Synopsis
Incidences of terrorism have increased in recent times with Islamist extremists such as Al-Qaida and Isis claiming responsibility for the barbaric attacks. However, the terrorist attack of 9/11 changed the perception of Muslim-Americans in the eyes of Americans that has led to unfair treatment of the minority group over time. 9/11 goes down as the worst terrorist attack ever orchestrated on American soil. Members from the Muslim communities continue receiving unfair treatment by the authorities, which handle them with suspicion even though they too lost innocent members from the attack.
The paper highlights the unfair manner by which the authorities, mainly the airport authorities handle Muslim Americans after the 9/11. Abualnaja (2014) indicates that even though incidences of terrorism have happened before, the 9/11 attack changed the perception of Muslim Americans in the eyes of Americans because the perpetrators claimed Islamic origin. The paper also highlights the security measures that airports have installed in light of the gruesome attack that involves the X-ray screening, checking of all carry-ons, random screening of all passengers as well as the use of racial profiling. Airport law enforcement, Immigration officers and customs officers have made Arabs as well as Muslim Americans the target of their enforcement. Therefore, the enforcement subjects them to emotional and psychological torture.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The research paper features various incidences in which the pilots to different commercial airplanes have denied Muslim Americans their flying rights over claims that their behavior appeared suspicious. Muslim Americans continue to find life difficult in America with men wearing beards and women wearing Hijab experiencing harassment and racism at various places such as schools, hospitals and even at the workplace ( Abualnaja , 2014). Overall, the research focuses on the drastic change in the lives of Muslim Americans after the 9/11 attack and the suffering that the minority group has experienced in the hands of authorities and the American citizens.
Authors’ Position
The effects of the 9/11 and the Patriot Act all speak of one aspect: The implications of the events to the liberties of the American citizen. According to the article, there is a gross violation of the constitutionally endowed liberties of the Americans ( White House Press Releases, 2006) . Terrorism is a reality but fighting it using dubious means jeopardizes not only the freedoms of citizens but also questions the justice systems. Profiling is important, and religion, race or gender should not hinder war against terrorism, yet stigmatizing people based on acts of others is wrong. Secondly, the constitutionally given liberties, when threatened because of flaws in the investigation process, should be used to support both identification and prevention of terrorism without making people feel uneasy following the feeling of racial discrimination. Thus, terrorism should be countered by all legal means possible, and profiling is important because it helps narrow down suspects’ description following a crime.
The process of criminal and intelligence investigation is central to crime prevention domestically and internationally. Conversely, subjecting citizens to the negative aspect of the Patriot Act threatens the justice system. The current interpretation of the Patriot Act based on investigations has limitations because it may allow officers to circumvent the law by violating the liberties of people ( White House Press Releases, 2006) . The conversation proves that the justice system manipulates the interpretation of the constitution to enable unlawful surveillance of both American and non-American citizens.
Information sharing among intelligence agencies engaged in crime prevention uses the Patriot Act to coordinate legal requirements and processes necessary for crime prevention. Investigative intelligence and criminal intelligence are both accomplice processes in the use of the Patriot Act to deny individual citizens their liberties. Both authors criticize false generalizations about Islam and terrorism, racial profiling, and the use of the Patriot Act unlawfully. Conversely, the authors fail to establish the necessity of warrantless searches and processes in crime prevention.
References
Abualnaja , N. (2014). The perceptions of Muslim Americans regarding racial profiling at airports after 9/11 . Texas Southern University.
White House Press Releases. (2006). U.S. Attorneys Discuss Patriot Act Meeting with the President . Washington, DC.
