As View from the Wing has stated in the past, TSA has yet to catch a terrorist, which raises the question if TSA security procedures are becoming overly intrusive for the wrong reasons.
On this note, one muslim woman, who is a U.S. citizen who was traveling for a speaking engagement, was subjected to an intrusive security screening by the TSA, where she was forced to show TSA her bloody pad, as they needed to take a deeper look after patting down her groin area.
Per the Huffington Post,
Zainab Merchant, a graduate student at Harvard University and the founder and editor of the website Zainab Rights, was already anxious about traveling from Boston to Washington, D.C., for a speaking engagement. As a Muslim woman, she was all too aware of a frightening pattern in her travel experiences.
What she did not expect was for a TSA officer to announce to the other agents at the security checkpoint that she needed to take “a deeper look†after publicly patting down Merchant’s groin area.
Merchant said she resisted at first, telling the two TSA officers that she was on her period and therefore wearing a menstrual pad. She insisted that any additional screening be done in public, fearing that if she went into a private room without any other witnesses, the situation would only escalate.
But according to Merchant, TSA officials refused and said that if she did not comply, state troopers who were on standby would intervene. Pressured into a private screening and forbidden to call her lawyer, she was led into a private room where TSA officers demanded that she pull down her pants and underwear.
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I just had a friend post about her similar experience which even caused her to miss her flight. Also Boston Logan Intl Airport. Infuriating.
OK Im a male, but if Im correct only a female TSA agent will pat down etc etc a female. Once they felt the pad (how can they know that is what it actually is unless they look at it?) I would want them to make sure it is what its claimed to be.
remember back in 2001 they didnt simply fly that day for the 1st time they had dry runs to see whats what. what if this was a dry run and if she said its my pad and TSA said OK go one thru, bingo it can be reported that send in wamen and if stopped all they ahve to say is Im on my period and its my pad and they will be waved thru
Next thing we read and hear about a plane going down
She maybe 1000% innocent but many others arent soory to say
that said most folks I know would have Amtracked it alot easier
To feel the pad at the pat down the pad must be quite thick. But if someone look at the woman background (Zaihabs Rights) it does not surprise me that she escalated it. Tsa do not do private screening on public.
I’m female and had a pat down last week (by a female tsa) and was a little surprised at how (I don’t want to say invasive) closely her hands went over my body and private areas. It was quick and they offered a private screening room first, but I was in a hurry and I figure people have seen a lot more on TV. No harm no foul, but a little surprising.
All TSA patdowns must be conducted be a member of the same gender. Plus, since the officer can’t identify what the object the female has within her private region is legitimate reason to conduct additional screening in a private room. Can understand this might make a person uncomfortable but no need to make a scene about it either. When you fly all airports have signs posted reminding passengers they may be subject to additional screening. The employees are just doing there jobs at the end of the day.
My money is on this story being falsified or significantly embellished by an individual with an agenda.
I like how mostly guys are responding and saying that, “of course you have to do a check.” You obviously have no experience with a sanitary pad, what it feels like, or the fact that you have to expose your genitals for someone to see it. They have a very distinctive feel and any woman who has used one could easily recognize the shape and feel of one.
I also don’t think there is anything that could mimic the shape and feel(soft and pliable) that could actually be a weapon.
This is a bigger issue of forcing someone to strip down for this that a man would never be subject to.