Security and Freedom: Honoring our Values

Each year, more than one million individuals, including thousands of Americans, make a pilgrimage to the cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia during the Hajj. This year, we expect that these travelers will return to the United States in the next few days, in time to be home by December 19, for Eid.

Because our Department is committed to facilitating travel in ways that enhance security and preserve freedom, CBP and TSA are providing their officers the necessary information to work with travelers attending this major religious event. TSA has published guidance on the Hajj, both on its website for travelers and for its officers in the field. Similarly, CBP has issued guidance to their officers around the country.

The guidance emphasizes that persons returning from the Hajj should be screened and processed using the same standards, procedures and care that would be afforded any traveler entering the United States. Security standards are not being changed one iota. The guidance provides background and context that will greatly benefit our officers as they interact with travelers in the upcoming days.

The guidance also explains what the Hajj is. It describes practices that may be associated with those traveling for the pilgrimage, and it identifies religious articles or items that these travelers may carry. It advises that pilgrims may wear very simple white clothing; that it is common for travelers to pray in public areas such as airports; that many will travel in groups; and that travelers may carry items of religious significance, such as the Qur’an or water considered sacred from the Zamzam well. For more information, you can visit TSA’s website.

Through such guidance, we are strengthening our cultural competence and honoring our proud traditions of civil rights and civil liberties -- including religious freedom -- as we protect our homeland and our travelers. We work closely with various religious groups such as Sikh and Jewish organizations concerning the screening of people who wear religious head coverings or carry certain religious articles when they travel. Similarly, we work with Christian and secular organizations concerned about immigrants seeking asylum here.

As the department’s Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, I can attest that DHS remains strongly committed to these traditions. For the first time in the federal government, a Cabinet-level Secretary has placed two civil libertarians in senior leadership positions -- Hugo Teufel, our Chief Privacy Officer, and me. Our job is to ensure that security policies are designed in ways that preserve our constitutional and statutory rights.

While the challenge of enhancing both security and civil liberties can appear daunting, we are meeting it in two ways: by being innovative and by listening to a wide range of views from responsible people. Looking to the future, we will continue to address issues that have been debated for many years – like profiling or the use of satellite technology inside the country – with creative and practical solutions that include the public in the decision-making process. As we do so, we will honor our bedrock American values and ensure a safer and a better country for all.

Daniel W. Sutherland
Officer for Civil Rights & Civil Liberties