Stories of Racial Profiling and the Attack on Civil Liberties. Community Testimony presented Thursday, September 25, 2003.

On September 25, 2003, in Santa Clara, California, community members, interfaith leaders, labor leaders, and public offcials witnessed accounts of personal experiences with post-Sept. 11 national security policies and practices. This event, called the Public’s Truth, was a forum forcommunities to share real stories of how the “war on terrorism” affects the lives of immigrants, refugees, and people of color. Hosted by the Applied Research Center; the Council on American-Islamic Relations of Northern California, Filipino Community Support; the San Jose Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League; the Muslim Community Association; People’s Association of Workers and Immigrants, Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network; and Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force, the Public’s Truth raised awareness of the scope and scale of the attack on civil liberties and human rights in communities nationwide since Sept. 11, 2001.

Testimonies highlighted both growing racial intoler-ance and excessive security policies of post-Sept. 11 America.

“Maria” was one of several veteran employees at a janitorial services company who lost her job after Sept. 11 because of her immigration status. She described the crippling effects of unemployment on her family and the community at large.

“Ms. A,” a South Asian woman, was harassed and leftbruised by Mountain View police officers who questioned her about being Muslim.

Jaime Escober, a Filipino airport screener, lost his job when the Aviation and Transportation Security Act required that all airport screeners be U.S. citizens.

Kavneet Singh Alag, a Sikh community leader, described how the national Sikh community has been subjected to hate crime violence and neglected by law enforcement. He talked about the recent murder of one young Sikh cab driver: “The police can’t really ever determine whether it’s a robbery or a hate crime,” Alag said. “Because of the fact that he had his turban on and a beard, I’m sure it made it a little easier to pull the trigger.”

Such examples of racial profiling, institutionalized discrimination, and hate violence did not begin with the “war on terrorism.” The Public’s Truth also included the story of Ed Takeda, a Japanese American whose father was kidnapped by the FBI and whose family was placed in an internment camp by the U.S. government after the 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor. As the terrorist attacks unfolded on Sept. 11, Takeda predicted the government’s racist backlash: “First will come the arrests, then peoplewill be hauled off to jail. If they do not watch out, peoplecould be in camps too. It is so wrong.”

While new laws have been crafted and law enforcement powers have expanded since Sept. 11, many of the policies and practices that constitute the domestic “war on terrorism” are actually extensions of pre-existing discriminatory practices. Milton Reynolds, an African American educator, spoke about his experiences with racial profiling and harassment by law enforcement be-fore Sept. 11, and demonstrated the continuation of such practices across communities of color.

The testimonies and reflections shared at the Public's Truth remind us that awareness of the effects of the domestic “war on terrorism” is spreading. It is all of our responsibility — no matter our race, ethnicity, religion, orcountry of birth — to resist racial intolerance and discriminatory policies and practices that affect communities in the South Bay and elsewhere. This publication includes excerpts from four personal testimonies, reflections by three Official Witnesses, and an action list for how to support South Bay organizations working for justice.

Related Documents:

The Public's Truth: Santa Clara Full Report. To download this report in PDF format, complete the form on this page.

The Public's Truth:  Stories of Racial Profiling and the Attack on Civil Liberties 

The Public's Truth: Los Angeles