To the editor:

On Oct. 26, 2001, President George W. Bush signed the Patriot Act, which formally gave government officials the right to arrest anyone and to search their homes without showing just cause. This Act has sparked a lot of debate over the years because it impedes on every citizen’s rights, including the First Amendment, namely freedom of speech and a person’s right to privacy.

After 9-11, hundreds, possibly even thousands, of immigrants of Middle Eastern descent were detained and questioned simply because of their race because this legislation allowed for it. This, however, is not the first time elected leaders have misused their authority.

Between the years 1950 and 1953, Sen. Joe McCarthy took on the task of fighting possible threats of Communism in the United States. This era was later dubbed the “McCarthy witch hunts” because the majority of claims were false, yet they still ruined a great number of lives. This was a clear case where an authority figure took advantage of the fear of the nation and where the end result was a travesty.

As the Forth of July approaches, families and friends around the country will gather to celebrate this nation’s freedoms and to remember the sacrifices that people have made to preserve those liberties. The Patriot Act, however, although a necessary tool to ensure national security, impinges on the same rights that we celebrate on Independence Day and that terrorists tried to seize on 9-11. Today, we can only hope that another “witch hunt” of sorts does not happen again.

Adil Zafar,

Lawrence