Washington, D.C.
Federal authorities violated the civil rights of hundreds of Arab immigrants rounded up after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to a Justice Department report released this week. Some were in lockdown for 23 hours a day. Others were taunted by guards and told, “You’re going to die here.” Most of the people rounded up by the government were illegal immigrants, and 762 of them—most of them Arab or South Asian—were charged only with violating immigration laws. They spent an average of three months in jail. Activists said the findings were shocking, and proved that “the war on terrorism quickly turned into a war on immigrants.” A Justice Department spokeswoman said the roundup was “fully within the law, and necessary to protect the American people.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
What should you be stockpiling for 'World War Three'?In the Spotlight Britons advised to prepare after the EU tells its citizens to have an emergency kit just in case
-
Carnivore diet: why people are eating only meatThe Explainer 'Meatfluencers' are taking social media by storm but experts warn meat-only diets have health consequences
-
Scientists want to fight malaria by poisoning mosquitoes with human bloodUnder the radar Drugging the bugs
