Are clearly innocent Americans being put on Terrorist Watch Lists without cause?
We know the government has a Terrorist Screening Database. What we don't know in detail is how exactly people end up on it, including a 7-month-old baby.
The Michigan Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations announced two lawsuits today. One is a class action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of Muslim Americans on terror watch lists or the “No Fly List.” The other is filed by plaintiffs who say they were put on the lists for no reason.
CAIR says it is obvious plaintiffs were put on a watch or no fly list even though they clearly are not terrorists.
“We had a 7-month-old that was put on the list,” said Dawud Walid, CAIR-Michigan Executive Director.
They find out they are on the list when they go to fly. Marium Jukaku is one of them.
“I am a stay at home mom, a regular American,” said Jukaku.
She was traveling from California to Dearborn to visit her parents with her little one when she found out she was on a watch list.
“Why would my own government put me on a list with horrible criminals?” she asked.
Michael Coleman is another plaintiff. He says he found out he was on the list when he was trying to board a plane to Malaysia. Ironically he was invited there by the Prime Minister of Malaysia to take part in an event that aims to stop violent extremism.
“And then to be targeted - it makes me wonder how accurate and well our security dollars are being spent,” said Coleman.
The FBI controls the list. It calls the list one of the government’s most effective counterterrorism tools. It says names aren’t added without evidence for suspicion from government agencies.
After complaining - some plaintiffs say they were able to travel - and may have been taken off the list. They want the government to make sure people aren’t unfairly grouped with terrorists
