The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is calling on Congress to probe why some 1,400 private entities have access to the names and information of people on a governmental terrorist watchlist, reports JURIST.
Up until now, the US government has denied that the list, which was developed and maintained by the Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) after the 9/11 attacks, was shared with any other groups.
The TSC’s deputy director Timothy Groh said in a statement filed with a district court in Virginia that the government had shared the list with some 1,400 other institutions with security personnel.
His statement is part of an ongoing lawsuit, El Hady v. Kable, that is calling into question the constitutionality of the terrorist watch list.
CAIR has argued that the watchlist stigmatizes innocent Muslims, some of whom have lost their jobs and/or been separated from their families, despite their clean records.
On Friday, CAIR plans to ask a federal judge to force the US government to release the names of the private entities involved and explain how they access the watchlist, reports The Washington Post.
An FBI official stated last October that he was “not aware of any” private entities that could access the database through the National Crime Information Center.
However, the FBI acknowledged in a court filing that more than 1,000 entities actually did have access to such information.
The FBI claims these firms provide criminal justice services, such as private prisons, university police, and private security companies that work in government facilities or hospitals. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) also shares such information with airlines.
But lawyers for CAIR claim the dissemination isn’t limited to just that, noting that plaintiffs are struggling to get loans or keep bank accounts open without explanation, prompting CAIR to push for more transparency from the FBI.
“Either they knew that they were being deceitful or the FBI exercises so little care with the watch-listing system which implicates more than a million people,” said CAIR attorney Gadeir Abbas.
The FBI said in a statement that the database “is not shared in its totality with state or local police departments or the private sector,” as they only can access a smaller “known or suspected terrorist” list. The FBI also said those that request information must be providing services for “the administration of criminal justices services” and “must comply with agreements to ensure the security and confidentiality of the information.”
Hassan Shibly, a plaintiff and leader of CAIR Florida, said he has been on and off the watch list since he was 18 and has experienced extensive airport searches at least 20 times.
“It’s just a consistently humiliating experience that doesn’t make the country any safer,” said Shibly.
Despite the fact that all 25 plaintiffs were taken off the list after filing the lawsuit, they are continuing to face problems because of prior inclusion, according to Abbas.
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