Guilty by Profiling

Many American films of the 1980's portrayed scenes where travelers in the Soviet Union would be stopped by officials and asked, "Your papers! Show me your papers!" The frightened traveler would fumble as they produced travel papers, which included name, birth date and gender. These movies would portray the worried traveler being checked at least three times by the KGB before leaving the airport or boarding the plane. Movie goers here in Canada could bask in democratic arrogance because under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms we have the protection that, “The restriction of freedom has reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.”

Just how does a society ever degrade to that level of a police state?

Under the former liberal federal government, the Public Safety Act 2002 authorized the establishment of the "Canadian No Fly List," a secret growing list of Canadian citizens and permanent residents compiled by CSIS and the RCMP. This list identifies people who these two organizations deem to be "suspected" of being capable of endangering airline security. This list is maintained as a directive under the "Passenger Protect Program" which is under the umbrella of Transport Canada.

In the post 9/11 world, it sure sounds like the government is protecting it citizens!

But what you may not know is that this list can contain anyone who this small group deem a threat based on 'intelligence' information. They have the ability to profile and list people. This list is then made computer accessible for airport security when you pick up your boarding pass. If your name, birth date and gender matches, security is required to contact the police and the Minister of Transport. The police are then required to take action. Furthermore, the person on the list is not allowed any disclosure as to why they are on the list. Their only recourse is to appeal to the ominous sounding "Office of Reconsideration."

What this sounds like, is a chapter from George Orwell’s novel “1984.” Can this really be taking place in Canada?

Consider the case of 26 year old, Hani Al Telani, a permanent resident who is enrolled in Montreal’s Concordia University studying Computer Engineering. Last June, Al Telani checked-in at Montreal's airport after purchasing return tickets to Saudi Arabia in order to visit is mother and father. His vacation ended before it started, when he produced his I.D. papers at the ticket kiosk. The airline employee refused to tag his bags. While waiting, a Transport Canada official arrived and handed him an ‘Emergency Direction’ that declared him an “Immediate Threat to Aviation Security." In a sworn affidavit, Al Telani has declared that he is not a threat and he has no criminal record to indicate that he a danger.

Authorities refuse to disclose why he is on the list and what criteria they use to determine him a threat. Al Telani has now been publicly portrayed as dangerous and he is now looked at as a Saudi National who is considered a terrorist by Canadian authorities. Worse yet, this young man is unable to leave Canada by air. The only way back to Saudi Arabia to see his parents is by boat.

The “No Fly List” is something that has been adopted by other countries and first suggested by the US Department of Homeland Security. The USA has their own “No Fly List” and according to the US Government Accountability Office, more that 30,000 travelers have been falsely associated with terrorism when attempting to board a plane.

As an example, in January of 2006, U.S. fighter planes intercepted an Air Transat flight to Mexico because it was carrying a Canadian citizen of Lebanese origin who was on the U.S. “No Fly List.” Al Telani was our first “No Fly List” person targeted and our first case of false identification under this program.

This policy of giving a small group of ‘intelligence' officers the power to profile Canadian citizens to separate them as terrorist without due process of law, is a blatant violation of our chartered rights and freedoms. Canadians do not need the protection of a “No Fly List” as the Criminal Code of Canada already gives authorities the ability to arrest and detain suspects who they believe upon reasonable and probable grounds, that they are about to commit an indictable offense, such as a terrorist act. To just suspect that someone is a threat based on shoddy intelligence such as his or her religion, race, or where they were born is abhorrent to human sensibilities. We should all be outraged!

But, when I talked to one lady last week and disclosed this policy to her, the immediate reaction was, “That won’t affect me or my family.” That was obvious because this lady is a white female of Christian heritage.

We should all be reminded that just because a person is Islamic, darker skinned, Lebanese, Saudi, Afghani or from Iraq, by all probability they are not born terrorists. Looking for the bogyman in every corner of our society make us all Xenophobes and reeks of McCarthyism.

With the federal election just concluded, it is time that we remind those who we elected into
office to undo some injustices. The “No Fly List” is an unacceptable and unfair profiling policy that turns Canada into a quasi-policestate.

Perhaps Mr. Harper should add this ‘program’ to his justice reform efforts.

If the Harper government neglects the reformation of this program, it may give future Prime
Ministers something to apologize for.

The Enabler

‘Kids will be kids,‘ can be heard coming from the mouth of a person in authority, when discovering some young’uns have caused damage in your neighbourhood. It tends to be used to trivialize a problem, so that the victim will not insist on affirmative action. Yes, kids will be kids and things don’t change. All we need to do is wait until they grow up, right? But the problem with that logic is that others follow in their footsteps.

Recent events have brought to the surface a problem of bullying in our schools. Yes, being teased or embarrassed in school tends to be part of growing up, but when it comes to being bullied, the harassment goes beyond teasing, or even humiliation.

By definition a bully is a person who hurts, frightens or torments a weaker or smaller person. The fact is that all schools have bullies and because of their activities, children in our schools will be tormented on or off school grounds. It could happen inside the school, classroom, school yard, school bus and even online in chat rooms and social websites. It will happen anywhere a bully has the ability to make contact with their intended target or can manipulate others to do their bidding. But the interesting point is that a bully is not necessarily just a child or even a teenager. Bullies tend to grow up into adults and the behaviour continues into their workplace.

When the school bully confronts a child, the first thing the target of his or her aggression looks for is someone to intervene. But when no help comes, in many cases the victim keeps quiet, stewing in their humiliation because they may feel nothing will be done. The attitude and policy of the individual school can create an atmosphere that conveys to the victim, “keep quiet, they will just blame you, or worse, call you into the principals office.” How a teacher or administrator deals with the victim or the bully, goes a long way in preventing the behaviour from continuing. It can either convey to the school body that bullying will not be tolerated, or that bullying is condoned, or that it is just part of the school culture.

A 2006 study by the Government of Saskatchewan on bullying in schools, revealed some interesting facts. Former S/Sgt. George Anderson of the RCMP, when interviewing one teacher stated, “If a school tells you that they don’t have a problem they are lying.” The study showed that 71% of teachers said they usually intervene with bullying problems but only 25% of students report that teachers intervene. This is a clear indication that many schools don’t acknowledge or recognize when one of their students is being tormented. In essence, it is a strong indication that the faculty in some schools have become the enabler of bullying.

The effects of bullying can be long lasting, both for those who bully and those who are victimized. It has been shown that bullying behaviour during childhood is closely associated with future antisocial behaviour and criminal activity in adolescence and adulthood. Tormented students have reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, loss of self-esteem and occasionally, increased levels of aggressive behaviour. Even worse, where the schools have enabled bullying to thrive, there have been suicides as a result.

In a recent CBC report, Dawn-Marie Wesley, 14, of Mission, B.C., after constant bullying by three girls at school, left a suicide note that said, "If I try to get help it will get worse. They are always looking for a new person to beat up and they are the toughest girls. If I ratted they would get suspended and there would be no stopping them. I love you all so much." Dawn-Marie's younger brother found her in her bedroom where she had hanged herself with a dog leash. Incidents of suicide resulting from bullying are not common, but in more than a few cases in Canada, bullying has lead to the victim using death as a last resort.

It has been eloquently put by one teacher in our district that, “teachers wear many hats. Within the span of one school day we are teachers, counsellors, role models, coaches, supervisors, disciplinarians, nurturers, support systems, tutors, or just friendly faces to our students.” Teachers are also the first line of defence for victims of bullies. With all these hats, it must be recognized that in order to create a positive learning environment for the students, the students must feel safe. When a parent drops their child off at school, they are fully aware that teachers are more than educators. With that much power over their child comes great responsibility, and teachers need the support of not only the parents but also the school system they work in to create that safe environment.

In any case, bullying has been recognized throughout Canada as a serious problem, and it is necessary for each school to actively pursue a solution. It does no one any good to wait until the bully moves on because as we know, ‘kids will be kids’ and when one bully leaves another fills their boots. The problem will not just go away, it needs to be removed.

Disturbing Trend, But who is to Blame?

We are soon off to the polls and according to a recent Elections Canada study conducted on the last federal election turnout, 78% of those between 18 and 25 years old will not be voting. This drop in voter turnout is disturbing but even more concerning is that when asked why the non-voter does not attend the polls, the study revealed 25% were just not interested. With an additional 15% stating that they suffer from ignorance or just had better things to do. But overall, 67% polled provided a negative public attitude towards the system, candidates, or government when expressing a reason for not voting.

So, by our own admission, those who do not vote suffer from apathy, ignorance, anger and indifference when it comes to civic duty. Who is to blame?

I made a point of engaging a few people in their early twenties to test this study out by asking a few questions. What I found was very similar answers to simple questions. When I asked one young lady, “Who is the current Prime Minister of Canada?” I got, “John something.” When I pressed for a full answer I got “John Chrétien, I think.” Taking this further, I asked this gal, “Well, who was the first Prime Minister of Canada?” and this is where things got weird, “It was the John guy.” she said. Once again I pressed for the last name and in a half attempt at deflecting my incredulous look she stated, “The McDonalds guy”, with a chuckle. I said, “OK, I’ll take that answer, it was Sir John Alexander MacDonald.” Now feeling that I had engaged the thinking hemisphere I asked, “Was he Liberal or Conservative?” She was quick to answer “Liberal.” Wanting to gently pat her head saying, “good girl” I corrected her by stating “No, he was Conservative.” I guess the Liberal catch phrase, ‘Natural Governing Party’ must be working.

If this gal was a 12 year old kid staring at a video game during this conversation I would not have been so dumbfounded. But this adult, 8 years into voting age, is a successful businesswoman in Edmonton with real responsibilities. I advised her that I was using her as an example and she implored me to withhold her name. So don’t worry Suzanne, I won’t say a word.

When I was 17 years old, I could not wait until I was old enough to cast my vote. For some reason, I saw it as a rite of passage. It was as important to a hormone rushing teen as getting a drivers license, or hollering “Barkeep, give me another!” It was a moment in a young mans life when the maxim, “Eat the crust, it will grow hair on your chest,” reveals to be truth one morning. Or that moment when you actually need to put a blade into the razor. On election day, I would sit in front of the boob tube and watch intently as the results poured in. At the same time I would be calling my buddy and we would spew anger when we saw Pierre Trudeau standing with his hands clasped together, raised in the air, in victory. Election day was the only time TV was an interactive media experience. So why have things changed?

The Elections Canada study regarding voter apathy only gives reasons for not voting and not the cause. It appears as though there is no simple answer. But if we just look around we can draw a few cursory conclusions.

The first, I believe is that parents don’t engage their children on many topics. Politics only being one of them. The TV has turned into the child mentor and the school system their ethical guidance. The apathy of the parents interaction with the youth translates to the apathy at the polls. As a youth my father talked politics to me and instilled the importance of my one vote carries.

Second, young people have too many distractions coming at them. So much so, that if you stand a young person in a quiet room for 10 minutes their face begins to melt in boredom. They have become a generation of people needing constant input. This is seen in their fascination with cell phones, texting, facebook, ipods, movies, pop idols and video games. They have become a generation of turning inward and tuning out. It is no wonder that ignorance plays into the non-voter.

Third, our political campaigns have turned into a circus. In the old days it was unusual to see federal leaders throw insults at each other. It was business. Ed Broadbent of the Federal NDP and Joe Clark of the Progressive Conservatives were seen as pretty serious politicians. Even without chiselled good looks you got the sense that they were real contenders. They dealt with real topics, real concerns, not allegations of hidden agendas, who’s lighting up with whom, accusations designed to instil fear and anger, instead of engaging civic concern. Its no wonder the non-voter uses anger as a reason for avoiding the polls.

And last, I believe that the diminishing membership of the Service Clubs is a strong indication of civic duty declination. Many good service clubs and fellowships such as the Lions Club, the Loyal Order of the Moose and attendance in a church to name only a few indicate that the younger crowd is not interested in serving their community. It is a strong indication that without civic interaction with other community members the youth are getting disconnected and without conversation with your neighbours they are just not forming any real political opinions or even concern. It is no wonder the non-voter sights indifference to their civic duty of voting.
Yes it is a disturbing trend……but really, are we not all to blame?