American Airlines will now allow employees to wear Black Lives Matter pins on the job

American Airlines will now allow employees to wear Black Lives Matters pins on their uniforms while working.

The move comes after multiple Black employees saw workers at other airlines donning Black Lives Matter pins and asked American Airlines if they could do the same, a spokesperson for the airline told The Hill.

“American Airlines believes in equity and inclusion for all,” representative Sarah Jantz said in a statement to USA Today. “In light of the appropriate attention to lives of Black Americans, we will allow team members who wish to wear a Black Lives Matter pin to do so if they choose.”

American Airlines is also is partnering with the Black Professional Network to design its own Black Lives Matter pin, CBS News reported.

The airline has also developed company-specific pins for several groups including Christian, LGBTQ and veteran groups, The Hill reported. American Airlines flight attendants are allowed to wear up to three pins on their uniforms, according to CBS News.

“Fundamentally, we believe Black Lives Matter is an expression of equality, not a political statement,” American Airlines said, USA Today reported. “It doesn’t mean other lives don’t matter, rather that in our society Black lives should matter and be valued the same as others. We are showing our support for our Black colleagues and customers who have experienced discrimination and injustice, not any particular organization.”

Online response to the pin has been mixed, with some on social media calling for the airline to allow “Blue Lives Matter” and “All Lives Matter” pins, as well. Others have said they will no longer fly on the airline.

American isn’t the only airline to allow Black Lives Matter pins on the job. Delta also allows workers to don BLM pins on their uniforms, the Washington Post reported.

Delta made news last week after passenger Demetria Poe detailed the events of her flight from Minneapolis to Washington, D.C., on Facebook during which time she was seated next to a woman in a “Blue Lives Matter” mask who Poe said began making barbed remarks about Black Lives Matter.

The woman was ultimately banned from the airline and Poe later received an upgraded seat and a Delta-branded Black Lives Matter pin conceptualized by a Delta flight attendant, the Post reported. The pin is allowed to be worn on the job by Delta staff.

Other companies are also allowing workers to show their support for Black Lives Matter.

After reportedly banning workers from wearing Black Lives Matter shirts, Starbucks created a special BLM shirt for workers in June, The Associated Press Reported.

Taco Bell also allows workers to show their support for Black Lives Matter following a viral video from a worker who said he was fired for sporting a BLM mask, CBS News reported.

The NBA and National Basketball Players Association reached a deal in June allowing players to don social justice messages on the backs of jerseys instead of their names, according to the outlet.

This story was originally published September 9, 2020 at 9:14 AM with the headline "American Airlines will now allow employees to wear Black Lives Matter pins on the job."