Renowned African Musician Accuses TSA Of Wrecking His Instrument

“What does this tell us about the attitude of the administration towards African musicians?” asked a post on kora player Ballaké Sissoko's Facebook page.

World-renowned musician Ballaké Sissoko has accused the U.S. Transportation Security Administration of destroying his cherished custom-made instrument.

The TSA denied Thursday that any staff member had damaged the instrument or even opened the case holding it. But Sissoko, who is from Mali and plays the kora, discovered his harp-like instrument wrecked and dismantled when he opened the case in Paris after a flight Monday from New York following a U.S. tour, according to a Facebook post. A note in Spanish inside the case from the TSA said it had been opened and its contents “may have been searched for prohibited items.”

A line at the bottom of the note read “Seguridad inteligente ahorra tiempo” — “Smart security saves time.” Sissoko posted a photo of his ruined instrument and the TSA notice on Facebook.

The statement, written on Sissoko’s behalf by ethnomusicologist Lucy Duran, described Sissoko as “a brilliant musician, a pacifist, a kind and gentle person, a magnificent and creative performer who manages to give African tradition a contemporary voice with total integrity.”

“The kora is a fragile, hand-crafted instrument, and Ballaké’s kora is tailor- made to his own specifications. It is an intrinsic part of his very special sound. Would US customs have dared to dismantle a Stradivarius?” the post added, confusing U.S. Customs with the TSA.

In a statement to NPR, a TSA representative said the agency never opened the instrument at all.

“It is most unfortunate that Mr. Sissoko’s instrument was damaged in transport, however, after a thorough review of the claim, it was determined that TSA did not open the instrument case because it did not trigger an alarm when it was screened for possible explosives,” the representative said.

According to the TSA, the case with the instrument inside was put through a CT scanner. Since the kora did not trigger an alarm, an agent then placed a decal on the luggage tag of the case saying the bag was screened and cleared. The notice Sissoka discovered inside the case appeared to be old and in poor condition, the TSA claimed.

The post on Sissoko’s Facebook page noted the cruel irony of the situation.

“The jihadists threaten to destroy musical instruments, cut the tongues out of singers and to silence Mali’s great musical heritage. And yet, ironically, it is the USA Customs that have in their own way managed to do this,” the post said.

“Would they have dared do such a thing to a white musician playing a classical instrument? What does this tell us about the attitude of the administration towards African musicians?” asked the post. “This is an unprovoked and sad act of aggression, a reflection of the kind of cultural ignorance and racism that is taking over.”

All musical instruments are inspected, according to the TSA website, and a number of musicians have complained of wanton destruction of their instruments, according to NPR.

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