Weird teenager interaction
DD just turned 14 and had a weird interaction with tsa yesterday. We went up as a family and the agent asked for her license, which she said she didn’t have (while laughing as giggly girls do when someone asks them a silly question) He asked how old she was and she said 14. he responded “really? you look more like 18. Are you really only 14?”
By this point DH stepped in and assured him she was indeed 14. That resulted in the normal “whats your name and where are you going” questions for kids, but still with what seemed like an incredulous tone of voice.
She was then sent through the scanner and was of course selected for a pat down. DH stayed close and the pat down woman was quick and just patter her back, so that was fine and we were on our way.
But the whole thing was… icky. Having an old man suggesting a young teen is really 18, and pushing the issue felt uncomfortable. (and not that it matters: she is a very normal looking 14 year old who was wearing sweatpants and a tshirt at the time.)
so what guidance does tsa have to ensure someone is really under 16 - can you see the DOB from the airline? what training do the officers have in treating teenagers appropriately? anything we can do in the future so people don’t question her beyond “how old are you”?