Post 9/11 Surveillance and Profiling of Arab, African, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asians (AAMEMSA) Communities

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About

Since 9/11, AAMEMSA (Arab, African, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian) communities have raised concerns of overbroad national security policies which result in profiling, and suspicionless surveillance of individuals, mosques, and political organizations. The purpose of this initiative is to address overbroad national security policies, promote fair and equal treatment of AAMEMSA communities and lessen inappropriate questioning and searching based on race, religion or national origin, and other protected categories. Below is a snapshot of recent events and developments:

• September 23, 2010 - Working with the Coalition for a Safe San Francisco, a grassroots alliance dedicated to protecting the civil rights and civil liberties challenged by overbroad national security policies, HRC held a hearing to address concerns of surveillance and profiling. Approximately 150 people attended and 40 testified. Click here to view a clip from this hearing.  

• February 24, 2011 - HRC published its findings and recommendations from the September 23, 2010 hearing. The report, entitled "Community Concerns of Surveillance, Racial and Religious Profiling of Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian Communities and Potential Reactivation of SFPD Intelligence Gathering", was unanimously endorsed  by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on April 5, 2010.  

• May 18, 2011 - HRC and the Police Commission held a joint hearing to investigate San Francisco Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ Joint Terrorism Task Force compliance with local policies which prohibit suspicionless investigations involving First Amendment activities. Click here to view the hearing. 

• May 8, 2012 – Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the Safe San Francisco Civil Rights Ordinance

• May 9, 2012 – Mayor Edwin Lee signed the Safe San Francisco Civil Rights Ordinance for which San Francisco received national recognition.

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 Resources

AAMEMSA Organizations 

• ACLU 
• AROC 
• Asian Law Caucus National Security 
• Bill of Rights Defense Committee: 
• Brennan Center for Justice – Liberty and National Security Program 
• CAIR California 
• Coalition for Safe San Francisco 
• DesisRising Up and Moving 
• Islamics Network Group: 
• Muslim Advocates 
• Sikh Coalition 

Relevant Publications 

• Community Concerns of Surveillance, Racial and Religious Profiling of Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian Communities and Potential Reactivation of SFPD Intelligence Gathering
• Backlash, Violence, Human Rights Violations, & Discrimination in San Francisco in the wake of September 11, 2001 
• "Community Concerns of Surveillance, Racial and Religious Profiling of Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian Communities and Potential Reactivation of SFPD Intelligence Gathering", Domestic Intelligence: New Powers, New Risks - Brennan Center for Justice 
• Rethinking Radicalization - Brennan Center for Justice 
• Returning Home: How U.S. Government Practices Undermine Civil Rights At Our Nation’s Doorstep -Asian Law Caucus 
• Sikh Coalition Bay Area Civil Rights Reports 2010
• Islamophobia and Its Impact in the United States - CAIR

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 Contact

 For more information about the HRC's work around surveillance and profiling, please contact Nadia Babella at Nadia.Babella@sfgov.org.

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