Racial Profiling at airports: The effects of 9/11 to tourism and aviation industry
Author: Heli Rontu
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Racial Profiling at airports: The effects of 9/11 to tourism and aviation industry
by Heli Rontu
Abstract
The 9/11 attacks in 2001 have had a permanent effect on aviation industry and to the airport security screening process, and the attacks also affected to tourism flows and tourism in general, but many of these changes have recovered back to normal and the effects of 9/11 can mainly only be seen in the airports now-a-day. Racial profiling was increased after the terrorist attacks and it has had an effect on how ethnic minorities perceive flying as a form of transportation.
Keywords: racial profiling, airport security, 9/11 attacks, tourism
Until 2001 the aviation industry had been growing and making profit, but in September 11 a horrible terrorist attack was made against USA by hijacking commercial airplanes and flying these into the World Trade Centre’s and Pentagon by killing thousands of people and this attack has had an effect on tourism and the aviation industry, especially to the airport security. Many effects of 9/11 attacks have recovered back to normal or soon will, meaning that the changes in the airport security will soon be the only remaining legacy of the horrible event in September 2001 (Poling, 2011).
The 9/11 attacks had a temporary effect to tourism flows in 2001 especially in the USA; for 2 days after the terrorist attacks there were no passengers in the USA and the amount of passengers in the rest of the world was significantly lower as well. Also many passengers looked for alternative forms of transportation especially for short-haul trips and this decreased the overall amount of flight passengers during next few years; the global number of passengers declined in 2001 by 2.7 per cent and it took 3 years until this number increased back to normal and it also took 10 years for the aviation industry to make profit again (IATA, 2014). However, the 9/11 attacks have also generated some amount of dark tourism, which means that domestic and international tourists have travelled to New York mainly as a reason of visiting the Ground Zero site.
It needs to be remembered that the airline industry has grown significantly since 2001 and that the amount of airplanes and airlines and also the amount of passengers have grown significantly which means that the security issues regarding the safety at airports and on board have also increased (Gabbidon et.al, 2009). This can be seen for example as the amount of information that the passengers are asked to give prior for their flight and this increased significantly after 9/11 (IATA, 2014). Since 9/11 the security measurements on airports have become tighter almost every year and now-a-days the airport security screening consists multiple aspects that makes the process really slow and sometimes even embarrassing. One of such aspects is the need of removing clothes for the screening, such as jackets, jewellery, belts and often shoes as well. Another time consuming screening process is the need of removing liquids and electronic devices out of the carry-on bags. This has increased the time that passengers need to spend on the airports which affects to the amount of time that travelling by plane will take overall and often when considering short-haul flights the amount of time spent in the airport is a lot longer than the time the flight takes. These aspects can affect to the travellers’ decision-making process on the form of transportation chosen for the trip.
Racial profiling can be identified as a part of airport security screening and it can be defined as a phenomenon that happens by specific targeting of travelers based mainly on their ethnicity or race for extra screening by officials, meaning that these passengers are chosen based on their looks and details on passports (Gabbidon et.al, 2009). Many ethnic minorities, especially in the USA, such as Arab Americans and people with Middle Eastern decent consider that they are racially profiled often at airports solely by their appearances and because of the reason that the 9/11 attackers were terrorists with Middle Eastern decent. However, it needs to be remembered that the racial profiling is not a new phenomenon developed after 9/11, the amount of it has just increased and people are acknowledging it more. Also governments such as the USA have taken this passenger screening as a part of their homeland security process (Gabbidon et.al, 2009). Because many ethnic minorities consider that they are racially profiled at airports and that they are often taken aside for further examination, when possible some of them might be considering other forms of transportation so that they can travel peacefully like other travelers. However this changes in the airport security have not necessarily been bad, it is true that the screening processes have become more time consuming and frustrating for the passengers, and that some feel that they are racially profiled, but the screenings are there insuring the safety of the passengers and many tourists consider it as an important aspect of their travel (Poling, 2011).
The 9/11 attacks had many effects on tourism and aviation industry, but the most biggest changes have happened on the airport security sector and in the amount of screening processes that the passengers need to pass before boarding the plane.
References:
IATA. (2014). The Impact of September 11 2001 on Aviation. Available from: http://www.iata.org/pressroom/documents/impact-9-11-aviation.pdf. Last Accessed 29th April.
Gabbidon, S, Penn, E, Jordan, K & Higgins, G. (2009). The Influence of Race/Ethnicity on the Perceived Prevalence and Support for Racial Profiling at Airports. Criminal Justice Policy Review. 20 (3), p344-358.
Poling, B. (2011). 10 Years: How 9/11 changed travel. Available from: http://www.travelweekly.com/travel-news/travel-agent-issues/10-years--how-9/11-changed-travel/. Last Accessed 30th April.
by Heli Rontu
Abstract
The 9/11 attacks in 2001 have had a permanent effect on aviation industry and to the airport security screening process, and the attacks also affected to tourism flows and tourism in general, but many of these changes have recovered back to normal and the effects of 9/11 can mainly only be seen in the airports now-a-day. Racial profiling was increased after the terrorist attacks and it has had an effect on how ethnic minorities perceive flying as a form of transportation.
Keywords: racial profiling, airport security, 9/11 attacks, tourism
Until 2001 the aviation industry had been growing and making profit, but in September 11 a horrible terrorist attack was made against USA by hijacking commercial airplanes and flying these into the World Trade Centre’s and Pentagon by killing thousands of people and this attack has had an effect on tourism and the aviation industry, especially to the airport security. Many effects of 9/11 attacks have recovered back to normal or soon will, meaning that the changes in the airport security will soon be the only remaining legacy of the horrible event in September 2001 (Poling, 2011).
The 9/11 attacks had a temporary effect to tourism flows in 2001 especially in the USA; for 2 days after the terrorist attacks there were no passengers in the USA and the amount of passengers in the rest of the world was significantly lower as well. Also many passengers looked for alternative forms of transportation especially for short-haul trips and this decreased the overall amount of flight passengers during next few years; the global number of passengers declined in 2001 by 2.7 per cent and it took 3 years until this number increased back to normal and it also took 10 years for the aviation industry to make profit again (IATA, 2014). However, the 9/11 attacks have also generated some amount of dark tourism, which means that domestic and international tourists have travelled to New York mainly as a reason of visiting the Ground Zero site.
It needs to be remembered that the airline industry has grown significantly since 2001 and that the amount of airplanes and airlines and also the amount of passengers have grown significantly which means that the security issues regarding the safety at airports and on board have also increased (Gabbidon et.al, 2009). This can be seen for example as the amount of information that the passengers are asked to give prior for their flight and this increased significantly after 9/11 (IATA, 2014). Since 9/11 the security measurements on airports have become tighter almost every year and now-a-days the airport security screening consists multiple aspects that makes the process really slow and sometimes even embarrassing. One of such aspects is the need of removing clothes for the screening, such as jackets, jewellery, belts and often shoes as well. Another time consuming screening process is the need of removing liquids and electronic devices out of the carry-on bags. This has increased the time that passengers need to spend on the airports which affects to the amount of time that travelling by plane will take overall and often when considering short-haul flights the amount of time spent in the airport is a lot longer than the time the flight takes. These aspects can affect to the travellers’ decision-making process on the form of transportation chosen for the trip.
Racial profiling can be identified as a part of airport security screening and it can be defined as a phenomenon that happens by specific targeting of travelers based mainly on their ethnicity or race for extra screening by officials, meaning that these passengers are chosen based on their looks and details on passports (Gabbidon et.al, 2009). Many ethnic minorities, especially in the USA, such as Arab Americans and people with Middle Eastern decent consider that they are racially profiled often at airports solely by their appearances and because of the reason that the 9/11 attackers were terrorists with Middle Eastern decent. However, it needs to be remembered that the racial profiling is not a new phenomenon developed after 9/11, the amount of it has just increased and people are acknowledging it more. Also governments such as the USA have taken this passenger screening as a part of their homeland security process (Gabbidon et.al, 2009). Because many ethnic minorities consider that they are racially profiled at airports and that they are often taken aside for further examination, when possible some of them might be considering other forms of transportation so that they can travel peacefully like other travelers. However this changes in the airport security have not necessarily been bad, it is true that the screening processes have become more time consuming and frustrating for the passengers, and that some feel that they are racially profiled, but the screenings are there insuring the safety of the passengers and many tourists consider it as an important aspect of their travel (Poling, 2011).
The 9/11 attacks had many effects on tourism and aviation industry, but the most biggest changes have happened on the airport security sector and in the amount of screening processes that the passengers need to pass before boarding the plane.
References:
IATA. (2014). The Impact of September 11 2001 on Aviation. Available from: http://www.iata.org/pressroom/documents/impact-9-11-aviation.pdf. Last Accessed 29th April.
Gabbidon, S, Penn, E, Jordan, K & Higgins, G. (2009). The Influence of Race/Ethnicity on the Perceived Prevalence and Support for Racial Profiling at Airports. Criminal Justice Policy Review. 20 (3), p344-358.
Poling, B. (2011). 10 Years: How 9/11 changed travel. Available from: http://www.travelweekly.com/travel-news/travel-agent-issues/10-years--how-9/11-changed-travel/. Last Accessed 30th April.