Wiccan TSA Agent Fired

Being a Wiccan isn't usually a reason to lose your job, but it was in the case of Carole A. Smith, a TSA worker at Albany's International airport who found herself officially out of work last June, after months of alleged harassment centered around her religion, according to MSNBC. But she hardly had a complaint before her co-workers found of she was a witch.

The 49-year-old Wiccan argues that her firing had almost everything to do with her practices. Prior to a March 2009 complaint when she was accused of putting a hex on a co-worker's car, her record was nearly spotless.

She was in the top 10 percent in Albany at catching weapons on the X-ray machine. She passed her skills test on the first try. She caught a woman on her way to Vietnam with $30,000 in cash. And she didn't mind working with the passengers -- her training as a massage therapist kept her from being squeamish, as some officers were, about patting down elderly and special-needs passengers.

From that point on things got worse and worse, according to the MSNBC report. Smith's file quickly bulged, and eventually she found herself in court fighting to get her job back.

Smith claims that for over a year she found herself subject to school-yard bullying, and harassment based on her Wicca practices. However, her complaints to officials higher-up went unheeded.

Though the TSA did have a large file on her prior to the trial, even the judge pointed out that officials kept changing their stories. While they did have good enough reason to terminate her employment in the end, the complaints began with suspicious circumstances.

Watch the full report, from MSNBC, below, or click here for the full report.
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Comments

[Aaron Kirchmann]

03:56 AM on 04/12/2011

I look forward to the day no one is fired just because of their beliefs.

[Eyan Matthews]

03:02 PM on 04/07/2011

It sucks that this happened. She could have done some things different though.

http://theprofessionalpagan.blogspot.com/2011/04/loss-of-job-due-to-beliefs.html

[Peace Walker]

09:17 AM on 04/04/2011

I am sorry that Ms. Smith had to go through this; is it any surprise however that an organization that has become known for its lack of education and its bullying is also guilty of bullying -- its own; those who do not fit or excel to much or exhibit too much compassion.

Again, it reminds me of the practices of Nazi Germany. From the Hitler Youth, to any of the military groups to the citizens groups, the same.

[sunnydee07]

04:40 PM on 03/31/2011

They probably had to find a way to fire her because she was so good at her job. Making everyone else look bad.

[GodBlessAmerica]

12:37 AM on 04/12/2011

Hot Fuzz in real life!

[Candide33]

01:15 PM on 03/31/2011

The part about... If I could do that I wouldn't be working for the TSA was priceless..... it was the superstitious ones from one of the other religions that believe such things are possible.

[theophile]

01:21 AM on 03/30/2011

I'd love to see Tom And Ray Magliozzi's analysis of the 'hexed' car heater, myself. More pertinent would be the willingness of other TSA employees to piss this woman off, just in case this woman CAN cast malicious spells. It's been called "The Jeff Myrtlebank Defense", after a famous TWILIGHT ZONE episode. It's clear that they didn't think THAT possibility through.

[ElenaOfJersey]

10:26 PM on 03/29/2011

"She turned me into a newt! ...I got better."

Unreal. Un. Real.

[Apathetic Apostle]

04:24 PM on 03/29/2011

When interviewed the TSA said the real reason they let Carole go, was for letting a friend on the Tarmac without going through a scanner first.

Carole's reply?

"Hey, she brought her own broom, and I didn't think if they were actually getting on a plane, that they still needed to be scanned."

[xstevejx]

03:44 PM on 03/29/2011

"her co-workers found of she was a witch."???

Doesn't anyone proofread around here? ;-)

And while she shouldn't be fired for being a wiccan, the story seems a bit incomplete to be making any good. judgment.

[Apathetic Apostle]

04:22 PM on 03/29/2011

Yeah, and they use meta-tags that spell Carol, and her name is Carole.

[dlbnext]

02:31 PM on 03/29/2011

All TSA agents should be fired,especially the the leaders of it.
http://justgetthere.us/blog/archives/DISINFORMATION-Inverted-Body-Scanner-Image-Shows-Naked-Body-In-Full-Living-Color.html

[John Robbins]

01:49 PM on 03/29/2011

So where is the DOJ suing for religious discrimination on this one?

[GodBlessAmerica]

12:39 AM on 04/12/2011

Uhh .. I think you mean ACLU.

The DOJ has the (more difficult) job of defending the TSA in this peculiar mess.

[totaldisbelief]

12:52 PM on 03/29/2011

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41959553/ns/business-us_business/
story from MSNBC

[yukonsam]

11:54 AM on 03/29/2011

In most cases of this nature, the employer tries to covers their tracks by documenting a variety of minor infractions (real and imaginary) that they can use in court to "prove" that the termination was not discrimination.

If they'd state plainly, "we terminated Ms. Smith because burning her at the stake would violate air quality standards", it would be a fairly straightforward case. Unfortunately, the hatemongers are becoming increasingly adept at masking their vile bigotry with obfuscations, distractions and code words.

[markdavid]

11:05 AM on 03/29/2011

Apart from the obvious ridiculous nature of her firing which seems very unwarranted, why did the author of this article include the comment about her catching some woman traveling to Vietnam with $30,000 cash. Is that a crime now to carry your own money around through an airport? Regardless of the sum, why is this a crime?

[Lisbeth35]

11:09 AM on 03/29/2011

There are laws about carrying large amounts of cash across national borders without declaring it.

[Blueneck]

09:50 AM on 03/30/2011

That's what "diplomatic pouches" are for! Only the connected and privileged get to do that!

[Jasel]

12:00 PM on 03/29/2011

You can't just carry large amounts of undeclared cash into different nations

[BurtonDesque]

05:53 AM on 03/29/2011

"She turned me into a newt!"
"A newt?"
"I got better.."