The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today alerted community members traveling internationally to know their rights and respectfully assert them if subject to inappropriate and invasive questioning during secondary screenings performed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers.
In recent weeks, CAIR has received an uptick in reports that American Muslims traveling internationally have been stopped and subjected to inappropriate questioning during secondary screenings by Department of Homeland Security officials.
CAIR has received reports that CBP has been stopping Muslim families at the US-Canada border for several hours at a time. Other reports involve officials removing Muslim civil society leaders from planes before departure to inappropriately question them about their affiliations with Muslim institutions.
SEE: 10-minute Know Your Rights While Traveling Refresher Video
Keep these helpful tips in mind so you can protect your civil rights the next time you travel:
- If you believe an inappropriate interaction took place, write down the officer’s name and badge number, and in the event your electronics are seized, also note down the agency’s contact information and request a receipt.
- Write down what occurred during the encounter as soon as you get to a safe and private space in as much detail as possible. Talk to your travel companions who may have witnessed inappropriate interactions to help consolidate the series of events.
- If you are concerned that you may be inappropriately stopped and questioned on your next trip, make sure to have the contact information of an attorney or your local CAIR chapter so that you can seek immediate assistance.
If you, or anyone you know, has been subjected to discrimination or harassment while traveling, please file a report at: https://www.cair.com/report/
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com