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ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
RACIAL PROFILING TO FIGHT TERRORISM?
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 05:57:08 PM)
acial profiling has come to represent the most fearsome form of institutionalized racism. For minority Americans what could be scarier than the prospect of being subject to systematic discrimination by powerful law enforcement agencies capable of invading every sphere of one's life? For Asian Americans the dangers of racial profiling are amply illustrated by the World War II internment of Japanese Americans and the more recent Wen Ho Lee case.
The September 11 terrorist attack suggests a scenario in which racial profiling might not only be acceptable but necessary. Fact is, every terrorist linked to the plot was an Arab male. One wonders if the horrible tragedy that took thousands of innocent lives and plunged our economy into crisis could have been averted had our intelligence, law enforcement and security agencies been given a freer hand to subject airline passengers to intensive searches and background checks on the basis of nationality or ethnicity.
Rational Americans may question whether it is even possible to conduct a workable campaign against terrorist attacks on American soil without intensive resort to racial profiling in airports, at border crossings and hotels. After all, terrorists are fighting a holy war premised strictly on religion and nationality. Despite the obvious dangers of racial profiling, it seems reckless to suggest that the United States can fight terrorists in a race-neutral fashion. Why subject every American to the same levels of delay and discomfort when only a small percentage fit the profile of potential terrorists? On the other hand, are we ready to undermine the constitutional and moral high ground on which our society is built?
The newly declared war against terrorism may well be the ultimate test of our sincerity in rejecting racial profiling. Is it time to rethink our position?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
> And this day can be advanced if we do away with the immigration diversity lottery which favors whites and increase the quota for skilled immigrants which tend to favor the Asians.
Is there nothing you are willing to begrude them (whites)? Or am I sounding like a white apologist?
The WASPs created something beautiful in America(nism), I shouldn't care what mixture of races there will be in a hundred years in USA as long as the new immigrants assimilate themselves TO America(nism) instead of just bringing their old - Asian baggage and selfish materialism/mercantilism - i.e. right now I don't trust any other cultures'sense of fair play.
NYhomeboy
Tuesday, July 09, 2002 at 21:12:39 (PDT)
Another food for thought:
At what point would it be considered to be selling out if one adopts the behaviorism and colors of the dominant (in power) group - even to the point of marrying into the group?
NYhomeboy
Tuesday, July 09, 2002 at 20:26:16 (PDT)
> I see that here in Arlington, VA racism and racist incidents have dramatically declined since 1979...and the reason is simple...whites are a minority like the rest of us.
Is what you are saying is that it¡¯s not that whites are racists – it¡¯s that whatever the native majority ethnic population happens to be that their lowest-reactionary-mob behavior manifests itself in racism. Therefore, in discussion of racism on this board, we shouldn¡¯t really say ¡°whites¡± but the ¡°majority population in America which at the moment is white¡±.
I give credit to the whites for two things:
1. They leveled the field inspite of themselves (and the blacks with their great take-no-prisoner attitude/gumption for forcing the issue).
2. The WASP culture that laid the basis for the rise of Americanism and showing the rest of the world the higher road.
I believe that America(nism) is earth¡¯s last great hope.
> America would be really respected abroad after whites in this country become a
minority like the rest of us!
I¡¯ll repeat a post. I read that Malcolm X (the great Black American 60¡¯s radical) had a epiphany when he first went to Africa – the natives there treated him as a ¡°white¡± – he was not the same after he came back – he had learned that racism is not based on skin color.
NYhomeboy
Tuesday, July 09, 2002 at 20:15:28 (PDT)
The federal government does not have too many Asians in the workforce. My sibling works there in Washington DC, and he is the only Asian in an organization that deals with Asian issues. There is a lot of bigotry in federal government hiring. It is a good old boy's network. If they are a little bit more diversified and educate themselves perhaps they would not have a problem. And do not tell me that there are not enough qualified minorities...here in UC Berkely some Fed agencies have stopped recruiting since the majority of the student body became Asian.
Asian (Berkeley)
Monday, July 08, 2002 at 12:08:13 (PDT)
TO: Fed. Gov. Employee
While I recognize a legitimate need for law enforcement and intelligence officers to engage certain profiling techniques, I doubt if racial profiling is a smart, efficient use of government resources. AG John Ashcroft has done an incredibly wise thing in restructuring the justice department and FBI to focus on preventing terrorist activity. Our intelligence community needs enough latitude to do their jobs right.
It's smarter, I believe, to target organizations and countries who have laundered money for terrorrists groups, dissemminated hate messages against the USA and allowed terrorist groups to recruit and train within their borders.
"The basic problem facing a law enforcement or intelligence officer is how to narrow the wide range of possible suspects to focus limited investigative resources."
Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't racial profiling create an even greater need for resources? If you target an entire ethnic group you'll now need to be on the look out for all persons in that race category. In fact, with racial profiling, airport and border security personnel will need to keep a watchful eye on ALL Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian men. This could allow terrorists who exhibit suspicious behavior to escape because there won't be enough eyes to watch everyone.
Let's keep in mind, the CIA knew that certain terrorists had entered the US, but did not notify the FBI. The FBI AZ field office knew that certain Middle Eastern men were taking flight classes but FBI management failed to take appropriate action due to bureaucracy. We had the mechanisms in place to get the job done. The problems were lack of notification and cooperation.
"To be certain, racial profiling is in derogation of the 14th Amendment guarantees of Equal Protection and application of the laws, and there is a price to be paid in terms of our civil liberties."
So what do we do with the 14th Amendment? Who pays the price for diminished civil liberties? The US Constitution allow for suspension of writ of habeas corpus, but only during times of war and insurrection. I'm not sure if a constitutional amendment can be suspended. That would be unconstitutional.
"But when law enforcement and intelligence officers are more worried about not offending and inconveniencing certain people than defending the public safety and national security there will be a price to be paid as well."
Racial profiling unfairly targets men of color - pure and simple. I don't know about you but when talk about compromised civil liberties is on the table there at first better be an exhaustion of other legal provisions and opportunities.
We can't afford to be callous when civil liberties are being discussed. I'm no liberal but common sense guides my felling in this matter. If we save the union at the expense of all our civil liberties, equal protection laws and professional police work, then what is there left to defend? Not much!!!
Geoff DB
GeoffDB02@aol.com
Sunday, July 07, 2002 at 21:12:50 (PDT)
The basic problem facing a law enforcement or intelligence officer is how to narrow the wide range of possible suspects to focus limited investigative resources. The problem is dramatically compounded for those engaged in predictive intelligence where, without a crime scene to work from, indicators are all one has to go on. To be certain, racial profiling is in derogation of the 14th Amendment guarantees of Equal Protection and application of the laws, and there is a price to be paid in terms of our civil liberties. But when law enforcement and intelligence officers are more worried about not offending and inconveniencing certain people than defending the public safety and national security there will be a price to be paid as well. Hopefully an aggressive U.S. foreign policy can minimize the number and severity of domestic terrorism incidents and not force us to choose, any more than we already have, which value is "more American": civil liberties & convenience, and security & survival of the State.
Fed Gov't Employee
Saturday, July 06, 2002 at 14:50:21 (PDT)
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