Activists hassled on do-not-fly list. Gov't admits it's true

[SharonAnn]

Salon.com

Grounding the flying nun
Activists on the left and right -- including a 71-year-old Milwaukee nun and an art dealer who told other passengers that President Bush "is dumb as a rock" -- have long complained they were being hassled by airport security. After months of silence, the federal government says: It's true.

- - - - - - - - - - - -
By Dave Lindorff

July 25, 2003 | Ever since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, reports have circulated that the U.S. airline security apparatus was targeting political activists for strict scrutiny and special searches, sometimes forcing them to miss flights. Despite the accounts of peace activists, civil liberties lawyers and left-wing journalists, federal agencies wouldn't confirm the policy and airline officials wouldn't discuss it, and so the stories had the feel of urban legend.

But in documents released this week in a federal court case in San Francisco, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration confirmed for the first time that it does keep not just a list of potential terrorists barred from the air, but also a list of "selectees" who are subject to strict security checks before they are allowed to board commercial aircraft. The agency has revealed almost nothing else about the selectee list, and is fighting in court to keep secret the names of people who are on it, the standards for putting them there.

It appears, however, that the list may contain thousands of names. Officials at the ACLU of Northern California, which is pressing the Freedom of Information Act case filed by two leftist newspaper editors, says it learned from authorities at Oakland Airport that there is a typed list of names that is 88 pages long. Between Sept. 11, 2001, and April 8, 2003, the ACLU says, over 363 passengers were stopped at San Francisco and Oakland airports -- either because their names appeared on that list or because their names were similar to names on a separate "no-fly" list made up of criminals and people with suspected terrorist ties.

<snip>
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/07/25/no_fly/index_np.html

[Cha]

1. God, I can't wait until we no longer have to read stories like

this or be in one of them ourselves! the bush/nazi tactics have really gotten old. Like Mark Moford says ...enough of the ugly rite wing loafers stomping on us and our rights!

[G_j]

4. the story feels too close home for me

I happen to know the art dealer they mentioned and have worked him in "activist" capacity. I haven't tried flying yet (since these 'lists' were drawn up) ..might be interesting.

[G_j]

9. Stuber's Ordeal

A letter from I recieved from Doug Stuber,

Salon.com did me the service of contacting the Secret Service as to the veracity of my report, and their story (if still up)even got to the question of why Amnesty International, Greenpeace, the greens and other groups were the target of FBI and SS investigations. They answered that many groups are being looked at as possible places for terorrist cells, and shit, that one really irked me.

Also please note the three SUV's that blew up nrear Pittsburgh, and the AP story that listed an environmentla group as haveing "cells" and working loosely. it also said that anyone could pull a stunt, violent, or nonviolent, and by reporting to the Earth Liberatoin Front's website (I think that was the group) could take responsibility in the NAME OF THE GROUP.. Any thinking person would see the hazards in this approach, as frame-ups and horse-doo doo could easily be done in the name of the group, so I hope that group gets it together, uses non-violent means of expression whenever possible (or ALWAYS) and sotps letting ANYONE report and take credit for stuff. if someone took credit for ten murders in the name of the group, wel, uh, they'd be f****'d.

This is what happened. I also debriefed this story and other stuff to the Center for Constitutional Rights in NYC in November. Because I was loud the first day, they did not want to take the case to court. There are typos in this story, but almost everyone who know me konw I do typos, so I have left them in. (made=mad at one point). Here it is:

"A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Airport"
or
"43 hours from hell"

Dear Editor:

I was trying to make an important trip to gather artists for Henry James Art in Raleigh, NC, USA when I was told (ticket in hand) that I was not allowed to fly out that day.

Curiously, I asked "why not" and the answer at Raleigh Durham Airport (RDU) was that, I had yelled, over three rows "Bush is as dumb as a rock." This was part of a conversation with two African American men I had never met, and that included talk of how the CIA polluted downtown America with crack, and how Jerry Falwell used church coffers to buy planes for "Falwell Aviation."

Of course, those planes were leased to Frank Clinton, and others, who, against the wishes of congress (which had banned any more funding for the Contra War in Nicaragua) used them (lots of them were DC-3s like the one Hassenfuss got caught in) to run gins to Honduras, and bags of cocaine back to the US.

In fact, the Manual Noriega case was SUPPOSED to be tried in Roanoke, VA federal court, but Falwell did not want folks to find out about his connection to "guns south and crack north, " and got the venue switched to Miami.

Anyway, they ran "national Guard" guns to Honduras where they were walked across the river to Nicaragua, in exchange for Cocaine, which was turned into the crack that, ever since, has decimated urban America.

SO I was denied a flight, but thought I'd come back the next mooring, really early, switch airlines and fly to Paris, to catch a train to Prague form there.

Naturally, I went back the next morning, and instead of paying $670 round trip was forced into a $2,600 "same day" fare. I was mad enough about the money, but what happened in the next 24 hours was mind-boggling.

So, it was 6am and my first flight wasn't due out until 11:45, so I had plenty of time to kill. At exactly 10:52 am, just before boarding was to begin, I was approached by Officer Stanley (the same policeman I was ushered out of the airport y the day before) and he said he "wanted to talk to me."

I went with him, but reminded him that no one had said I could not fly, and that my flight was about to leave. (I also knew that I could make the Air France connection in Atlanta and still make it to Prague in time, as long as I could catch a Delta flight at 1:10pm, so I wasn't too worried yet.)

The officer took me into a room and questioned me for one hour. By Noon Stanley introduced me to two gentlemen I will refer to as Secret Service A and Secret Service B ( SS-A and SS-B). Now it's bad enough that the SS will remind Germans of a very bad group during World War II, but here is where the story proves the US is in a "totalitarian capitalist" state of fascism.

SS-A and SS-B took full eye-open pictures with a digital camera. They then asked me all the details about my family, where I lived, who I ever knew, what the Greens are up to, etc. etc.

At one point I asked if they really believed the Greens were equal to Al Qaeda. Here they made an error. They showed me a document from the Justice department (Ashcroft and friends) that actually DOES show the greens as likely terrorists. Just as likely as Al Qaeda members. Man, I wish I had had a camera to be able to copy THAT document!

Sure enough we got out of there at about 12:45, but with enough time to catch the later flight.

Here is where the pig-dogs really made me mad. They walked me to the Delta counter and asked that I be given tickets for the flight so I could make my connections. The woman (she is a tall blonde with short hair and works for Delta at RDU) quickly printed out tickets so that I could make the flight, and I was relieved that the SS hadn't stopped me from flying.

I was wrong again. By the time I was about to be quickly placed on the flight, officer Stanley ONCE AGAIN ushered me out the door. To be fair, he told me this: "Just go to Greensboro, where they don't know you, and be totally quiet about politics, and you can make it to Europe that way."

I felt like I was being yet again set up by this man, but I went to Greensboro anyway.

In Greensboro, NC I was told flat out that I could not fly overseas as soon as my passport was swiped. Apparently the SS had moved quickly to shut me down from ANY kind of overseas air travel. (One wonders whether Greens throughout the US are now barred from flying, since our national Co-Chair, Nancy Ogden had already been denied a flight form Maine to Chicago eight months ago.)

Not to be denied, I then traveled to Charlotte. This is another hour and a half away, so I've been up for 40 hours, with a 1.5 hour drive ahead. I stocked up on Dr. Pepper and decided I would not be denied.

Of course, at Charlotte the same thing: "get this terrorist out of here" was the mode the cops were in.

I then drove three hours home (43 hours trying to catch a flight) and crashed hard in bed.

It appears that Greens, who have ten key values that include nonviolence, social justice, etc. are considered terrorists by the Ashcroft led Justice Department.

I had always speculated that capitalism had gone too far. Now I know for sure.

Peace,

Doug Stuber
[e-mail]
www.absolutearts.com/portfolios/d/dougstuber

[w4rma]

2. Salon does some fantastic investigative reporting (n/t)

[MaraJade]

3. I heard that "David Nelson" is on that list--

apparently about 80 guys named "David Nelson" have been needlessly
detained or missed their flights due to being included on that
enemies list.

I sure do hope that the ACLU wins their case--and that all of the
named people on that list demand compensation from the government.

[Gingersnap]

5. oh man, I have to fly all the time

starting in the next couple of weeks--to Mexico City, Chicago, Lansing, Boston, etc. I haven't flown since becoming active in DU or volunteering on any campaigns, writing my senators etc. I wonder where exactly they get the names.

Racial profiling is wrong but this is OK?

[Mairead]

6. One of the first on the list was Nancy Oden, a middle-aged Greenie

and more:

http://www.greenparty.org/bangor.html

[Pallas180]

7. JESUS! THIS SHOULD BE CALLED IN TO EACH CONGRESSMAN

OUTRAGEOUS. nAZI TACTICS TO STOp dissenst and speech

[Capn Sunshine]

8. These lists are nothing new BTW

As long as there have been computers , there has been government harassment; my personal experiences date back to FBI investigation for antiwar activism dating from the 60s; ever since then ANY thing I do involving the government gets "lost". I mean EVERYTHING; DMV; public utilities;State info, tax info, Social Security, passports you name it. I am ALWAYS "randomly selected" at airports, ALWAYS; I plan for this accordingly.

Oh, try getting your file these days under FOIA; the Patriot Act makes it impossible.

I'd do it all again; no qusetion.
:nuke:

[Insider]

10. kick for monday

saw this on the daily security news site. newsworthy