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NEWS & LETTERS,
January-February 2002
Column: Voices from the inside out by Robert
Taliaferro
'Profiling' and prejudice
A mainstream journalist friend,
discussing the situation that many are finding themselves in after September 11,
noted, "Now they know what blacks have been complaining about for
years." What this person was speaking about is the Bush and Ashcroft
doctrine of cultural profiling to detain (synonymous with "to question'' in
post-September 11 vocabulary) Arab-looking, -speaking, or -acting people. Though these incidents are
disturbing, what is even more disturbing is that the practice has been
promulgated by the federal government for years. In prisons around the country,
religious and cultural profiling has existed on the same—if not more
aggressive—levels. Did September 11 change
anything with regard to this profiling? The answer to that is a resounding
yes...it tended to legitimize processes that were already in place and being
used. For several decades prison administrations have been using religion (and
of course race) as tags that determined custody and classifications of
prisoners. Muslims have been especially
susceptible when it comes to this profiling structure; Native Americans have
also been subjected to discriminatory practices because of their religions.
Prior to the events of September 11, prison administrations had promulgated
rules that disrupted, if not ignored, the rights of prisoners to freely practice
established religions. Even the U.S. Congress, during the Clinton years, amended
laws such as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to disallow prisoners to
practice religious preferences under that act's protection. These changes were
made based on complaints by state attorney generals. There is an innate fear in this
country of people of color, their ideals, religions, cultural nuances, and
individualism in the context of blending in with the overall American precept of
a cultural melting pot. Nowhere is this more prevalent than in small rural
communities. Since the majority of prisons are located in these communities,
being Black there is an alien concept, so it is not surprising that the variety
of religions or cultural differences that non-white prisoners bring to that
community might be a subject for paranoia. In an effort to stem this
feeling of national paranoia, we see commercials that highlight a plethora of
individuals of all races and cultures stating that they are Americans. In
theory, this is a grand scheme. What is confusing, however, is why such
pronouncements are necessary in a country that prides itself on its
multi-cultural composition. The answer to that is simple,
and unpopular to those who wish to sell the dream of equality. We may all be
"Americans," but we live in a country that determines that identity by
stereotypes, bias, and degrees. These biases are bred into the psyche of
Americans during some period in their lives. All Blacks have the potential to be
great athletes, but also a propensity to be criminals; Hispanics steal American
jobs; Indians drink; Asians are potential drug dealers, and Arabs, Indonesians,
Africans...Muslims, are potential terrorists. Those convoluted ideas often
are aimed at people who are the firmest believers in the American dream, the
hardest workers, with ancestral heritages that helped to build this nation under
harsher conditions than the majority of white Americans. That they
"still" believe in the American dream despite the odds, is a tribute
to them—not simply as Americans—but as humans. Profiling people will get worse
before it gets better. It will be interesting to see how extensive such profiles
will become, and if they will extend beyond the line of color, language, and
perceived "non-American" cultures. Perhaps we will see profiles that
identify terrorists of every stripe, including white and homegrown, promulgating
the access to "justice" that people of color have been afforded over
the years, giving American justice a truly "color-blind" patina...
then, perhaps not! |
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