The Patriot Act Should Be Abolished

The Patriot Act is a very controversial topic. It is a law passed in 2001 after the terrorist attack on 9/11. Since the goal of the Patriot Act is to identify and stop terrorists, Americans who travel by air have to be screened. This act allows the government to use body scanners at the airports and to routinely search the luggage of Americans as part of airport security. Some Americans find that this is an invasion of their privacy. Others believe that since it helps us stop terrorists from attacking America again, we should make the sacrifice. I do not believe it is worth it to sacrifice our freedom for this Act.

The Fourth Amendment of our constitution protects us from unreasonable searches and seizures. It limits how and when the police can search a citizen's home, papers, belongings and even his or her body. The Patriot Act, takes this basic right away from us. The government can do warrantless searches, and not even inform the homeowner they were there. The scanners used at the airports are also an invasion of privacy, since what it does is create a full naked-body image of the traveler.

Another reason I am against the way the Patriot Act affects the citizens' liberties is because of how passengers are profiled leads to racial profiling. Specifically, the Arab Americans, since the 9/11 attackers were Arab Muslims. The Patriot Act leads to the unequal treatment of the Islamic in our country. They are more likely to be "randomly" chosen to be taken from the line, searched, questioned, and could miss their flight entirely.

The Patriot Act should no longer be used in the United States Of America. Although, it has probably stopped other terrorist attacks, it's effect on the freedom of American people is hard to accept. It is an invasion of privacy which violates the Fourth Amendment of our Constitution, and leads to inequality for certain citizens in our county. It was a good idea in principle, but it has developed into something that is too intrusive and should be stopped.