American Turban

When profiling begets more profiling

(source: Hyphen Magazine)

(source: Hyphen Magazine)

Meeta Kaur writes an article about the scrutiny of Sikh turbans at our nation’s airports and the latest on the FlyRights app that allows submission of TSA-related complaints via a smartphone:

[Sikh Coalition Director of Programs Amardeep Singh says] “When Sikhs are pulled aside for extra scrutiny in the most security sensitive area in the United States (airport security), that act by the federal government reinforces stereotypes that people already have of Sikhs. If the object that is most feared is the dastaar (turban), and the thing the government is checking in particular are dastaars, we basically have an echo chamber between society and government repeating messages of fear back and forth to one other on a particular object that is so important to us.”

We still also do not know why the TSA focuses on the turban. There is no evidence that the Sikh turban has been particularly used in any attack on the United States.

Read more at Hyphen Magazine.



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