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DHS

Census Data on Arab Americans Give to Dept. of Homeland Security

Posted on Sunday August 15, 2004

DHS Responds to Arab American Concerns Over Census Data

AAI Statement

On August 13th, representatives of the Arab American Institute and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee met with US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials including Commissioner Robert Bonner and the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Daniel Sutherland to discuss Arab American concerns regarding the DHS’s request for Census data on Arab ancestry and the results of the CBP’s inquiry into the data request.
Full statement

Letter from AAIF to the Census Director

From a letter dated August 12, 2004 from AAI Foundation Executive Director Helen Samhan, co-signed by over 50 organizations and individuals, to US Bureau of the Census Director Dr. Charles Louis Kincannon:

“The harm done to Arab American confidence in the census is immeasurable. Already victims of government policies that promote collective suspicion and feed backlash against them, our community sees this episode, regardless of the facts at hand, as one more reason to feel unprotected and unfairly targeted. As you will see from the undersigned groups representing privacy, civil rights, education and other advocacy constituencies, we are not alone in our concerns.”
Full letter

Joint Statement on Census-DHS Data Sharing on Arab Americans

We, the undersigned civil liberties, faith-based, civic and human rights organizations, express grave concern regarding the issuance of tabulations on the Arab American population, prepared by the Census Bureau to the United States Customs Service in 2002 and, later, the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection at the Department of Homeland Security in 2003.
Full statement

US Customs and Border Protection Statement on Census Data

WASHINGTON – Today [August 13, 2004], Commissioner Robert C. Bonner discussed the findings of his inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the provision of Census data in two specific instances that occurred in mid-2002 and December 2003 with representatives of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the Arab American Institute and the Department of Homeland Security’s Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.

US Customs and Border Protection takes any allegation of racial profiling very seriously. Commissioner Bonner investigated the matter the very first day the reports came out. Customs – and now CBP – has a long history of safeguarding Constitutional rights. CBP’s policies specifically prohibit the use of ethnic background, race, gender, color, or religion as a factor in determining whether to conduct a personal search at the border.
Full statement (PDF)

In the News

Panel Says Census Move on Arab Americans Recalls World War II Internments
by Eric Lipton, The New York Times, November 10, 2004
The Census Bureau’s decision to give to the Department of Homeland Security data that identified populations of Arab Americans was the modern-day equivalent of its pinpointing Japanese-American communities when internment camps were opened during World War II, members of an advisory board told the agency’s top officials Tuesday.

Census Officials Seek to Reassure Rights Groups on Privacy Concerns
The Associated Press, November 10, 2004
Census officials sought to reassure minority and civil rights groups yesterday that the agency keeps names, addresses, and other personal information confidential from other government departments.

Census Policy on Providing Sensitive Data Is Revised
by Lynette Clemetson, The New York Times, August 31, 2004
The Census Bureau announced on Monday that it would no longer assist law enforcement or intelligence agencies with special tabulations on ethnic groups and other “sensitive populations” without the approval of senior bureau officials.

Coalition Seeks Action on Shared Data on Arab Americans
by Lynette Clemetson, The New York Times, August 13, 2004
Troubled by the recent public disclosure that the Census Bureau provided demographic data on Arab Americans to the Department of Homeland Security, a coalition of ethnic advocacy groups, privacy watchdogs and civil rights and civil liberities organizations is demanding further response from both government agencies.

Homeland Security Gets Data on Arab Americans
Reuters, July 30, 2004
The US Census Bureau has provided population data on Arab Americans to the Department of Homeland Security, including their ancestry and the cities and postal areas in which they live by, The New York Times, reported on Friday.

Homeland Security Given Data on Arab Americans
by Lynette Clemetson, The New York Times, July 30, 2004
The Census Bureau has provided specially tabulated population statistics on Arab Americans to the Department of Homeland Security, including detailed information on how many people of Arab backgrounds live in certain ZIP codes.