Question Trump CBP Nominee Kevin K. McAleenan About Religious Questioning, Profiling
ACTION ALERT: Join CAIR in Urging Senate Committee to Question Trump CBP Nominee About Religious Questioning & Profiling
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is calling on all Americans to urge members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance to use the opportunity of a confirmation hearing this Thursday to question Kevin K. McAleenan -- President Trump’s nominee to be Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection -- about the rampant increase of religious questioning and profiling of American Muslim travelers that occurred since he took office as acting deputy commissioner in January.
TAKE ACTION - SEE PANEL TO THE RIGHT
From January 1 through March 31, CAIR found the most frequent type of abuse reported to the group was related to CBP, at 23 percent (193 cases out of 1,597 reports) of the total number of bias incidents. McAleenan took office as Acting Deputy Commissioner of CBP on January 20.
SEE: Anti-Muslim Bias Incidents 2017 Quarter One Update
http://www.islamophobia.org/158-key-issues-in-islamophobia/204-anti-muslim-bias-incidents-2017-quarter-one-update.html
This snapshot reinforces the importance of CAIR’s January filing of 10 complaints with CBP, DHS, and DOJ over reports of systematic questioning of American-Muslim citizens by CBP about their religious and political views. That submission was conducted in coordination with CAIR’s national office and its chapters in Florida, California and New York.
SEE: CAIR Files Complaints with CBP, DHS and DOJ Over Questioning of American Muslims About Religious and Political Views
https://www.cair.com/press-center/press-releases/14021-cair-files-complaints-with-cbp-dhs-and-doj-over-questioning-of-american-muslims-about-religious-and-political-viewswww.html
Those 10 complaints filed in January by CAIR demonstrated an undeniable pattern, if not policy, of CPB subjecting American Muslims to questions about their religious beliefs. Copied below is a partial list of the invasive questions CBP subjected Muslim travelers to:
• Are you a devout Muslim?
• Are you Sunni or Shia?
• What school of thought do you follow?
• Which Muslim scholars do you follow?
• What current Muslim scholars do you listen to?
• Do you pray five times a day?
• Why do you have a prayer mat in your luggage?
• Why do you have a Quran in your luggage?
• What mosque do you attend?
• Have you ever delivered the Friday Prayer? What did you discuss with your community?
CAIR continues to receive reports of CBP officers requesting Muslim travelers to divulge their social media accounts and the contents of mobile phones, along with the above-mentioned interrogations about constitutionally-protected religious beliefs.
CAIR notes that members of other faith communities are not widely reporting similar incidents of CBP questioning them about their religious beliefs.
Following similar allegations of religious questioning in 2012, a spokesperson on behalf of the CBP stated that the agency “strictly prohibits profiling on the basis of race or religion” and follows the Department of Justice’s “Guidance Regarding the Use of Race by Federal Law Enforcement Agencies.”
However, in addition to irrefutable reports about CBP actively questioning Muslim travelers about their religion – CAIR notes that DOJ’s guidance loopholes do not provide complete protection against racial and religious profiling as it retains several exemptions that allow DHS to use religion, national origin and other characteristics to profile at airports and the U.S. border, as well as in certain national security contexts.
While similar assurances in the past have been made by CBP to CAIR that it does not engage in racial and religious profiling, reports to CAIR and high profile accounts in the media, as exemplified by the recent detainment and religious questioning of Muhammed Ali, Jr. and his mother, clearly indicate that CBP either permits or maintains a policy of actively stopping Muslim travelers and questioning them about their religious beliefs.
SEE: Report: Muhammad Ali Jr. Was Detained at Airport, Asked If Muslim
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/02/report-muhammad-ali-jr-detained-at-airport-asked-if-muslim.html
CAIR believes that 2017’s first quarter’s sharp spike in reports of anti-Muslim bias incidents demonstrates that McAleenan as acting deputy commissioner adopting and carrying out many elements of the Trump Administration’s publicly debated “extreme vetting” program.
Question Trump CBP Nominee Kevin K. McAleenan About Religious Questioning, Profiling
ACTION ALERT: Join CAIR in Urging Senate Committee to Question Trump CBP Nominee About Religious Questioning & Profiling
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is calling on all Americans to urge members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance to use the opportunity of a confirmation hearing this Thursday to question Kevin K. McAleenan -- President Trump’s nominee to be Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection -- about the rampant increase of religious questioning and profiling of American Muslim travelers that occurred since he took office as acting deputy commissioner in January.
TAKE ACTION - SEE PANEL TO THE RIGHT
From January 1 through March 31, CAIR found the most frequent type of abuse reported to the group was related to CBP, at 23 percent (193 cases out of 1,597 reports) of the total number of bias incidents. McAleenan took office as Acting Deputy Commissioner of CBP on January 20.
SEE: Anti-Muslim Bias Incidents 2017 Quarter One Update
http://www.islamophobia.org/158-key-issues-in-islamophobia/204-anti-muslim-bias-incidents-2017-quarter-one-update.html
This snapshot reinforces the importance of CAIR’s January filing of 10 complaints with CBP, DHS, and DOJ over reports of systematic questioning of American-Muslim citizens by CBP about their religious and political views. That submission was conducted in coordination with CAIR’s national office and its chapters in Florida, California and New York.
SEE: CAIR Files Complaints with CBP, DHS and DOJ Over Questioning of American Muslims About Religious and Political Views
https://www.cair.com/press-center/press-releases/14021-cair-files-complaints-with-cbp-dhs-and-doj-over-questioning-of-american-muslims-about-religious-and-political-viewswww.html
Those 10 complaints filed in January by CAIR demonstrated an undeniable pattern, if not policy, of CPB subjecting American Muslims to questions about their religious beliefs. Copied below is a partial list of the invasive questions CBP subjected Muslim travelers to:
• Are you a devout Muslim?
• Are you Sunni or Shia?
• What school of thought do you follow?
• Which Muslim scholars do you follow?
• What current Muslim scholars do you listen to?
• Do you pray five times a day?
• Why do you have a prayer mat in your luggage?
• Why do you have a Quran in your luggage?
• What mosque do you attend?
• Have you ever delivered the Friday Prayer? What did you discuss with your community?
CAIR continues to receive reports of CBP officers requesting Muslim travelers to divulge their social media accounts and the contents of mobile phones, along with the above-mentioned interrogations about constitutionally-protected religious beliefs.
CAIR notes that members of other faith communities are not widely reporting similar incidents of CBP questioning them about their religious beliefs.
Following similar allegations of religious questioning in 2012, a spokesperson on behalf of the CBP stated that the agency “strictly prohibits profiling on the basis of race or religion” and follows the Department of Justice’s “Guidance Regarding the Use of Race by Federal Law Enforcement Agencies.”
However, in addition to irrefutable reports about CBP actively questioning Muslim travelers about their religion – CAIR notes that DOJ’s guidance loopholes do not provide complete protection against racial and religious profiling as it retains several exemptions that allow DHS to use religion, national origin and other characteristics to profile at airports and the U.S. border, as well as in certain national security contexts.
While similar assurances in the past have been made by CBP to CAIR that it does not engage in racial and religious profiling, reports to CAIR and high profile accounts in the media, as exemplified by the recent detainment and religious questioning of Muhammed Ali, Jr. and his mother, clearly indicate that CBP either permits or maintains a policy of actively stopping Muslim travelers and questioning them about their religious beliefs.
SEE: Report: Muhammad Ali Jr. Was Detained at Airport, Asked If Muslim
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/02/report-muhammad-ali-jr-detained-at-airport-asked-if-muslim.html
CAIR believes that 2017’s first quarter’s sharp spike in reports of anti-Muslim bias incidents demonstrates that McAleenan as acting deputy commissioner adopting and carrying out many elements of the Trump Administration’s publicly debated “extreme vetting” program.