Has Airport Security Gone Too Far?
In the wake of 9/11, the once “simple things in life” required not much thought at all now they have been transformed into complicated procedures only brought about in a time of war. Traveling by air has been a very rewarding experience for most but courtesy of terrorism, it has mutated into a list of banned items, random luggage searches, and armed soldiers ominously toting M-16 rifles.
One must wonder if airport security, with the addition of machines that scan shoes for bombs and random luggage searches, has gone too far. It is not necessary to check the orthopedic shoes of an eighty-year old woman whereas it might be extremely important to check every orifice of a young, Muslim male. For fear of being sued for racial profiling, many airports have decided to treat everyone as equals. This method may be great when choosing applicants to fill a position of employment, but when used at an airport to decide who may pose a potential threat to the safety of others another method should be employed. While it is wrong to blatantly call a man dressed in traditional Eastern garb complete with turban a terrorist, it’s just as politically incorrect to treat everyone as such.
In Europe a trusted traveler’s card is used to determine who to search and who to disregard. With its origins traced as far back as 1999 in Afghanistan and...
The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2011 prompted the world to reevaluate and drastically modify airport and airline security. “Four targets had been chosen, all iconic American buildings that would send a clear message of the depth of their hatred for the United States. All four planes crashed, killing all on board—terrorists, crew members, and passengers, along with hundreds who were killed inside the structures, on the ground, and the men and women who ran into collapsing buildings in an effort to try and save others” (Smutz 1). As Jason Villemez said “the decade after the 9/11 attacks reshaped many facets of life in America” (Villemez 1). Before the attacks, people did not think that large scale hostility towards innocent people in our country was remotely possible. Ever since that fateful moment, citizens in America are on their toes every day worrying about another attack happening. United States citizens have had to adapt and change in response to this fear of further terrorist assault on our country. One of the ways they have adapted is by changing their means of security concerning airline travel.
This paper describes our nation and the worlds mindset about airline terrorism before 9/11 and airline terrorism today. This remains a very real and deadly subject even though we don’t have as many incidents occurring at this moment in time. Still the potential for countless lives being lost in an aircraft accident from the actions of a terrorist or terrorist organization is still very real and innocent families across this nation and abroad remain the targets. Additionally, it will show that the security measures in place at airports prior to 9/11 were far less adequate, than today, and personnel responsible for airport security at the gates and throughout were either poorly trained or not trained at all when it came to hijackers and terrorist. This paper will also identify the extensive security measures, rules and training that have been put into place, which helped to curtail acts of terrorism onboard airliners.
After 9/11 there was a great increase in security nationwide. One major example of this is the number of agencies created as a result of 9/11. Among these agencies include the creation of the TSA (Transportation Security Administration), the DHS (The Department of Homeland Security), the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), and lastly the massive advancement of the US Coast Guard. Every one of the budgets of these agencies has doubled since 9/11. The creation of the transportation and security administrations primary goal is to improve the safety of all American Citizens traveling by plane. The TSA started implementing, new policies and new technological advancements.
Flight attendants aboard the plane warned federal agents that the Indian-Americans looked suspicious; therefore, the agents took Hebshi into custody to be searched and questioned. The flight attendants and the federal agents were just trying to make sure that everyone on board the flight was safe. Despite the motives, in any circumstance, racial profiling is wrong. The problem with racial profiling in this case is the woman and the two men made it past extensive airport security; therefore, if they were exhibiting any suspicious behavior it would have already been dealt with by security professionals. The problem with racial profiling in every case is that it violates the natural rights of the person that is being victimized.
As the 19 hijackers made their way through the three East coast airports, on September 11, 2001, planning on executing the world’s worst terrorist attack in history, they test the U.S airport security. At almost every step along the way, airport security posed no challenge to the 19 terrorist hijackers. Not to their ability to purchase tickets, to pass security checkpoints while carrying knives, and other objects that be used as weapons on them. Not one step of airport security posed as a challenge or threat to the terrorist. If airport security was more advanced and carful as it is now, the hijackers would have never made their way on to the
“What time should we leave? Two hours in advance? Three? Four?” Millions of people ask these questions each year before boarding a plane. Between driving, security, walking to the gate, and getting settled, boarding a plane exhausts travelers. But out of all of these different activities, one frustrates and restrains travelers the most: TSA security. People ask why they need all this security, complain about the inconvenience it causes, and ultimately annoys people to no end. Created after 9/11, Transportation Security Administration, or TSA, nationalized airport security, increased screening duration, and supposedly increases security on flights. However, statistics say these added security measures never come to fruition and potentially cost more lives than they save.
"Racial Profiling: Definition." American Civil Liberties Union. N.p., 05 Nov. 2005. Web. 06 Mar. 2014. .
Next on, the author presents the idea that national ID cards would not prevent all threats of terrorism, but they will for sure stop them from coming out in the open. Furthermore, the author says that National ID cards would reduce racial and ethnic segregation. Because someone’s information can be accessed online anytime it can be seen that that person is not a criminal. Summing up his thoughts, Dershowitz suggests that a national ID card would be effective in preventing terrorism and that he believes to follow a system that takes a bit of freedom for
Have you ever been followed by store officials or security while shopping in a department store? At first, all of the attention can be flattering but quickly becomes insulting once you realize they’re not following you to offer any assistance. Instead because of how you look you fit a certain profile that causes store officials to think you’ve come to their store to steal. This type of behavior is called racial profiling. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, racial profiling refers to the discrimination practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual’s race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin. Citizens need to be more aware of racial profiling and make laws that racial profiling should be illegal. Racial profiling is carried out by law enforcement airport security, and other security personnel that look to profile the minorities for no reason. Heather Sally Newton Driscoll ebscohost.com stated “The practice of profiling is rooted in centuries of discrimination and is based on stereotypes that have long been disproved. Profiling holds on entire population accountable for the committed by a small minority”.
Nomani, Asra Q. "Is racial or religious profiling ever justified?" 18 April 2011. Web. 18 June 2015.
Siggins, P. (2002). Racial Profiling in an Age of Terrorism. Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Retrieved July 29, 2010 from: http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/ethicalperspectives/profiling.html
How can you tell apart a terrorist or a thug from a regular working member of society? Just because someone dresses or looks a certain way does not determine who they are as a person. After the 9/11 attacks that took place many Americans started to fear and dislike anyone who looked remotely Middle Eastern or dressed in hijabs and turbans. Your typical white American family would most likely never have to experience being stopped and questioned when they are traveling through the airport. As a nation, we are generalizing and discriminating between these people simply because of how they look which makes us no better than how we were years ago during the civil rights movement. In the story “The Terminal Check” by Pico Iyer, Iyer describes his encounters in the airport as a British born Indian. He had one encounter in the O...
In 2011, on the 10th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, a half-Jewish and half-Arab woman was yanked off her flight, in handcuffs. She was then strip-searched and put in jail for more than 4 hours. Due to Hebshi’s and the two Indian-American men sitting next to hers’ ethnicity, they were targeted and then were ordered off the plane. Not one of
There is also debate regarding what characteristics should be protected under hate crime legislation. In the UK there are five recognized categories which are protected. Race, religion, sexual orientation, disability and transgender identity. The first section of this essay will lay some context to my argument that the criminal law is an effective response to the issue.
Does the thought of going through airport security make you want to jump off a bridge? Some people may think that security in airports is either too strict, or it is not enforced enough. Airport security has certainly developed over time, both in terms of more technology, and in terms of increased security. It has had a lot of reasons to step up, both with terrorist attacks, and with other incidents, such as the way that explosive technology has evolved. The topic of airport security is a big debate: is it too strict or not strict enough? It is important that people know and understand both sides of this important issue.