Q: Airline Passenger Profiling

Have you been treated unfairly while traveling? File a complaint with the US Department of Transportation: Aviation Consumer Protection and Enforcement Online Call 1-800-322-7873 Email airconsumer@ost.dot.gov Report the incident to the ADC Legal Department In addition, you can send detailed complaint letters to: Aviation Consumer Protection Division, C-75 U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Ave, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20590 More information on filing airline service complaints or comments

Q: Education Discrimination

Have you experienced discrimination at school? Report the incident to the ADC Legal Department. File a complaint with the US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights: Online Call 1-800-421-3481 Read ADC’s Advice to Parents on how to respond to cases of discrimination in schools. Read ADCRI’s Education Discrimination page.

Q: Employment Discrimination

Have you been discriminated against at work? Learn about the different types of employment discrimination Learn how to file an EEOC charge Contact the EEOC Report the incident to the ADC Legal Department File a complaint by calling the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) at 1-800-669-4000. Visit the EEOC website for more information about your workplace rights Questions and answers from the EEOC on workplace rights of Muslims, Arabs, & South Asians. Read ADC guidelines that discusses employment discrimination and the basic rights held by everyone who legally works or seeks employment in the United States. See ADC’s amicus brief in EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc. , where the U.S. Supreme Court held that an employer may not make an applicant’s religious practice, confirmed or otherwise, a factor in employment decisions.

Question 1

Account Closures and Refusal to Open New Accounts

Accepted Answer

ADC has received an increasing number of reports from Arab-Americans who have had their bank accounts closed arbitrarily due to their Arabic background. The financial institution often cites the Patriot Act generally as the reason for the account closure, but refuses to provide a more specific reason for the account closure.

Click here to report the incident to the ADC Legal Department. (Be sure to include the name of the financial institution in the incident report.)

Question 2

Airline Passenger Profiling

Accepted Answer

Have you been treated unfairly while traveling?

File a complaint with the US Department of Transportation: Aviation Consumer Protection and Enforcement

Online
Call 1-800-322-7873
Email airconsumer@ost.dot.gov
Report the incident to the ADC Legal Department

In addition, you can send detailed complaint letters to:
Aviation Consumer Protection Division, C-75
U.S. Department of Transportation
1200 New Jersey Ave, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20590

More information on filing airline service complaints or comments

Question 3

Denied Entry by Israeli Authorities

Accepted Answer

U.S. citizens who are Arab or Muslim have experienced significant difficulties in entering or exiting through Israeli controlled borders. See U.S. Department of State Travel Warning. The U.S. Department of State has asked ADC to gather information on U.S. citizens who have been denied entry by Israeli authorities in the last year or so. Completing this intake form will help ADC and the Bureau of Consular Affairs to identify trends that can be addressed.

Question 4

Education Discrimination

Accepted Answer

Have you experienced discrimination at school?

Report the incident to the ADC Legal Department.

File a complaint with the US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights:

Read ADC’s Advice to Parents on how to respond to cases of discrimination in schools.

Read ADCRI’s Education Discrimination page.

Question 5

Employment Discrimination

Accepted Answer

Have you been discriminated against at work?

File a complaint by calling the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) at 1-800-669-4000. Visit the EEOC website for more information about your workplace rights

Questions and answers from the EEOC on workplace rights of Muslims, Arabs, & South Asians.

Read ADC guidelines that discusses employment discrimination and the basic rights held by everyone who legally works or seeks employment in the United States.

See ADC’s amicus brief in EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc., where the U.S. Supreme Court held that an employer may not make an applicant’s religious practice, confirmed or otherwise, a factor in employment decisions.

Question 6

Housing Discrimination

Accepted Answer

Housing discrimination based on your race, color, national origin, religion, sex, family status, or disability is illegal under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). If you have been trying to buy or rent a home or apartment and you believe your rights have been violated under FHA, file a complaint with ADC. You can file a fair housing complaint.

More information about the Fair Housing Act can be found on ADC’s Housing Rights Brochure

Additional Resources include:

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
Housing and Civil Enforcement Section
National Fair Housing Alliance

Discriminatory Effect or disparate impact in housing is also prohibited. See U.S. Supreme Court decision in Texas v. The Inclusive Communities and ADC support of the case by joining on Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights amicus brief.

Question 7

Surveillance Profiling

Accepted Answer

Arab Americans, mosques, cultural centers and our communities as whole are subject to surveillance under the guise of national security and without probable cause. Under current legislation and polices, our government and law enforcement is not required to prove probable cause or even criminal suspicion before subjecting someone to a query for investigation or to place someone on the Watch-lists. Criminal suspicion is often assumed against our communities because we have a particular name, was born in a particular country, wear cultural garb or a religious article of faith.

Question 8

U.S. Government Abuses of Civil Liberties

Accepted Answer

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG), in the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), investigates allegations of civil rights and civil liberties abuses by employees in the FBI, DEA, INS, Federal Bureau of Prisons, US Marshals Service, US Attorneys Offices, and all other Department of Justice agencies (that includes the Police).

Report misconduct:

Question 9

Watch List & Port Of Entry Profiling

Accepted Answer

ADC continues to receive reports from Arab American travelers experiencing difficulty traveling at different ports of entry. Common problems include undue delays and secondary searches. In some instances, passengers are detained and not allowed to travel. Some of these problems encountered by Arab American travelers also came as a direct result of the different governmental “watch lists.”

Based on information provided by a former TSA officer, in 2014 ADC requested the Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General (DHS-OIG) to investigate and take action regarding the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) ‘Selectee Passport List’ Policy. The ‘Selectee Passport List’ provides TSA officers with a list of twhttps://www.adc.org/wp-admin/edit.php?post_type=pageelve (12) countries that automatically trigger special screening at airports. TSA officers are required to conduct special screening for passport holding nationals from Syria, Algeria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia and Sudan. All of the countries listed are Arab nations, with the exception of Afghanistan and Iran, which are predominantly Muslim nations. ADC is currently working with government agencies to address the existence of a ‘Selectee Passport List’ and prevent such occurrence again. DHS-OIG is currently conducting an investigation.

ADC also submitted an official statement for the record at the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights held a hearing on December 9, 2014, entitled The State of Civil and Human Rights in the United States. The hearing examined the status of important civil and human rights issues, including surveillance reform, profiling and law enforcement, criminal justice reform, voting rights, the militarization of law enforcement, and police-community relations. In the statement, ADC expressed widespread concerns that Federal, state, and local law enforcement continue to disproportionately target Arab Americans and other minority communities for investigation, interrogation, and arrest. ADC also called on Congress to pass legislation including the End Racial Profiling Act (ERPA) (S.1038) and the Smarter Sentencing Act (H.R. 3382/S. 1410).

ADC worked closely with Rep. Honda’s office in drafting the Consumer Protection amendment, which will require airlines to report to the U.S. Department of Transportation the number of passengers removed off planes and the reason for their removal. The amendment will be considered by the House Appropriations Committee. ADC commends the Congressman for his vigorous advocacy for fairness and transparency, and will continue to work closely with Congressman Honda to address this issue.

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