The government of this country, in its effort to seek revenge under any circumstance, is violating the inalienable rights of the people living in, or visiting, the United States.
The recent government proposals include an identification card for non-citizens in the United States on student visas. These cards would have biometric information on them and would be used to track non-citizens’ finances, travel and educational plans.
These proposals are reminiscent of Nazi Germany requiring Jews to wear yellow Stars of David.
According to the New York Times, President Bush has also declared that non-citizens accused of terrorism may be tried in secret military tribunals. This is different from how such cases were handled in the past. Law in the U.S. is based on precedent. When the individual trials for the first World Trade Center and Oklahoma City bombings took place, these were civilian, not military, trials. Why is this situation being treated such a drastically different way?
In the weeks following Sept. 11, more than 1,000 people have been detained. It is unclear whether people being held in prison were allowed to contact anyone to inform them about their whereabouts.
Right now there are an additional 5,000 people who are being questioned for any information they may have about terrorists and their activities.
Most people being questioned are from Middle Eastern nations and they are all men between the ages 18-33. This is nothing short of racial profiling. And, now more than ever, all groups who have been under scrutiny at one point or another should fight for the rights of people with brown skin who are being targeted right now.
It is not for anybody to decide who does and does not deserve the protection of the U.S. Constitution. Rights either need to be universally protected ? or they might as well not exist at all.
