This Is NOT About Security
A man whose story Lisa Simeone reported (from his email) on TSA News blog lays out how disgustingly preyed on and sexually violated I have been every time I've been pointlessly patted down by some government thug in a TSA costume. Here's an excerpt from his government-dispensed sexual assault ("pat-down," they like to call it) at O'Hare:
The male TSA agent now told me that he would pat me down. He started explaining the things he was going to do. He said he would go into my waistband, into sensitive areas, and other things I can't remember. Remember -- the clothes I was wearing were very tight-fitting -- think of a surfer about to hit the waves. There was no reason for a pat-down. From reading other stories on the web yesterday and today, I realize that this sort of aggressive pat-down seems to be the norm now. The man probably even followed procedure by telling me in detail the things he was going to do. (I realize that some people seem to have complained that the TSA has groped them without properly advising them beforehand. In my case, however, I feel as though it was worse to be told every step of the way where this man was going to put his hands.)He talked, then groped, then talked again to tell me where he was grope next. I should have told him to stop, but I didn't say anything. I think I was in shock. I felt violated, molested, assaulted, none of the words do justice to the feeling. And at least for me, the fact that he explained his every move made it much worse. It was like he was a sexual predator, planning his every move, telling me he was going to do it, and then doing it. I felt so powerless by the whole process. I have been aggressively searched when entering nightclubs before, including in the genital area, but the bouncers had always done it so fast and professionally, that I never felt violated. The TSA agent was a different story. I felet truly violated for the first time in my life.
First he groped from behind. One of the things he said was that he would run the back of his hand upwards until the "point of resistance." I thought it would be a quick movement until his hand touched some part of my genitals. But no. It was a slow and deliberate movement. He ran the back of his hand up my leg until he touched my balls, but he didn't stop there. He kept moving upward until his hand was firmly in between my inner thigh and my balls. The back of his hand was on my inner thigh; THE PALM OF HIS HAND WAS ON MY BALL. The he repeated the procedure on my other leg/thigh, on the other side of my balls.
Then he stood up and told me he was going to do the same thing from the front. Now came the worst part. He ran his hand up my thigh again, the same way. From the front. He touched the same inner thigh again, the same genitals again, he touched me in the EXACT SAME PLACE, for the second time. Why did he have to touch the same part of my genitals twice? Just because he was standing in front of me? Tell me, what difference did that make? That was the moment I felt that this man was a predator. I felt that he did it on purpose. I felt that he meant to molest me all along. He then let me go. I got my things and hurried away. What had happened began to sink in. I got angry. I got feelings of shame. I tried to play it off as a joke to my friends -- they had seen the man pat me down, but hadn't seen the details. It's been haunting me, all of yesterday, and today.
For the record, I'm typically not a procrastinator (it's irrational -- you use up a lot of time thinking about not doing something and then feeling bad about it, too). I mean to write about my Albuquerque experience with TSA thuggery, and I realized I didn't want to write about it because it's upsetting reliving it to put it on the page. I'm a pretty strong girl -- I can usually buck up and force myself to do what needs to be done; this man's piece above should give you a sense why I have been a little delinquent in writing my latest story up.
The question is, why is this man one of very few people expressing such feelings?
My feeling is that Americans are so physically comfortable, with even many of the poor having what would be considered lives of great luxury to many people on the planet, that we're just not willing to deal with the slightest inconvenience or hardship.
And then, education being what it is, and most people's families having been in this country for a while, there just isn't the requisite appreciation for the Constitution.
I read novels about Russia as a little girl, and about other countries where people were politically oppressed, and I quickly realized how utterly lucky we are -- or were -- and feel that to this day.
If you haven't read the Constitution or Bill of Rights lately, you can get them, separately or together, and probably for free, to read on your smart phone when you're standing in line or waiting somewhere. (I especially like to read them after I've come through the TSA groping station to underscore how utterly wrong their pointless and probable cause-free searches are.)
I was reading this and the thought that came to mind was: wouldn't it be interesting to see what happened if people protested this by pretending to enjoy it... a lot? What would TSA do if everyone started moaning during their "heavy petting?" Maybe going, "oh baby" or some such.
I, for one, couldn't do that with a straight face. But I bet it would make the TSA people feel rather uncomfortable. What if EVERY person they pat down said, "was that good for you too?" as they walked away? Maybe, "Last time I had to pay," or "The guy on the outgoing flight was better."
Okie-dokie. Enough of what-if land. Sorry for the detour.
Shannon M. Howell at June 27, 2012 12:45 PM
Amy Alkon
https://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2012/06/this-is-not-abo.html#comment-3246341">comment from Shannon M. HowellThis is why I suggested crying -- because there's plausible deniability. They can accuse you of intentionally disrupting their violation of you and try to impose all sorts of consequences. I wrote about how I've been too upset to write about my Albuquerque experience so I'd actually write about it. It's disgusting, how I was bullied there.
Amy Alkon
at June 27, 2012 12:48 PM
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