Has Airport Security Gone Too Far? Essay

decided to overhaul their security protocols and specifically upgrade the security involving airports and airplanes. The upgrade in security of airports, although in some cases helpful, has caused an unnecessary amount of problems for American civilians due to the invasive changes made by the American government. Not only is it harder to get through security in America, but many of the American’s privacies have been taken away by the government in the name of safety as David Lyon says in his article on security changes in airports: “after 9/11, various policies and even laws concerning matters such as privacy and confidentiality have been overridden by the concern with ‘national security’”(405). Under the claim of safety, American and foreign civilians’ rights and privacy have been abused and taken away, leading to many people being overall upset and angry with the

Khan, Azeem. "Airport Profiling: A Familiar Story for Muslims." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 19 May 2013. Web. 3 Dec. 2014. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/azeem-khan/racial-profiling-muslim_b_3303582.html>.

Nonetheless, privacy groups, such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ALCU), continue to express concern over potential intrusion on individual rights and alleged cases of sexual harassment and abuse of passengers, particularly female passengers, by TSA screeners. These concerns, however, raise a significant challenge for the TSA: to maintain high levels of security, which require resolving all alarms and screening in detail those passengers ascertained to pose an elevated security risk, while maintaining the privacy rights and dignity of passengers identified for these secondary

. Racial profiling has always led to heated debates, but in general, there is a consensus that it is an offensive tactic that must be stopped, nevertheless if the argument is about profiling in airports, the public opinion is divided. It seems that many are willing to sacrifice their convictions and civil rights for a sense of safety in this war against terrorism.

In certain parts of the world, a retinal scanner was added at the security area. A passenger could go through a different security line and allow the scanner to read their eyes and be sent through without being searched, taking off shoes and coats or even removing their computers from their bags. In order to be able to receive this luxurious security check, a person would have to send in extensive forms to the government. These forms would tell the government everything about the person in order to do the extensive background check. And this takes time as well. You cannot expect for this to happen overnight. Not only does this take time and extensive checks, but it also costs money. It will cost someone about a hundred dollars to be even considered for this security check. The retinal scanner is not used in all airports. Most of them are actually located outside the

“Everything isn’t racial profiling” was posted on Townhall January the ninth of 2002. This article was told by Linda Chavez and cleared up on the subject of racial profiling, which is, still a thing today. Chavez explains her story to us as, “Racial profiling is an ugly business.” In her essay, she argues the circumstances of racial profiling and how it entails picking someone out for special scrutiny simply because of his race. Chavez paints us a picture of real world examples and stories of her own, so that we would be able to understand this “ugly business”. Repeatedly, she brings up airports and airlines as an example, showing where it is brought up most. And finally, she informs the audience on why the United States is more secured. Through the emotions of her journeys, the logical events that she talks about, and the information she provides, Chavez informs her audience on why racial profiling is such an ugly business.

One of the most frequent cases of racial profiling would have to take place in our nation’s airports. The airport security teams have a tendency of targeting those whose ethnic background is not of Caucasian descent. In recent years, you cannot even take a trip with your family without running the risk of having an obtrusive body scan or being patted down by a complete stranger if they are wary of your nationality. All while Little Johnny and Suzy Smith are welcome to continue on with their trip

The FISA Act was formed to limit the power and capabilities of spies, but it is merely inadequate. This court created outrage and controversies with the subjective ways it deals with NSA warrants. The FISA court rejects only about .03 percent of warrants each year, which are mostly the local intelligence they leave to the local police (Cothran 164). The 99.97 percent of warrants accepted are based off of the heritage and nationality of a person rather than his activities. Consequently, this ethnic profiling creates a false sense of safety in the eyes of most Americans because it displays that the FISA court dishonestly accepts the false intelligence the NSA produces (Cothron 172). Although the NSA and FISA court is taking away civil liberties, the government has been doing the same all these years. Just like the FISA court falsely identifies someone, airport officials do the same when they see a “dangerous” ethnicity by inspecting them more thoroughly. Much like the biased actions of the FISA court, the NSA also conducts their research in an inappropriate

Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, body scans and security checkpoints have become the norm for airports throughout America. Airports tell you what you’re allowed to have and they restrict small things such as scissors, pocket knives, too much

In Asra Q. Nomani’s article “Airport Security: Let’s Profile Muslims” she acknowledges that, “Data in reports released over the past several months from New York University’s Center for Security and the Law; the Congressional Research Service, and the Rand Corporation reveal that over the past decade not only are many defendants in terrorism cases Muslim, but they trace their national or ethnic identity back to specific countries.” In this article, Nomani asserts her interest of Racial and Religious profiling for passengers boarding among U.S Airports. Opposing this article is Nafees Syed’s article, “Airport Screening for ‘Flying while muslim.’” Syed imparts how offensive and frustrating profiling can be for those who are “randomly selected.” A topic like this is very sensitive to discuss but it 's a concern of many people. Should racial profiling be enforced in U.S airlines? If you contrast the two articles it is evident that Nomani’s article possesses a stronger argument.

Flying out or in of the country or even within has become more challenging since the 9/11 attacks. It takes more time to get through security which makes for a much earlier arrival time for those flying. Most airlines require an arrival two hours prior to their departure time. Many Americans have stopped flying altogether because of the hassle of airport security and out of fear. Before the attacks, airport security was more relaxed. Basic security measures were in place, but it was much different than today. Before the attacks, security screenings were set in place by the private companies, many which were outsourced to different security companies. Passengers were allowed to bring certain size blades, scissors, baseball bats and even sewing needles. All of these items have since been banned as a result of the attacks. Since the attacks, the Transportation Security Administration was created and the security screenings are now regulated by the federal government. Through TSA, passengers bags are checked for banned items, they screened for suspicious behavior, the explosive detection system was implemented, and the full body scanner is now used to check passengers. According to Rick Seaney, “Our security ought to stop anything these days, stringent as it is: We've gone from the metal detectors of the 1970s to post-9/11 body scans and enhanced pat downs. Cockpit doors are now fortified, and the sky

Racial profiling is an epidemic. It has negatively impacted communities for generations. THe use of race by American police in their policing activities has received much attention across the world. Social media have exploded the daily news people consume and trends are now visible to those that previously didn’t notice it. Countless studies were released on that epidemic and yet, in 2016, nothing seems to have changed. There are those who will support the idea, but quite often, it’s because it doesn’t affect them. While it’s true that African Americans have a particular past with racial profiling in America, it’s has always been much broader experience. Anyone with Arabic look or with Muslim affiliation would be constantly set aside for extra searching and questioning at airports. As a journalist so well explained “People like

Many years ago airport security was not even an issue. People felt secure and safe and rarely worried about being searched. As time went on, the prevealance of terrorism became an increasing issue. There began more acts of terrorism by threatening and holding hostages on board commercial planes. As these acts continued, the government as well as citizens became vulnerable and an airport safety procedure was implemented as a way to ensure the safety of the United States. The implemented procedures over the years included a check and scan of all carry on and checked baggage, body scans, hire government airport employees, and a strict list of carry-on items. This made travelers feel safer as it decreased the ability of terrorist to commit

This is simply one way that security can be achieved without hindering privacy. It is still necessary to check I.D. and do background checks on suspicious persons; however, it is not necessary to constantly berate innocent citizens. We have all experienced some type of frustration while going through the airport. While some of it is necessary to guarantee that we arrive safely; more often that not, it feels like an

Airport security is necessary for the safety and efficiency of airlines today. Attacks involving airlines have been “among the deadliest in terms of human lives and economic impact,” even though relatively few attacks have occurred using airlines compared to other terrorism methods (Szyliowicz, 2011, p.2). Airport Security has been administered using a government-operated system since the Aviation and Transportation Security Act was enacted in 2001. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), now an agency of homeland security, replaced private security measures and personnel with at least 60,000 federal employees (Szyliowicz, 2011). However, privatization may be making a come-back. The following analysis will analyze