Wait giddyup, are you being sarcastic? Or serious. It wouldn't be racial profiling for Jeff because he is white. How do you like that BKism with the bold... you know...
They could have been Indian & Muslim. Are you thinking of Sikhs who might have been from India? If they were from India or nearby countries such as Sri Lanka, Pakistan etc, then they weren't Middle Eastern.
Rocket River - I understand what you are saying. But this is an inevitability. These attacks hurt everybody, and hurt everybody alot. And we all know the race of those who attacked us. So when we see something suspicious from people of that race, I think its justified to at least be cautious and report any suspicious activities. Note: I am not condoning hate crimes, or being an *******. Oh ****, I feel the heat from the flames already. And probably a banning. Damnit.
nomar dont worry about it. i agree. for every 100 al queda theres a tim mcvey. go ahead and b!tch at me ive got percentages on my side.
Well, in summer 2001, actor James Woods took a flight from Boston to Los Angeles and espied several young men, sitting together, very quiet and nervous, staring straight ahead....for the entire flight, mind you. He reported it to the FBI. These men were Middle Eastern in appearance. And one of the 9/11 planes originated from Boston, bound for...LAX. I understand your question about racial profiling, achebe. I also know terrorists love anniversaries, and there's a Really Big One coming up. You wouldn't catch me on a plane on September 11 for anything.
The war on terrorism that is currently underway has changed life for many people. We must now dutifully accept a certain degree of incovenience in order to ensure the safety of our country. Achebe did the right thing by reporting activity that he considered suspicious. This is how the war will be fought, through increased vigilence on the individual level.
That is all fine and good UNTIL IT IS YOU that is being hassled everyday. Let the profile be White Men 20-40 and watch the backlash screaming and hollaring. . . . . Rocket River
Rocket River -- It sounds like you have some sort of ax to grind about race relations... I am a white male in the age range of 20-40 and I would have no problem dealing with incoveniences if they help further the anti-terrorism effort. It is the patriotic thing to do. I have been singled out for many searches at the airport and did it without complaint. You can't have it both ways anymore. Either you willingly put up with minor hassles to help boost security, or you willingly put up with terrorist activity. Pretty easy choice.
Are there really people being hassled everyday? If so, I agree that something needs to change. But, unless these three guys go around observing skyscrapers or doing something vaguely suspicious everyday, I doubt they're being hassled or harassed. I think he did the right thing by reporting this. If the police on the other hand, were brutal with the three men, then police would have been at fault, not the guy who reported it. I think he did the right thing. And yes, if white men were truly being harassed every single day then you're right, I <b>would</b> be screaming and hollering. But if all I had to do was answer to police every once in a while when asked "what are you doing?" Or if I had to take my shoes off and be given a more thorough searching over than people of other races before boarding a plane (it might take 30 seconds instead of 15). Then damn right, I would gladly do it without a complaint. I just didn't know people were being hassled everyday.
If I saw skinheads scoping out a building I might well call the police. Am I profiling them, yeah. Would I feel bad about it? No.
Thats just the thing though RR. In America, white people are the majority. So if a white dude comitted a terrorist act nobody would say "lets round up all the white dudes" or "hey look, there is a suspiscious group of white guys". Thats just the way it is.
like Mr. Timothy McVeigh??? Where was the profiling back in 1995? Oh but he's white, so its not needed... That's the land we live in. Us nonwhites just have to suck it up and accept it. too bad.
actually, that's not just the way it is...there is a very credible and real profile for the tim mcveighs of the world...and being white is a big part of that!!!
I don't care what COLOR someone is, if they are doing something suspicious give the authorities a call. No harm no foul. DaDakota
Though I don't agree with profiling, there is also the ignorance of a majority of Americans in regards to ethnicity. There are people from the middle east, which are Arabs, which made up the September 11th Terrorists, Osama-Bin Laden and a majority of Al-Qaida. Then there are the majority of eastern brown people in the US like: Indians and Pakistanis which could be Hindu, Muslim or Seikh. The sad part is that Seikh's, which are not muslims, are not to cut their hair and many wear the large turban and have a beard, yet are not EVEN muslim, yet because of the ignorance of the American public about ethnicities and other cultures, they are often harrassed more than Arab's and Muslims.
I do believe if someone see's a suspicious activity, it should be reported, irregardless of race or religion though. I think I, and most others, can tell whether someone looks suspicious based on their dress, appearance and manner. If I saw a white individual in a low-rider in a tank top full of tatoos, and acting suspicious in a nice area around some nice cars I would call it in. Profiling is always going to happen to some extent, whether its economic or social profiling.
To my understanding, racial profiling has to do with assigning a racial characteristic to a sought-after suspect. In my understanding, racial profiling has nothing to do with the race of the profiler. It totally has to do with the reported (witness based) or anticipated (terorist-generated crimes) racial profile of any suspect. Is't it logical to include adn exclude a significant characteristic like skin color when you are trying to identify a criminal (or a potential criminal) in these cases of terrorism.
I think it's a lot more likely that a minority would look suspicious to a white person than another white dude. Minority with binoculars looking at rooftops = scoping out a target. White guy doing the same thing = bird watching. If white people interpret the actions of minorities as suspicious, even if they aren't actively seeking to do so, isn't that profiling? And wrong?
