Solo Black female travellers share their frustrations at being targeted at airport customs

File photo: Radio sports anchor Sibongile Mafu has been giving us all the feels with her European trip. Picture: Tracey Adams African News Agency (ANA)

File photo: Radio sports anchor Sibongile Mafu has been giving us all the feels with her European trip. Picture: Tracey Adams African News Agency (ANA)

Published Aug 16, 2022

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Radio sports anchor Sibongile Mafu has been giving us all the feels with her European trip.

Mafu decided to take a much-needed overseas break and is sharing her adventures with her social media followers.

Her first stop took her to Berlin, where she immersed herself in the local culture and even shared budgeting hacks for those who plan on visiting the city.

— Sibongile Mafu (@sboshmafu) August 15, 2022

But being a solo Black traveller did come with its drawbacks.

Taking to Twitter, Mafu vented about her latest airport experience.

“Moving through international airports while African - especially solo as a Black woman,” she wrote.

“Here are my visas. Why are you asking me for my return ticket when I had to jump through hoops and supply kilograms of paperwork to get these visas in the first place omg.”

Although she didn’t name the airport, many could relate, saying being stopped at customs was the norm every time they travelled overseas.

Mostly women shared their own experiences of being hounded by customs officials because of the colour of their skin.

“I hate this 😤 Asked us why my partner and I have different addresses if we are allegedly in a relationship. Had to produce all the paperwork we submitted for visa,” commented a user.

“It’s so annoying and insulting. How do you think I got this visa?!,” said another.

One of Mafu’s followers mentioned the fact that this sort of discrimination is not spoken about often enough.

When she was asked if the airport in question was in the UK, she responded with: “This was when I entered Germany, but I’m bracing myself for the UK.”

Lucky for Mafu, her entry into the UK was hassle-free as she shared with online users she encountered no difficulties.

Read the latest issue of IOL Travel digital magazine here.