Lindsay Lohan said the encounter was jarring. (Image courtesy: @vazznet)
Washington:
American actress Lindsay Lohan claimed she was "racially profiled" at London Heathrow Airport recently while going through a security checkpoint wearing a headscarf. In an appearance on Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, Lohan told hosts Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid that she was stopped in a Heathrow security line while traveling from Turkey to the United States. "When I was flying to New York recently, I was wearing [a] headscarf and I got stopped at the airport and racially profiled for the first time in my life," Lohan, who is white, said on the show. "She opened my passport and saw 'Lindsay Lohan' and started immediately apologizing, but then said, 'Please, but take off your headscarf.' "
A video clip of Lohan's appearance uploaded by Good Morning Britain appeared to have edited out the mention of her being "racially profiled."
However, the Sun, a British tabloid, published a video clip that showed Lohan saying she was racially profiled, and many other outlets, including the Associated Press, reported the quote. The show itself tweeted the quote as well.
Lohan, the star of Freaky Friday and Mean Girls, told Morgan and Reid that she complied with the request to remove her headscarf but that the encounter was "jarring."
"And I did. I mean, it's okay," Lohan said. "But what scared me was, is that moment, how would another woman who doesn't feel comfortable taking off her headscarf feel? That was really interesting to me. I mean, I was kind of in shock."
Lohan said she was wearing a headscarf out of "respect" because she was returning from Turkey, where she had met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
"That's just a personal respect issue for me," she said.
Lohan in recent months has been speaking out on behalf of Syrian refugees. In January, she traveled to Turkey and met Erdogan as well as Bana Alabed, the 7-year-old Syrian girl who became well known for her tweets from her home in war-ravaged Aleppo.
Bana tweeted last month that she had "a new friend" and shared a Periscope video that she and Lohan had recorded together.
"We want to send to all of the people in Syria and Aleppo suffering and all of the refugees that we are here supporting you and you can hang on, be strong, just like Bana has, and we're sending you lots of love and light and blessings," Lohan said in the video with Bana.
The former child actress, whose troubled personal life has been splayed across tabloids worldwide, has reportedly been "exploring" Islam in recent years and has been photographed numerous times wearing a headscarf or carrying a Koran.
On Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, Lohan said that learning about different cultures and beliefs is something that "feeds my soul." After repeated questions from Morgan, she said she reads an English translation of the Muslim holy book regularly but declined to say whether she was converting to Islam.
"I think that me studying the Koran is something that I've found a solace in," Lohan said. "I just study it. Nothing is confirmed yet."
Morgan asked her why she was "reluctant" to say either way whether she was "in the process" of converting.
"It's a consideration I have," Lohan said. " . . . I don't want to speak on something that I haven't finished yet."
Lohan added that she was interested in learning Arabic so that she could work with children in Syria and be "on the same page" when it comes to issues in the region.
On Good Morning Britain, Morgan - a staunch defender of President Trump - asked Lohan what she thought of the new U.S. administration.
After some prompting, Lohan said she agreed with Morgan that the "hysteria" over Trump's election was "overplayed," though she did think that the president should stop using Twitter.
"It's such a double-edged sword, this situation," Lohan told Morgan. "I don't agree with his policies and the things that he's doing, but at the end of the day, he is the president right now. So what's the point in picking on someone instead of letting - just see what they're capable of?"
Lohan added, of how people should back off criticizing Trump: "Don't kick someone when they're down."
Note: Not addressed at any point during the Tuesday morning interview was Lohan's curious new and unclassifiable accent.
© 2017, The Washington Post
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
A video clip of Lohan's appearance uploaded by Good Morning Britain appeared to have edited out the mention of her being "racially profiled."
However, the Sun, a British tabloid, published a video clip that showed Lohan saying she was racially profiled, and many other outlets, including the Associated Press, reported the quote. The show itself tweeted the quote as well.
Lohan, the star of Freaky Friday and Mean Girls, told Morgan and Reid that she complied with the request to remove her headscarf but that the encounter was "jarring."
"And I did. I mean, it's okay," Lohan said. "But what scared me was, is that moment, how would another woman who doesn't feel comfortable taking off her headscarf feel? That was really interesting to me. I mean, I was kind of in shock."
Lohan said she was wearing a headscarf out of "respect" because she was returning from Turkey, where she had met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
"That's just a personal respect issue for me," she said.
Lohan in recent months has been speaking out on behalf of Syrian refugees. In January, she traveled to Turkey and met Erdogan as well as Bana Alabed, the 7-year-old Syrian girl who became well known for her tweets from her home in war-ravaged Aleppo.
Bana tweeted last month that she had "a new friend" and shared a Periscope video that she and Lohan had recorded together.
"We want to send to all of the people in Syria and Aleppo suffering and all of the refugees that we are here supporting you and you can hang on, be strong, just like Bana has, and we're sending you lots of love and light and blessings," Lohan said in the video with Bana.
The former child actress, whose troubled personal life has been splayed across tabloids worldwide, has reportedly been "exploring" Islam in recent years and has been photographed numerous times wearing a headscarf or carrying a Koran.
On Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, Lohan said that learning about different cultures and beliefs is something that "feeds my soul." After repeated questions from Morgan, she said she reads an English translation of the Muslim holy book regularly but declined to say whether she was converting to Islam.
"I think that me studying the Koran is something that I've found a solace in," Lohan said. "I just study it. Nothing is confirmed yet."
Morgan asked her why she was "reluctant" to say either way whether she was "in the process" of converting.
"It's a consideration I have," Lohan said. " . . . I don't want to speak on something that I haven't finished yet."
Lohan added that she was interested in learning Arabic so that she could work with children in Syria and be "on the same page" when it comes to issues in the region.
On Good Morning Britain, Morgan - a staunch defender of President Trump - asked Lohan what she thought of the new U.S. administration.
After some prompting, Lohan said she agreed with Morgan that the "hysteria" over Trump's election was "overplayed," though she did think that the president should stop using Twitter.
"It's such a double-edged sword, this situation," Lohan told Morgan. "I don't agree with his policies and the things that he's doing, but at the end of the day, he is the president right now. So what's the point in picking on someone instead of letting - just see what they're capable of?"
Lohan added, of how people should back off criticizing Trump: "Don't kick someone when they're down."
Note: Not addressed at any point during the Tuesday morning interview was Lohan's curious new and unclassifiable accent.
© 2017, The Washington Post
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
