclothes police officers

Debanjali Bose

New York Mets say Yoenis Cespedes is opting out of the 2020 season

Ellen Cranley