Nov
23
TSA screenings: What does it take to make us feel safer?
Tags: public policy, rights to privacy, TSA screening procedures
Filed Under News, Public Policy | By Annette Burrhus-Clay | Leave a Comment
The uproar over the current airport screening measures is being heard loud and clear. TAASA has received more inquiries on this issue than any other in recent memory. TAASA wants to be cognizant of our collective security issues as well as offer a reasoned response to the legitimate concerns and fears of travelers across our state and country.
Our concerns are four-fold:
- We are troubled by the potential for sexual assault survivors to be triggered by the imaging screening or pat down they experience.
- We are also uneasy about the general public being subjected to such invasive and unnerving procedures that have obviously made some passengers feel more violated than inconvenienced but safer. Â
- We are also worried that there may be some serious gaps in adequate training for TSA agents on how to best screen passengers who may have sensitive physical or emotional issues that need to be factored into the normal indignities of losing control and privacy over one’s own body.
- Finally, we find it distressing that TSA’s own hiring practices do not necessarily preclude a sex offender with a conviction longer than 7 years ago from hire as a screener.
Let me be clear: my intent is not to demonize the TSA screeners. They have a job to do, and I am certain the vast majority of them are doing this job to the very best of their ability. They are following a directive, and one can be pretty sure this is not the best part of their workday either. I do not believe however that this procedure is well-thought out, as the unintended consequences illustrate.Â
On the surface it seems the argument has been presented as one of collective security versus individual privacy. I would contend otherwise.  Is this screening reactive or effective?  Are these screening procedures the best methods for identifying potential terrorists? If you can refuse the imaging screening and opt for a pat down, what stops potential terrorists from simply inserting the explosive into their body cavity, like drug mules have been known to do, to avoid detection?  Will screening procedures ramp up to include full body-cavity searches if we discover terrorists using this method of transport? How far will we be willing to go?
Dogs trained to sniff out explosives are being used effectively in war zones. Why are we not using these canines at airport security lines? Have we explored all potential screening methods available to us? Were these methods chosen because they are the very best options available, or were they chosen in part because of simplicity or cost? I do not claim to have the simple answers to these very complex issues, but I do feel certain that we need to gauge the impact of these actions on the citizenry.
I implore the federal  government to find tangible ways to further minimize travelers from feeling victimized, while using all deliberate speed to implement less invasive methods of screening. There are folks trained in victim issues all across this country ready and willing to help security professionals strike this delicate balance.
Nov
16
Check out the Texas PINK OUT!
Tags: activism, gender stereotyping, homophobia, human rights, LGBTQ, social justice
Filed Under News, Vlog | By Linda Hunter | Leave a Comment
The Texas PINK OUT kicked off to a rousing start yesterday! Check out how the Dallas Area Rape Crisis Center participated in this statewide (and beyond) effort to affirm that “People Are People” and discourage homophobia and gender stereotyping.
(Oh, yes…if you don’t blink, you’ll see some TAASA staff doing the PINK OUT.)
 I’d love to see (if you’ve got some photos) and hear (videos, maybe?) how you and/or your organization are participating in the Texas PINK OUT. (Send them to me at lhunter@taasa.org). Do you think the effort will make a positive difference? Or perhaps you see it as “okay, gets some attention, but won’t really change much”?Â
After I hear from you, I think I’ll have to say a bit about how it’s made me think more than I maybe wanted to!
Nov
9
Is Social Change Work Part of the Left-Wing Liberal Agenda?
Tags: activism, public policy, social justice
Filed Under Prevention, Public Policy | By Annette Burrhus-Clay | 2 Comments
On more than one occasion TAASA has received feedback that our social change/social justice focus is part of the “left-wing liberal agenda†and trust me when I say this was not meant as a compliment. I am generally not stung by criticism and realize it’s impossible to be all things to all people, but this somehow has an uglier edge to it. Don’t get me wrong. I have been called far worse names than “liberal†in my lifetime, but it’s the intention of the label that I find most disturbing. It’s both insulting and inaccurate for liberals and conservatives alike, as well as the majority of us who identify somewhere in the middle of this political spectrum.
As citizens we all have a responsibility to confront injustice where we see it. This is not a “liberal†issue. This is our obligation as decent human beings. This is not the work of one segment of society. We are all negatively impacted by social ills such as sexual violence, racism, poverty and the list goes on. Many social scientists, activists, educators, researchers and just plain folks with common sense and common experiences have come to the conclusion that many of these issues are linked in both simple and complex ways.Â
Wanting to change our society for the better is a value that seems to be shared by virtually all political parties in our country. Granted we may not all agree on the scope of the issues or with the remedies to our problems, but make no mistake, giving a damn is not restricted to left-wing liberals. I believe moderates and conservatives may take issue with the assumption that only liberals promote social change and work to right injustices.
It is my desire that we can all stop using labels as both a weapon and an excuse for inaction. There is too much work to be done for us to be negative or complacent for the weakest of reasons: it wasn’t my idea or you are using words that are sounding too much like the other guys. I would hope we could see where we share a common vision and truly listen and learn from one another. Labeling folks tends to shut down communication, not foster it. I for one do not intend to let others define me or the work.
 I would argue that we may be allowing a very small, self-selected group of individuals who are living on the extreme fringes decide what the real issues are and then demonize those of us who do or say anything that challenges their version of reality. I do not believe that common sense, decency,  compassion, and cooperation are dead, but they certainly seem to be on life support at times. Let’s stop working so hard to magnify our differences and being paranoid over the intentions of others and realize this work is too important to leave anyone out, silence one voice, or reject the contributions of others. Social change/social justice should indeed be part of the left-wing liberal agenda and on everyone else’s agenda as well.
Â
Nov
5
You give me hope; you give me courage.
Tags: child sexual assault, male sexual abuse and assault, media
Filed Under Motivating Moments | By Linda Hunter | Leave a Comment
We had a friend visiting this past weekend. He was on the sofa flipping through cable channels.  I’m focused on enjoying a Blue Bell/Coke float—paying no attention to what’s on the screen.
But my attention perked up when he said, “I just read ‘one in five females is sexually assaulted.’ (long pause)  Is that true?â€
“Yes, hard to imagine, but it is. Estimates depend on what study is used.â€
Then I added, “and one in six men.† (l-o-n-g-e-r pause)
Silence. End of conversation. The TV screen had moved on to something else and neither of us said more.
I’ve thought about that exchange several times since – especially about the silence, about what felt like an abrupt end of conversation. It’s not usual for me to just let that sort of conversation drop (I’ve been having those conversations for a long time). But this was different. It was with someone close to me, about a subject close to me… I said no more. And neither did he.
Thankfully, the silence about male sexual abuse is broken more and more often. Today on the Oprah Winfrey show 200 men will step forward to speak about their own childhood sexual abuse. It’s the first of two episodes.
The first episode on Friday, Nov. 5, begins as each member of the audience holds a photo of himself at the age at which he says he was first abused. Then, joined by Oprah, Tyler [Perry] and Dr. Howard Fradkin, a psychologist who specializes in working with male survivors of sexual abuse and assault, the men come forward to share their stories and experiences.
In the second episode on Friday, Nov. 12, the men are joined by their spouses, partners and girlfriends to talk about the affects abuse has had on their relationships.
You can read Oprah and Tyler Perry Raise Awareness about Male Sexual Abuse on RAINN’s website to learn more about  male sexual abuse, the program and some of the participants.
I plan to watch and celebrate the breaking of silence as each man speaks.
And I commit to doing more than just bring up the subject of male sexual abuse and sexual assault. I will try to provide an opening for the men I know to ask questions, to tell a friend’s experience – or their own – if they choose.
Resources: www.1in6.org; Â www.malesurvivor.org; www.rainn.org