Hey, Carl--

You should be commended for your concern about your Asian immigrant neighbors and the possible erosion of their civil rights. In times of national crisis America has a sad history of pockets of the country turning on people who don't look like they came off the cover of the Saturday Evening Post. Come to that, there doesn't always have to be a national crisis.

I doubt that the actions of your local National Guard on 9-11 were reflective of that tendency, though. We here were on a heightened state of alert as well, because we're located near some cities and a couple of airports, even though our security risks in general would be loose cows and drunk teenagers. It was the day. If you still are plagued with barbed wire in a few weeks, a polite inquiry would either explain it or put the post commander on notice that people were talking.

If you're worried about civil rights violations among your neighbors, a good place to start is the police reports, published once a week in small print in most local papers, and the letters to the editor. The letters will reflect your community's general tone, to which you can add your two cents. The police reports, if they're honest, can give a statistical snapshot of any pattern of bias in arrest and detention. Of course, you'd have to find out the race or ethnicity of those arrested, which isn't usually listed, if you're looking for that kind of pattern.

I tend to worry more about unreported crimes, local bullies terrorizing victims who are afraid to go to the police. Do you know anyone in law enforcement -- a police officer, a district justice, a public defender or ADA -- with whom you could go out for coffee for a personal, off-the-record type conversation about this? Good law enforcement people are especially bothered by this kind of persecution because they can't fix it without community involvement. They would be happy for any interest.

If you're concerned that people in your community are being detained by other government agencies, I urge you to go to the community organizations to which they may belong -- PTAs, fraternal organizations, houses of worship -- and talk to the people there. You may find a pattern of official misconduct. Or you may find that people are on vacation or that there's a religious holiday you were unaware of. The first step is to be armed with information.

It's also really comforting for everybody in the community when different groups reach out to each other and form bonds based on concern for each other's well-being. Who knows? You could start a trend. Been to a Diwali celebration? I hear they are lovely.

Regards--
Mary Anne