US Marine Veteran declared security risk
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| Wed, 09-01-2004 - 4:11am |
while black but now it seems we have to also worry about driving while Muslim," stated Mahdi Bray,Executive Director of MAS Freedom Foundation.
http://www.masnet.org/pressroom_release.asp?id=1569
African American Muslim, U.S. Marine Veteran With
Impeccable Record Declared Security Risk
Date Posted: Wednesday, August 25, 2004
http://www.masnet.org/pressroom_release.asp?id=1569
For Immediate Release
Contact: Mahdi Bray (202) 421-3623 or (202) 496-1288
African American Muslim, U.S. Marine Veteran With
Impeccable Record Declared Security Risk by Homeland
Security And Losing Transportation Job…..Why?
MAS Freedom Foundation Presses Secretary Ridge for
Answer and contacts NAACP, Congressional Black Caucus
and Civil Rights Groups
(Washington, 8/25/04) Bilal Mahmud, an African
American Muslim father of three and former U.S.
Marine, Vietnam Veteran has had his livelihood of 28
years taken away from him by the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's
Transportation Security Administration TSA informed
Mahmud on July 30, 2004 that he "posed a security
threat" pursuant to Title 49C.F.R. section 1572.107.
This ambiguous classification "precludes individual
from holding a hazardous materials endorsement on a
CDL (commercial driver's license).
If the TSA determines or suspects an individual of
being a threat to National Security, to transportation
security, or of terrorism." The notification has
forced Mr. Mahmud to surrender his commercial driver's
license to the state of Georgia department of Motor
Vehicles and to lose his career of 28 years as a
commercial truck driver. The department of Homeland
Security has refused to inform Mahmud how or why he
has been classified as a security threat.
Mahmud has no criminal record, is a model citizen and
has been an exemplary employee of the same company for
over 20 years. "I have not had as much as traffic
ticket in 17 years. I served this country and risked
my life to protect it; I pay my taxes and vote. I do
everything a good citizen is supposed to do and this
is how I am treated. I truly don't understand how
they determine who is a threat and who is not. Does
being a Muslim and believing in God make you a threat
to the United States?
MAS Freedom Foundation has contacted the Secretary of
Homeland Security Tom Ridge, as well as the NAACP
members of the Congressional Black Caucus and
Congressman John Lewis who was placed on the TSA "no
fly" security list and could not get them to remove
his name. Additionally, Senator Ted Kennedy was also
having difficulty because his name was on TSA "no fly"
security list.
"I certainly plan to solicit the support of my friends
and allies in the civil rights community concerning
this case. National Security must never be the
pretext for discrimination. It's bad enough that we
live in a country where one has to worry about driving
while black but now it seems we have to also worry
about driving while Muslim," stated Mahdi Bray,
Executive Director of MAS Freedom Foundation.
Contact: Mahdi Bray (202) 421-3623 or (202) 496-1288
