Racial profiling refers to any decision that is made by the law enforcers putting their basis on the fact that the members of a particular race have a higher chance or likely hood of performing the crime that might be under investigation. The global backbone of racial and ethnic profiling is the idea that members of a particular group engage more frequently on certain crimes than others (Hatton & Nelson, 2016) . For a better part of the decades, racial profiling has been used on the fight against terrorism. Racial and ethnic profiling had had its share of scrutiny in both the positive and the negative sides. This paper will focus on both sides of the fight against terrorism. By putting a weigh on the magnitude of each side, the paper will then critically discuss the side with the upper hand. Racial and ethnic profiling should not be used in the war against terrorism.
Many terrorist activities that have taken place in America have been performed by people of Arabic origin. This according to many polls has led to many people associating the Arabs, especially from the Middle East with terrorist acts. In the wake of these attacks of terrorism by people of Arabic race, the law enforcers have embarked on racial profiling to counter-terrorism and have termed it as a perfect tool. The effective use of racial profiling can significantly prevent harmful acts of terror. In most cases, profiling at the county's entry points such as the airports and the border entry points can be very helpful.
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Through thorough scrutiny of the Middle, East Arabs could have helped to prevent 9/11 terror attack. According to federal reports, many instruments used by terrorists are transported via the airport by Muslims from the Middle East. If racial profiling had been used the attack could have been prevented since the authorities could have confiscated the equipment. Racial profiling from a witness description can also be very helpful. According to many witnesses of terror acts, the suspects could have been identified even before committing the offense. Through racial profiling terror suspects can be identified and questioned to prevent terror attacks.
On the flipside, racial and ethnic profiling has been criticized due to its victimization and discriminatory actions towards certain groups. On the face of terror attacks, many Muslim innocents have fallen prey of racial profiling. Many lobby groups such as the Amnesty International have continued to oppose the use of racial profiling, especially against the Muslims to fight terrorism. John Knowles argues that "the existing literature tends to assume away the problem that drives the results." He further states that this was caused by oversampling by the use of racial profiling, mostly against the Muslims.
A good example was witnessed in 2002 after the 9/11 terror attack where a lady reported to the authorities two men with middle east ascents in what she thought were planning an attack (Arthur 2015). She said that she heard them talking about mourning in September. They said, "Do you think that they will bring it down?" One asked. The other replied that "If they do not bring it down, I have contacts to bring it down." The police then immediately arrested the men and questioned them for more than 17 hours only to realize that the two were medical students on their way to training. The lady may have been misled by the fact that the two were Muslims and according to racial profiling they were regarded as terrorists. This is victimization of the highest order to a person for merely being a Muslim.
The National Security-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) which was Shorty introduced after the 9/11 terror attack requested that all adult males above twenty-four years who were from Arab and Muslim countries to be interviewed, fingerprints were taken and to be photographed at the immigration office. However, many who showed up to be registered were arrested, hundreds who were of Iranian origin and Muslims from Los Angeles (Beydon, 2016) . This type of profiling based on race was strongly opposed and criticized by many human rights groups since it was discriminatory to even innocent Iranians and Muslims. Manny who was captured was detained, mistreated and even tortured.
The profiling of Arabs and Muslims in regards to terrorism shows a severe violation of principles of liberty and equality that are enlisted in the constitution. Another serious issue of racial profiling is the fact that the Muslims and the Arabs are not usually granted a free and fair trial. The people detained by the government based on racial profiling usually end up in jails even though they are innocent since they are not granted fair trials. The government furthermore complicates the detainees by arresting them in privacy without the knowledge of their relatives. According to Amnesty International, the detainees are held in unsanitary conditions and abused by security personnel (Beydon, 2016) .
Ethnic and racial profiling has not been effective in addressing national security because the acts of terrorism continue to be witnessed (Crawford, 2016) . It is therefore not justifiable for the government to use racial profiling against terrorism. The effects of this technique are more adverse than expected. Just like many civil and human rights groups, objection to racial profiling in the fight against terrorism is on the rise. Many of the people that are subjected to detainment and torture are usually innocent civilians targeted because of their race. One does not choose the race or ethnic group that he/she is to be born into. It is for this reason and other reasons such as victimization and discrimination that racial profiling should be discouraged especially in the fight against terrorism. Law enforcers should be trained to use facts rather than implicit biases to counter terrorism. Also, policies should be implemented to promote objectivity instead of subjectivity.
Discrimination of Muslims and Arabs in many public places has been witnessed with the innocent civilians and non-civilians falling prey of racial profiling. A good example was witnessed in an airport where a Muslim was denied travel after the pilot refused to have a Muslim on board citing security reasons. This was despite the fact that the Muslim had passed all security checks (Glaser, 2014) W hen one is traveling to The United States of America and is a Muslim or an Arab, he/she is subjected to tough and thorough security checks compared to other people. Government-sponsored and community-based racial profiling should be discouraged since it leads to persecution and even to death at times of innocent people.
In conclusion, it is evident that racial profiling has led the Muslims and the Arabs on the victimization part in the war against terrorism. Many have been separated from their loved ones as a result of being mere suspects and preys of racial and ethnic profiling. Racial and ethnic profiling poses a threat to the integrity of the justice system. This technique denies individuals the constitutional right to free and just trial. The government should find better ways that do not go against human rights to counter terrorism. The general public also needs to be cautious when it comes to pointing fingers or judging others based on their race or ethnic group. There is a need for healthy interactions that accommodate different cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
References
Beydon, K. A. (2016). Between Indigence, Islamophobia, and Erasure: Poor and Muslim in “War on Terror” America. California Law Review , 104 (6); 1463-1502.
Crawford, K. (2016). To Catch a Terrorist: The Improper Use of Profiling in U.S. Post-9/11 Counterterrorism. Honors in the Major Theses , 57.
Glaser, J. (2014). Suspect Race: Causes and Consequences of Racial Profiling. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hatton, A. T., & Nelson, M. E. (2016). War on Terror’ in our backyard: effects of framing and violent ISIS propaganda on anti- Muslim prejudice. Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression , Vol 8(3)16-176.
