You shouldn't have to defend yourself to some presumptuous asshole on the internet. I'm sorry for what happened to you. I'm also sorry you even have to defend what happened to you on this thread.
I remember after 9/11 getting detained on a flight out of the country than for no other reason than my family was the wrong kind of brown. I remember how unfair it felt watching my mom and my sister cry under the stress of what we all knew was security theater. I remember seeing my dad pull out some diplomatic reserves from somewhere I didn't know in order to de-escalate the situation and get us on to our flight.
We were lucky that day. Many people were not. These situations shouldn't have to be about luck. They should be about fairness, safety, practicality, and most of all respect.
Authorities regularly stop people who's flight itinerary include certain nations. When I flew to Iraq, I split my ticket.
I flew to Sweden, and then on an entirely different ticket paid for via Swedish company from Sweden to Iraq.
This isn't advice or saying to do that. But when I did it, the computer in the US didn't know to flag my flight -- I looked like a normal person just going to Sweden. It's all horse shit of course, going somewhere the government doesn't approve of isn't evidence of a crime.
I remember after 9/11 getting detained on a flight out of the country than for no other reason than my family was the wrong kind of brown. I remember how unfair it felt watching my mom and my sister cry under the stress of what we all knew was security theater. I remember seeing my dad pull out some diplomatic reserves from somewhere I didn't know in order to de-escalate the situation and get us on to our flight.
We were lucky that day. Many people were not. These situations shouldn't have to be about luck. They should be about fairness, safety, practicality, and most of all respect.