more on NYC to search transit riders' bags -- but ...

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "David S. Isenberg" <isen () isen com>
Date: July 22, 2005 12:09:57 PM EDT
To: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: more on NYC to search transit riders' bags -- but ...


Dave,

(for IP if you wish)

My wife witnessed a young man, with a South Asian or Arabic appearance,
being searched on Metro North last night around 9:20 PM.  The Stamford
Local was stopped at 125th Street Station for about 15 minutes. (Usually
this is a 1 minute stop.)  Presently the police came into her rail  
car and asked
the man if they could look in his backpack.  He assented, all was  
polite,
the incident did not escalate.  Apparently they found nothing.   
Nobody else
in that car was searched.  The train continued without further incident.

a) Seems that NYC transit rider searches are not limited to subways.
b) This N=1 sample suggests that "random search, without
racial profiling," isn't what's happening.
c) The police did not take precautions -- evacuating the car, etc.
-- that would have been appropriate if they were truly suspicious that
the bag might have explosives, etc.

I agree with Lauren Weinstein when he says

> If the authorities feel that they need to search the bags of people
> who look like they might be members of a certain religion, then let's
> have them come out and say it, have the appropriate public debate,
> and decide as citizens if that is a direction we really want to take
> this country.

David I
-------



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