Flight Patterns By Mathew Rodriguez: Article Analysis

Improved Essays
According to Mathew Rodriguez’s article, Waris Ahluwalia proclaims, “This morning in Mexico City, I was told I could not board my @aeromexico flight to NYC because of my turban” (2). Society often profiles individuals of certain groups as terrorists and criminals based off of the person’s characteristics. Sherman Alexie’s “Flight Patterns” discusses the idea of terrorism through physical features, while “Lawyer’s League” analyzes the idea that society considers African Americans as criminals for standing up for themselves. Furthermore, wrongfully profiling individuals occurs within modern day society, which prompts loathing between individuals. These certain individuals must face the withdrawing of rights they possess as citizens of America. …show more content…
Mathew Rodriguez’s article discusses the idea that racial profiling occurs within modern day society. The actor Ahluwalia must leave his flight because of his turban and beard he wears for being Sikh (1-2). People consider Ahluwalia as a terrorist only because of his physical appearances. Society assumes he must partake in terroristic activities since he wears a turban, which illustrates a foreign and dangerous individual. Because of the racial profiling, the pilots force Ahluwalia off the plane at the next destination for the other passengers “safety”. By forcing this Sikh individual off of a plane, this terminates any rights the innocent individual possesses. Ahluwalia will never receive equality within America because of his physical appearance. Just because someone wears foreign clothes and facial hair does not indicate he is a terrorist. A person with blue eyes and blonde hair could create just as much destruction to the United States, which illustrates the reason why profiling develops conflicts. Society profiles individuals with a foreign religion, but it also performs this act to African Americans as well. According to Lizette Alvarez article, George Zimmerman shoots and murders Trayvon Martin for supposedly posing a threat for being a young, African American individual on a night walk with a hood over his head (1). Zimmerman wrongfully profiles the young …show more content…
At airports, security only regards people who possess dark characteristics and wear turbans as terrorists. In addition, society assumes African Americans associate themselves in criminal affiliated incidents. Individuals lose lives, rights, and freedom for simply possessing different characteristics than the “normal” person. However, society does not comprehend that every individual is innocent until proven guilty, meaning physical appearances do not indicate proof of someone associating themselves in terrorist or criminal based affiliations. The action of racial profiling must cease because anyone, no matter the appearance of them, could be an extremist or

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The case of “Trayvon Martin vs. George Zimmerman” is the court case that encouraged me to pursue my career in law. The case was about a seventeen year old African American male named Trayvon Martin who was fatally shot while walking home. A man named George Zimmerman was claimed to be the shooter who shot and killed Martin. According to the news story Martin was walking home from the local Seven Eleven when Zimmerman encountered him. When asked about the situation Zimmerman claimed that he was unfamiliar with seeing Martin in the neighborhood and said Martin looked suspicious.…

    • 435 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    On February 26th, 2012, in Sanford Florida, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin an unarmed black teenager was shot and killed by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman. Igniting a national debate on racial profiling and civil rights. Trayvon Martin was walking back from a nearby 7-Eleven before the crime was acted upon (Bay News 9 Staff). After three weeks of testimony, the six-women jury rejected the prosecution’s contention that Mr. Zimmerman had deliberately pursued Mr. Martin because he assumed the hoodie-clad teenager was a criminal and instigated the fight that led to his death. Mr. Zimmerman said he shot Mr. Martin in self-defense after the teenager knocked him to the ground, punched him and slammed his head repeatedly against the sidewalk.…

    • 954 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    1,200 non-citizen Muslims were detained, arrested, and deported or released on bail based upon unsubstantiated tips from neighbors or coworkers and upon their religion, ethnicity and gender (Paul 1). However, none of these people were charged with any acts of terrorism after being held for 80 days. The detainees Were often not told what they were held for, did not have attorneys and could not communicate to their families. The practice of racial profiling picked up significantly after 9/11 with Muslims. Often after being pulled out of line for a “Random” Screening based upon ethnic appearance, Muslims had to leave the plane because the other passengers did not feel safe with a person they considered harmful based solely upon their appearance and names.(Paul 2).…

    • 735 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Racial profiling is an issue that still threatens American society today. Assuming a person’s involvement in illegal activities based off of their ethnic background is unconstitutional according to the 14th amendment. That didn’t prevent the assault against Shoshanna Hebshi on September 11, 2011. Certain racism-related interest groups have the power to propose rules or solutions to prevent racial profiling. The system of the iron triangle can potentially have a significant effect on racial profiling by acknowledging the issue, proposing a solution and carrying it out.…

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    INTRODUCTION Passenger who was allegedly unhappy about his middle seat. Author Ed Mazza, wrote Flight Diverted Over ‘Middle-Seat Rage’ After Angry Passenger’s Alleged Rant, Published in 2017 in the Huffington Post. The article The New Zealand Herald reported that the passenger, who was not identified, became angry when two travelers of either Indian or Pakistani descent seated on either side of him began speaking to each other. Ed Mazza begins building his credibility with facts reputable sources, citing convincing facts and statistics that he saw from social media. Letting the readers know towards the end of the article the passenger had to pay consequence from being an angry passenger.…

    • 464 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    My three identities are America’s worst fears. My identity is what prevents those who are closed-minded to sleep at night. Men disrespect me. Those who are privileged look down on me, and the racist fear I will bomb their “Land of the Free.” Kwame Anthony Appiah wrote his article “Racial Identities” explaining our different identities and how each of our “collective identities” makes up a script or narrative of shaping our life.…

    • 732 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    This paper studies four articles and a manuscript on the use of racial profiling in the United States. The articles show a good variety by showing the tactics used in racial profiling and the efforts being made to stop this heinous act. Lawrence (2015) suggests that racial profiling is already successfully in-use by U.S Customs Agents, who look at facial expressions and signs of nervousness to spot suspicious activity at U.S boarders. Other written works, such as Selk (2015), combat the theory of racial profiling being used effectively by demonstrating the aftermath it can have if used made upon an unreliable assumption. America is a melting pot made up of many diverse cultures and beliefs, which makes for a wide variety of outlooks on any…

    • 156 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Racial Profiling Racial profiling: the practice of assuming that one has committed an offense on the sole basis of their race or ethnicity. More often than not, racial profiling also goes hand in hand with police brutality and corruption. While repudiation of the argument that liberal media outlets make the effort to observe police-minority interactions through untainted lenses by hyperbolic perspectives difficult, the recent abundance of questionably handled cases within the United States involving people of minority groups and police officers has nonetheless incited national debates over what changes need to occur in order to have a more efficient policing system. The American justice system must take the initiative to put an end…

    • 1216 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In modern times, racial profiling is recognized as an important public matter that has drawn and continues to draw the attention of many people, governments, and the world as a whole. Some consider the practice of racial profiling as morally wrong as the division of races and ethnicities seemingly promote racism and supremacy sentiments. Some promoters believe that racial profiling is a healthy contributor to public safety. Others promote its use in all levels of security and law enforcement throughout the entire societal structure. Law enforcement and security agencies are constantly called into question due to their use of racial profiling or suggestive use of it.…

    • 365 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Racial profiling of African Americans in the U.S. Racial profiling is one of the challenges that African American face every day. However, there is several people that claim that racial profiling of African American does not exist, but rather it is a personal whim. Racial profiling of African American exists in a wider extent such as law enforcement agencies, the education system, the criminal justice system, and even in restaurants. To make a stop to racial profiling of African Americans, society must first acknowledge the problem. This essay will provide facts, demographic statistics and personal anecdotes to address the audience that racial profiling exists in the U.S.…

    • 1271 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Crystal Girtz Professor Spalding Introduction to Criminal Justice- Policing March 10, 2017 Racial Profiling: Two Sides Racial profiling and bias-based policing has been an issue in society for a while. Racial profiling is judging an individual based on their ethnicity and/or looks. This subject has been involved in many careers but especially with law enforcement recently. The idea of racial profiling has been around and developed in the 1980’s but has become a recent manifestation.…

    • 1196 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Suspecting someone of having committed or planning to commit an offense based on their race or ethnicity is a broad definition for racial profiling. Often, people are not even profiled because of their race in general, but because members of their race have an unusual high prevalence of committing crimes in a geographic areas (R, Farrell, 2014). In legal terms, racial profiling is the use of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, or national origin by law enforcement agents as a factor in deciding who to investigate or search of a specific criminal behavior (Rushing, 2013). According to American Civil Liberties Union, racial profiling is a longstanding and deeply troubling national problem. State laws vary across the United States and some laws…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Racial Profiling Essay

    • 1451 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Mainghor Tang Mrs. Daniels ERCW. 5 7 Oct. 2016 Who We Truly Are Is Not Skin Deep With the recent shootings of African Americans by white police officers, the topic of racial profiling is once again reignited. The issue is especially prevalent and controversial in the United States, chiefly due to the fact that America is a diverse country with many ethnic groups.…

    • 1451 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Racial profiling is an expanding issue all through the country. Brent Staples explains in “Black Men and Public Space” people are prejudiced towards others of different races, especially black males. Staples is a dark skin man who has faced racial challenges. He has been noticed by others as being a criminal, various people feared Staples. People would take a look in his direction and see danger just by the way he walked, and dressed around the city.…

    • 775 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Prison Deterrent Effect

    • 1030 Words
    • 5 Pages

    I do believe the prison had a deterrent effect. Various elements could influence the efficiency of the deterrent effect of prison, such as the quality of prison life, the enhancement laws, the juvenile crime and the ability of criminals was examined to substitute between different crimes. The text stated “Sentence enhancement laws abruptly alter prison sentences for specific types of crime” (Winter, 2008). For example, the person who committed robbery was given a 5 year prison sentence.…

    • 1030 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays