'WE WILL NOT BE SILENT'

Welcome to AmeriKa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.................PEACE...............Scott

JET BLUE, TSA PREVENT MAN FROM BOARDING PLANE WITH T-SHIRT THAT SAYS 'WE
WILL NOT BE SILENT' IN ENGLISH, ARABIC

RAED JARRAR, RAED IN THE MIDDLE - I went to JFK in the morning to catch
my Jet Blue plane to California. I reached Terminal 6 at around 7:15 am,
issued a boarding pass, and checked all my bags in, and then walked to
the security checkpoint. For the first time in my life, I was taken to a
secondary search. My shoes were searched, and I was asked for my
boarding pass and ID. After passing the security, I walked to check
where gate 16 was, then I went to get something to eat. I got some
cheese and grapes with some orange juice and I went back to Gate 16 and
sat down in the boarding area enjoying my breakfast and some sunshine.

At around 8:30, two men approached me while I was checking my phone. One
of them asked me if I had a minute and he showed me his badge, I said:
"sure". We walked some few steps and stood in front of the boarding
counter where I found out that they were accompanied by another person,
a woman from Jet Blue.

One of the two men who approached me first, Inspector Harris, asked for
my id card and boarding pass. I gave him my boarding pass and driver's
license. He said "people are feeling offended because of your t-shirt".
I looked at my t-shirt: I was wearing my shirt which states in both
Arabic and English "we will not be silent". You can take a look at it in
this picture taken during our Jordan meetings with Iraqi MPs. I said "I
am very sorry if I offended anyone, I didn't know that this t-shirt will
be offensive". He asked me if I had any other T-shirts to put on, and I
told him that I had checked in all of my bags and I asked him "why do
you want me to take off my t-shirt? Isn't it my constitutional right to
express myself in this way?" The second man in a greenish suit
interfered and said "people here in the US don't understand these things
about constitutional rights". So I answered him "I live in the US, and I
understand it is my right to wear this t-shirt".

Then I once again asked the three of them : "How come you are asking me
to change my t-shirt? Isn't this my constitutional right to wear it? I
am ready to change it if you tell me why I should. Do you have an order
against Arabic t-shirts? Is there such a law against Arabic script?"

So inspector Harris answered "you can't wear a t-shirt with Arabic
script and come to an airport. It is like wearing a t-shirt that reads
"I am a robber" and going to a bank". I said "but the message on my
t-shirt is not offensive, it just says "we will not be silent". I got
this t-shirt from Washington DC. There are more than a 1000 t-shirts
printed with the same slogan, you can google them or email them at
wewillnotbesilent@gmail.com . It is printed in many other languages:
Arabic, Farsi, Spanish, English, etc."

Inspector Harris said: "We cant make sure that your t-shirt means we
will not be silent, we don't have a translator. Maybe it means something
else". I said: "But as you can see, the statement is in both Arabic and
English". He said "maybe it is not the same message". So based on the
fact that Jet Blue doesn't have a translator, anything in Arabic is
suspicious because maybe it'll mean something bad!

Meanwhile, a third man walked in our direction. He stood with us without
introducing himself, and he looked at inspector Harris's notes and asks
him: "is that his information?" Inspector Harris answered "yes." The
third man, Mr. Harmon, asks inspector Harris : "Can I copy this
information?", and inspector Harris says "yes, sure".

Inspector Harris said: "You don't have to take of your t-shirt, just put
it on inside-out." I refused to put on my shirt inside-out. So the woman
interfered and said "let's reach a compromise. I will buy you a new
t-shirt and you can put it on top of this one". I said "I want to keep
this t-shirt on". Both inspector Harris and Mr. Harmon said "No, we
can't let you get on that airplane with your t-shirt." I said "I am
ready to put on another t-shirt if you tell me what is the law that
requires such a thing. I want to talk to your supervisor." Inspector
Harris said "You don't have to talk to anyone. Many people called and
complained about your t-shirt. Jet Blue customers were calling before
you reached the checkpoint, and customers called when you were waiting
here in the boarding area".

It was then that I realized that my t-shirt was the reason why I had
been taken to the secondary checking.

I asked the four people again to let me talk to any supervisor, and they
refused.

The Jet Blue woman was asking me again to end this problem by just
putting on a new t-shirt, and I felt threatened by Mr. Harmon's remarks
as in "Let's end this the nice way". Taking in consideration what
happens to other Arabs and Muslims in US airports, and realizing that I
will miss my flight unless I covered the Arabic script on my t-shirt as
I was told by the four agents, I asked the Jet Blue woman to buy me a
t-shirt and I said "I don't want to miss my flight."

She asked, what kind of t-shirts do you like. Should I get you an "I
heart New York t-shirt?". So Mr. Harmon said "No, we shouldn't ask him
to go from one extreme to another". I asked Mr. Harmon why does he
assume I hate New York if I had some Arabic script on my t-shirt, but he
didn't answer.

The woman went away for three minutes, and she came back with a gray
t-shirt reading "New York". I put the t-shirt on and removed the price
tag. I told the four people who were involved in the conversation: "I
feel very sad that my personal freedom was taken away like this. I grew
up under authoritarian governments in the Middle East, and one of the
reasons I chose to move to the US was that I don't want an officer to
make me change my t-shirt. I will pursue this incident today through a
constitutional rights organization, and I am sure we will meet soon".
Everyone said okay and left, and I went back to my seat.

At 8:50 I was called again by a fourth young man, standing with the same
Jet Blue woman. He asked for my boarding pass, so I gave it to him, and
stood in front of the boarding counter. I asked the woman: "is
everything okay?", she responded: "Yes, sure. We just have to change
your seat". I said: "but I want this seat, that's why I chose it online
4 weeks ago", the fourth man said "There is a lady with a toddler
sitting there. We need the seat."

Then they re-issued me a small boarding pass for seat 24a, instead of
seat 3a. They said that I can go to the airplane now. I was the first
person who entered the airplane, and I was really annoyed about being
assigned this seat in the back of the airplane too. It smelled like the
bathrooms, which is why I had originally chosen a seat which would be
far from that area.

It sucks to be an Arab/Muslim living in the US these days. When you go
to the Middle East, you are a US taxpayer destroying people's houses
with your money, and when you come back to the US, you are a suspected
terrorist and plane hijacker.

If you want to call Jet Blue and ask about their regulations against
Arabic script, you can use the following number: 1-800-JETBLUE
(538-2583)

http://raedinthemiddle.blogspot.com/2006/08/back-from-mideast.html