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Shelby Cogan
Professor Bolduc-Simpson
ENC 1102 Composition 2 CRN 81433
20 September 2012
Accusations Bring T.S.A. Officials to a Halt
On September 11th, 2001, 2977 innocent citizens were killed in the falling of the
Twin Towers, including workers, children, firefighters and police officers and left the
nation in incredulity. Since the attack, the Transportation Security Administration
(T.S.A.) of the Department of Homeland Security has incorporated a behavior detection
program into their already existing security procedures. Since this program has been
added to the system an increased amount of racial profiling of all minorities has been
reported in the Logan International Airport in Boston. The T.S.A. should stop its racial
profiling practices in Boston against minorities, including Blacks, Hispanics, and those of
Middle Eastern Descent.
The T.S.A. has recently opened an investigation looking deeper into the
allegations made by Boston Airport officers against their coworkers for unacceptable
racial profiling acts in result of the behavior detection program. Racial profiling has
reached an all time high at Logan International Airport in Boston, where it has been
reported that, “at a meeting last month with T.S.A. officials, officers at Logan provided
written complaints about profiling from 32 officers, some of whom wrote
anonymously”(Schmidt, Lichtblau). The interviews that were carried out with the
officers shined light on the matter and are allowing the T.S.A. to scrutinize the conduct of
the airport police. One officer commented in an anonymous complaint, “The behavior
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detection program is no longer a behavior-based program, but it is a racial profiling
program”. The interviews and complaints from multiple officers reporting on their coworkers provide an insight into what happens inside the Logan International Airport. “It
is unusual for transportation agency employees to come forward with this kind of claim
against co-workers, and the large number of employees bringing complaints in Boston
could prove particularly damaging for an agency already buffeted with criticism over patdowns, X-ray scans and other security measures”(Schmidt, Lichtblau). The racial
profiling has become so blatant that it is concerning fellow employees who believe things
are being taken too far with racially profiling minorities. The accusations against the
Boston airport are deemed to be highly important because the Logan International Airport
is being used as a model and testing ground for the highly controversial behavior
detection program and could prove it as beneficial or unfavorable for the security
administration.
Several officers that were interviewed estimated that minorities represented
approximately 80% of the travelers that were searched and/or detained (Schmidt,
Lichtblau). Sixty-eight year-old, black, psychologist Kenneth Boatner was detained for
nearly a half hour. His cellphone and checkbook were examined, along with notes from
his clients. The man was humiliated, stating, “I had never been subjected to anything like
that”. The officers that were questioned “identified nearly two dozen co-workers who
they said consistently focused on stopping minority members in response to pressure
from managers to meet certain threshold numbers for referrals to the state police, federal
immigration officials or other agencies”(Schmidt, Lichtblau). These thresholds can
promote officers to racial profile when left no choice but to meet certain numeral
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requirements. The severity of the racial profiling is concerning both travelers and
employees. Travelers experience the prejudice first hand, while the employees are first
hand witnesses. David S. Mackey, an executive director of the agency stated, “There is
no place for racial profiling in any security program”, “It is illegal, and it is not
effective.”
Although the agency defends the program’s importance by addressing the simple
fact that the behavior detection program is another plan of action to stop terrorist and
other harmful activity, the accusations against the program for its racial profiling will not
be ignored. A huge population of non-minority travelers could potentially be overlooked
because of the ignorance that is caused by racial profiling. The investigations currently
being done by the TSA should lead to the elimination of this system, or the elimination of
racial profiling within the procedures.
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Work Cited
Schmidt, Michael S., and Eric Lichtblau. "Racial Profiling Rife at Airport, U.S.
Officers Say." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Aug. 2012. Web. 06 Sept.
2012.
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