A man who was kicked off a United Airlines flight for wearing a red thong on his face instead of a face mask and compared himself to civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks

• A man was removed from a United Airlines flight for trying to pass underwear off as a face mask.

• Adam Jenne told local news outlets that he wore the thong to challenge the federal mask mandate.

• "Everything else that has sparked change in this country has started from everyday people," he said, before comparing himself to civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks.

A man was kicked off a United Airlines flight after trying to pass a skimpy red thong off as a face mask.

Adam Jenne, 38, of Cape Coral, Florida, was asked to disembark from a flight set to take off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after getting into a dispute with flight attendants, per reporting from Fox affiliate WSVN 7News Miami.

In a clip circulating on Twitter, Jenne was seen wearing the thong on his face. A staff member approaches Jenne and asks him to disembark for non-compliance with the airline's mask requirements.

Jenne told WSVN7 News that he was wearing the panties on his face instead of a mask to challenge the mask mandate on flights. There is currently a federal mask mandate in place that requires travelers in the US to wear a face covering on planes, trains, and buses, as well as in airports and other transit stations.

"Illustrating that absurdity by wearing women's underwear on my face sounds perfect," Jenne said, who wore an anti-Biden "Let's Go Brandon" t-shirt on the flight.

In an interview with NBC affiliate WBBH, he compared his actions to that of civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks.

"Everything else that has sparked change in this country has started from everyday people. Rosa Parks wasn't famous. She changed the course of history," Jenne told the network.

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Jenne also claimed that he had worn underwear on his face on more than one flight, though this could not be independently verified.

"Every single flight has been met with different reactions from the flight crew. Some with a wild appreciation, others confrontational," Jenne told WBBH. He added that he was allowed to fly most of the time, but on this occasion in Fort Lauderdale, he was asked to disembark by airport security.

Jenne told WSVN7 News that he later received an email from United Airlines saying he had been banned from flying on the airline while the company reviewed his case.

In a statement to WBBH, United said they stood by the employees who made the call to remove Jenne from the aircraft.

"The customer clearly wasn't in compliance with the federal mask mandate, and we appreciate that our team addressed the issue on the ground prior to takeoff, avoiding any potential disruptions on the air," the statement read.

United Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider on whether Jenne will be banned from other United flights.

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