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Houston Matters

How Calls for Profiling After Terrorist Attacks Impact Houston’s Muslims

Following last Tuesday’s (March 22, 2016) attacks in Brussels, GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz of Texas called for “empower[ing] law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized.” It’s the latest such comment from the two leading Republican presidential candidates suggesting Muslims should be in some way singled out for scrutiny even […]

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Following last Tuesday's (March 22, 2016) attacks in Brussels, GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz of Texas called for "empower[ing] law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized." It's the latest such comment from the two leading Republican presidential candidates suggesting Muslims should be in some way singled out for scrutiny even when they have no known connection to terrorism.

We talk with M.J. Khan, president of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston, about the impact such rhetoric following terrorist attacks has on Muslims here in Houston. Then we talk with Charles "Rocky" Rhodes, a professor of law at South Texas College of Law, about past examples of legally sanctioned religious, ethnic or racial profiling by law enforcement — from Japanese-American internment during World War II to post-9/11 investigations.

MORE: After Brussels attack, Ted Cruz calls for police patrols of ‘Muslim neighborhoods’ (Houston Chronicle, March 23, 2016)

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Michael Hagerty

Michael Hagerty

Senior Producer, Houston Matters

Michael Hagerty is the senior producer for Houston Matters. He's spent more than 20 years in public radio and television and dabbled in minor league baseball, spending four seasons as the public address announcer for the Reno Aces, the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

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