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Subscribe to RSSThe Transportation Security Administration has reached out to a mastectomy patient who claimed that a checkpoint screener at John F. Kennedy airport patted-down her chest after declining to review her medical information card.
Lori Dorn, a human resources consultant based in New York, blogged about the incident last week. Dorn, who was flying from New York to San Francisco on Sept. 29, wrote that she passed through a full-body scanner and was then asked to step aside to have her "breast area" examined.
"I explained to the agent that I was a breast cancer patient and had a bilateral mastectomy in April and had tissue expanders put in to make way for reconstruction at a later date," Dorn wrote.
"I told her that I was not comfortable with having my breasts touched and that I had a card in my wallet that explains the type of expanders, serial numbers and my doctor’s information ... and asked to retrieve it." According to Dorn, the agent denied her request. Dorn said she was not permitted to get the card from her belongings and was told that a pat-down would be necessary if she wanted to board her flight.
"I had no choice but to allow an agent to touch my breasts in front of other passengers," wrote Dorn.
In a statement issued from the TSA to msnbc.com, the agency said that the federal security director for JFK "... has personally reached out and phoned the passenger about her experience in hope of gaining a better understanding of what happened and to help ensure a smoother checkpoint experience for passengers in similar circumstances going forward.
"We strive to treat every passenger with dignity and respect. In this case, that may not have happened ... All passengers may request private secondary screening. While an initial review indicates that proper screening procedures were followed, we regret that this passenger did not have a positive experience."
The agency said that it also works with breast cancer organizations in order to " ... continuously refine and enhance our procedures to improve the passenger experience while also ensuring the safety of the traveling public."
Dorn, who initially used Twitter to communicate with the TSA about the incident, has since posted updates about the case to her account. At 1 p.m. she wrote, "Just received apology from JFK GM who agreed proper policy wasn't followed & is retraining staff. cc: @TSABlogTeam."
Related stories:
- Woman's afro prompts TSA pat-down
- Naked scanners may soon be on the way out
- Q&A: TSAs new kid-friendly checkpoints
Rebecca Ruiz is a senior editor at msnbc.com. Follow her on Twitter.
Leave a Comment:
DON'T FLY! Until they 'get a clue', whenever THAT'S likely to happen, it's better to go by car, train or use the internet to reach out. Let them come down to their knees and go broke. Maybe then they will see how unreasonable and outrageous this is.
Get over it. It isn't that big of a deal.
Don't get your Depends in a wad.
yeah, we'll see what your reaction is when one of the TSA terrorists grabs your package. And show some respect for women!
INSERT A-HOLE HERE: You obviously lack the sensitivity to understand how this could, and does, effect a person. When they reattached your penis, it's too bad they misplaced it, D***HEAD.
It's not that big a deal? Either you're not a woman, or you're a woman who doesn't mind either exhibitionism or groping by strangers. If you're not a woman, then don't think you have the standing to say it's not that big a deal. Ask your mom if she'd like being groped in full view of strangers by another stranger soon after she's had another series of people (albeit medical) inspecting, and cutting, her breasts.
Trust me -- this is a big deal, especially for someone who has recently undergone all the medical procedures for breast cancer.
@bethcat -- good suggestion. but from what @inserteyerollhere says, he'd probably like it. maybe it would be better if the tsa agents snickered when they grabbed his package, small package that it probably is.
Insert, you should be ashamed of yourself and your remarks. God forbid you or someone close to you ever suffers from breast cancer. That is a completely idiotic comment and you should really feel ashamed. I doubt you will, since you had the guts to say something like that. People can really show their A**es when they speak. Shame on you.
If the woman had a recent mastectomy (and it sounds pretty recent since she still has the tissue extenders), this would be a little like someone wanting to brutally grab your junk (this isn't a little pat-down--if they see "bags of liquid" in the area--it's going to be brutal) very soon after you have had a vasectomy. This would be both painful and embarrassing.
If you can't quite get your brain around how women feel about their breasts, then just take out the word "breast" and substitute "testicle." This might help you understand the point a bit better.
Sheesh
Great idea, except ...
Some of us live in places where not flying is NOT an option. I live in Alaska. I have to travel through Canada to take ground transportation to the Lower 48. It takes 2-1/2 days driving 20 hours a day to get through Canada by the shortest route. My husband's family lives in the Northeast. That's about six days of 16 hours of driving. Don't drive sounds like a good idea until you try to put it in practice.
The fact is that all of this is a violation of our constitutional right to be safe and secure in our person. That the United States government, which would not exist but for the people, is perpetrating this oppression upon its own people should give us all pause. This isn't discrimination against those with disability. It is oppression of the entire population to protect against a small group of terrorists.
And, it's not even keeping us safe. It's simply lulling the uninformed into believing everything will be okay. We should be using El Al's system of passenger investigation and profiling, which has proven 100% effective over 40 years of use in preventing airline terrorism without undue hinderance of passengers who have no precipitating issues.
I was flying back home to Anchorage from Chicago and had to go through the body scanner twice. I had to remove even more clothing before the second scan and then I had my breasts examined while two TSA men watched and a TSA woman did the exam meanwhile this is out for all passengers to see and my nine year old twins were standing there watching. They thought I was in trouble and started to get upset. One was crying. I am very large busted and wear a pretty normal bra with no underwire so I couldn't understand the big deal. I felt at the mercy of the TSA because if I threw a fit I knew we would miss our plane. If you go through the body scanner you should see my breasts are natural and not a flipping bomb. I think TSA goes overboard on some things and really slacks on other areas.
Jenine, I feel so sorry for you and your little ones. This is waaay out of hand. You should write a letter to your Congressman...make sure you get a response. If not, contact the media. This insanity has to end.
Frankly, my TSA experiences have not been bad but what this woman had to go through is ridiculous. I would make a big fuss: write your congressmen/women, the newspaper, the head of the TSA, the airline, social networks. I'm all for security but this was totally uncalled for and needs to stop. The same goes for what Jenine experienced. Also, these TSA people sound like a bunch of uneducated, insensitive ruffians. They need to hire better educated, higher caliber people who can actually think for themselves when the need arises.
Don't fly is not always an option. It is discrimination that is being practiced against anyone with medical issues. There should be a division of security as to if the pat down is being done for security reasons or if it is being done because the person can't go through the regular metal detectors. I have knee replacements and carry a card but the TSA isn't interested in identification of any kind yet they pass through security multiple people who fit the profile of a terrorist.
Anyone can print up a card, duh
What is the terrorist profile they fit, Lady Cat? Can you be more specific?
you and oh no are @!$%#s
Heavens--"inserteyerollhere"--apparently you are unaware of the fact that women who are in burkhas are allowed to pass through without a pat-down. They are also allowed to pass through without one of those "naked" scanners. It's a religious exemption.
Now, how much more likely is it that a woman in a burkha who is not a citizen and can pass by security with very little, if any, inspection is going to be carrying some sort of terrorist-style device than a US citizen who has recently had a mastectomy and has a card that can be verified (as such cards usually have information which allows the statements to be verified)?
Yes, I have to agree with lkaw56's evaluation of you both.
Although anyone could counterfeit a card, there should be some way for TSA to verify the validity of the card. Forging a federal document will get you a lot more than a pat down so only real terrorists would attempt this.
If TSA does not have this type of verification database setup then any apologies they make are just empty words as it will either happen to the next similar passenger or they will ignore a real terrorist who has forged a card.
It is not true that women in burqas can bypass scanners and patdowns. The TSA site nowhere states such an exemption. Indeed, they warn that bulky clothing and headgear will warrant additional search.
http://www.tsa.gov/press/happenings/sop_facts.shtm
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/22/AR2010122202919.html?sid=ST2010122202299
Profiling terrorists only opens up doors for those not fitting the profile. Little old ladies and men, or children could go through a more limited search, but to forego any search is a recipe for disaster.
So--how does this square with the fact that women in burkhas already are not being searched? All they need is a "card."
Please explain what the 'profile of a terrorist' is? Last time I checked it was white American males who have perpetrated the majority of terrorist attacks on American soil (OK City, Columbine).
I dont care what card you have. TSA better be physically checking anyone who sets off or cant go through the metal detectors.
And dont fly is ALWAYS an option. Flying is a matter of convenience and time only. There isnt anywhere you can fly to that cant be reached by land or sea.
"There isnt anywhere you can fly to that cant be reached by land or sea."
Brilliant. Simply Brilliant.
@gbreault85
Then maybe TSA agents should follow the procedures that TSA has laid out instead of groping people in full view of fellow travelers. That's just wrong, no matter whether you think they should be checking or they shouldn't.
And don't fly is not always an option if you're a business traveler who wants to keep a job. Try telling your boss, "Sorry, can't be in Paris tomorrow morning for that important meeting because the boat takes a week" and see how long you stay employed. The comment shows no understanding that different people have different realities.
Really? Flying is always an option. Tried to drive to Alaska lately? That's where I live. I have to use my US passport and drive for nearly three days just to get back to the US. Tried to drive to Hawaii lately? Not flying may be an option if you live in the contiguous 48 and have unlimited time, but it's not an option for the vast majority of Americans. Yeah, I'm sure people who living in, say, Seattle, and want to go to Disney World won't have a problem with the four-day drive in both directions. That won't eat up the majority of their two-week vacation.
gbreault or whatever the f your name is you are a moron. you sound and probably smell french or muslim or both.
You asked for this, America. You demanded perfect safety at any cost (Patriot Act ring a bell?), and now we're all paying.
Actually, America wasn't consulted. We never got a vote on this act.. this was foisted upon us by a paranoid Bush and when it was set to expire, it was extended by an equally paranoid Obama. They will never repeal this very illegal act, this anti-constitutional act, because it's the way they are controlling the population. I will never fly again and I was a frequent flyer but, I do respect myself too much to tolerate strangers on minimum wages deciding if the metal rod in my leg is from it being broken in my youth or if my leg is actually a terrorist weapon. It's not worth it.
Actually, America was consulted. You vote for a representative, and then that representative has an address and phone number at which you can leave a message. You can also have a rally and demand that something either isn't passed--or if it has been passed, that it is rescinded.
The Tea Party, at least, appears to have the whole citizen participation thing down, though that's about all I can say about them that is positive.
If you don't like the PATRIOT ACT, then maybe you need to start voting against the people who are still in love with it (these are, for the most part, Republicans). And, perhaps you should make it clear to the president that he could earn some poll points by pushing for its repeal.
You know--it's "government of the people, by the people, and for the people"--if you are over-controlled, it's because you are allowing yourself to be. Things are a tad better under Obama than they were under Bush--and are likely to go right back to the way they were under Romney, Perry, or the other Republican candidates. I'd rather keep Obama and pressure him to remove even more things from the PATRIOT ACT, Homeland Security, and to restructure the TSA for more sensible and useful security. And, this is my plan.
What do you want to do? Remember, you are part of the "people" too.
Actually Bush just went along with a recommendation from Michael Chertoff who was the head of DHS at the time at also, coincidentally consulted for a company named Rapiscan who just coincidentally makes the porno scanners.
IMO the groping won't find a device in a body cavity or surgically implanted and if y'all think a terrorist wouldn't go that far I've got some beach front property off the coast of FL I'll sell you for $0.50/gallon. IMO the groping was implemented to convince folks to submit to the porno scanners which in turn boost sales for Rapiscan. If you don't believe me google Michael Chertoff and Rapiscan.
Hee Haw.
Those who would exchange freedom for security deserve neither -- Benjamin Franklin
Amen, Aurora...from a fellow Alaskan!
I will never EVER fly. This system stinks! I will never subject myself to this treatment. This disregard to the privacy we deserve.
Oh yeah, privacy. For you that don't know, that's that thing that we used to have years ago. It was nice.
I doubt that you can afford to fly anywhere. Ever leave the trailer? Just askin.
Get over it. It isn't that big of a deal.
Don't get your Depends in a wad.
It's all about security. Rather chance getting blown up?
Good luck on your ill-advised boycott.
well you go ahead and don't fly... I have nothing to hide and really don't care if the government wants to check me. Yes they should have some way to pull you aside privatly if they need to examine any part of you you consider private but to say don't fly becuase of this?? The lady should have arrived extra early to give herself time to deal with what she new could be extra security hassel. It could have been expected.
If passengers and TSA both use common sence security shouldn't be so disagreeable.
The problem, Boys, is that they don't even follow their own rules. These people aren't trained in security and they don't make us one iota safer. Anyone who really wants to do evil to the USA will do it, regardless. There are huge holes in Airport Security and the TSA groping the passengers doesn't make it more secure.
DaveT -- Privacy we deserve? If you're worried about privacy, you'd better get off that computer. Somebody out there, be it govt or private individual, can find out anything they want about you, down to what kind of toilet paper you use. Then again, as long as you're not doing anything illegal, who cares.
I'll alert the media.
Search me all you want. Look inside my things. Take my luggage apart. Tap my phones. Check my credit report (you might get a good laugh). Pat down my boobies. Check my kids' shoes. Take a picture of my Victoria's Secret. Whatever. As long as I get on AND off the airplane/train/cruise ship in ONE piece and I live another day to take care of my children, I don't care what you do. I have NOTHING to hide. The ones who DO have something to hide have reason to be pissed off and afraid. Just sayin'.
Tissue expanders are painful. The TSA intentionally hurt this woman - they intentionally inflicted serious pain on another human being. Shame on those violent bullies! They refused to listen and screamed at her when she tried to explain that she'd had recent surgery on her breasts. This isn't about hiding something - this is about basic human decency.
If I showed the TSA a surgery scar I have no doubt they'd take a running start and kick me there as hard as they could, just to be "safe".
annapolis maybe you are more informed than I but I see none of your argument in the article... She could have refused screening. It isn't your right to fly on the airplane... You are just being sensational and silly.
EmJay--let's try some slightly more accurate information: "Go ahead, TSA, steal all the valuables from my luggage. Take my personal information and use it for identity theft. Let the guns and weapons slip through because your people in the back room looking at 'naked scanners' are masterbating. Allow the low-skilled individuals who can't get jobs anywhere else enjoy throwing their weight around and harrassing people, while failing to follow procedures that they neither understand nor care about."
Sorry, the present TSA is doing a very poor job of finding weapons--as they have already been embarrassed into admitting and have had to fire people because of it. Their employees, however, are very good at spotting and removing valuables from luggage.
While it is clear that we do need security--it would be better if we had less intrusive, better trained, and more efficient security (that doesn't steal from passengers) which follows its own rules.
Or, are you happy that the government was absurdly expanded under Bush to include this new agency that has a very low success rate and a very high rate of failing to follow its own policies? While I usually don't agree with the "government is inefficient" crowd, I'm tending to agree with them on this one. It's too expensive, it's too inefficient, and it trods on our civil rights.
EmJay, it's people with your attitude that authorizes a police state to run roughshod over individual human rights - which is exactly what happened here.
After the urine bag fiascos the TSA publicly and profoundly announced that all a person has to do is show their medical card in order to get more dignified treatment. This woman was trying to do what the TSA advertised that she should do and the TSA agent just blows off the procedure. That's the police state mentality that your philosphy endorses.
It's outrageous.And whoever this Oh No is,you.re an idiot
what i seen of these xray machines
you really dont need anything else
they are quite graphic
not to sure why youd have to be patted down after going thru that xray machine
on the contrare
im sure you need to be deradiated after the xray lol
I understand the reasoning behind pat-downs etc. I do however, find it appalling to have to go thru this in front of the entire airport. I have flown many times, and have seen pat-downs done with little regard for privacy or "dignity". I have been spoken to rudely by the agents have been treated disrepectfully. I feel very badly for this woman, and hope she will get an apology.
F u c k the TSA. I am glad that I do not have to fly. Someday, everyone will find out that most of the agents are unregistered sex offenders getting their jollies.
Would not surprise me. TSA looks like another form of .Gov welfare. Ever notice most of the "Agents" are ethnic, and most speak lousy English...Guess I don't really agree with arabic or other Non Americans providing "Security" for Me and Mine...No I'm Not a Racist..I am an AMERICAN...and Half Native at that...And a Veteran who has fought these people...
You are a racist. Period.
I applied for TSA way back when and never passed go, I was born here, have a degree , have no criminal history, I am an unemployed educator and was then, am not "ethnic" , that may be why I never got a call, they only employee low life scum that know how to treat people badly
It's amazing to read all the negative comments about the TSA. Does anyone really care about the truth any longer? Hundreds of thousands of Americans are efficiently processed through screening check points and occasionally one search goes awry, and the ones that don't fly...or have never flown...cry foul. WTF?
I just returned from traveling and went through TSA screening 6 times. The process was efficient and smooth. The lines moved faster than I have ever experienced. My wife was held back for a pat-down because of a metal wire in her bra. Her pat-down was efficient and "clinical". I asked her how it went and she said jokingly, "I need a cigarette".
For the sake of security, post 9/11, we lost a whopping 5 minutes! Big deal!
JM California, I don't care if it takes five minutes or five hours - rubbing a woman's genitals and breasts against her will is a sexual assault. These disgusting monsters deserve jail time for their sickening assaults on the bodies of women and children. I'm glad your wife finds kowtowing to a jackbooted thug and submitting to sexual assault to be a joking matter - I do not. There is nothing funny about America's most deeply held principles being trashed by that vile child molester John Pistole and his gang of abusers. There is nothing funny about irradiating vulnerable populations needlessly, training children to be easy prey for sexual exploitation, forcing people into pornography machines. You probably find sexual harassment and sexual violence of all types to be a big ha-ha. Forcing someone to let me touch their sex organs is funny, ha-ha!
The TSA stands for the Too Stupid Authority.
Bureaucrats and their minions at their finest (worst). We're no safer, just more hassled and spending billions to pay for this encroachments on our personal freedoms. Perhaps we could focus on priorities like drinking and driving which kills 14,000+ Americans each year. EACH year. This statistic trivializes the numbers from 9/11 and any subsequent disasters we're made to think are imminent. How are those who support this airport lunacy not total hypocrites if they are not vociferously calling from zero tolerance in drinking and driving?
When will people remember flying is not a right?
David.. it is a paid for service. We expect at least some decency in the handling of our persons.
Per David, the only "right" you have to travel is to leave your house on foot.
Um, it actually is...
"A citizen of the United States has a public right of transit through the navigable airspace."
US Code - Section 40103: Sovereignty and use of airspace, aka The Law
for those of you on this posting that are being less than kind. I say, You are animals. To have so little compassion for a person who is sensitive about her physical self after a mastectomy is not understandable ... and the TSA people should have taken her to a private area for their "Pat down". This whole thing could have been avoided if they had used just a modicum of decency. She didn't throw a fit and withstood the embarrassment of the insensitive intrusion of these so called security checkers. But what really is the saddest thing is reading your uncaring and ignorant comments.
FINALLY!!!! An intelligent comment!!!! Nicely said.
The TSA is cynically targeting sick people. This is because sick people have non-normative anatomy: amputations, braces, implants, ostomies, and for each of these, a sick person gets his own special form of TSA torment lined up for them, described in great detail in the precious and secret SOP manual. The part that makes the TSA's actions "cynical" is that the TSA has absolutely no method to clear these items even after they've humiliated and abused the sick person. There's no way for TSA to check the contents of an ostomy bag, and they don't try. There's no way for the TSA to differentiate between a medical appliance and a dangerous object. I heard a security expert give Congressional testimony verifying that these things can not be discerned just a few months ago. So, yes, the TSA is cynically targeting sick people. They harass sick people for no security benefit - only for the theatrics of it all.
Do you really want to trust your safety to the TSA, an orginization that is 99% non college educated personnel? I think not. The reason they hire those people is because they can pay them very little and they dont question orders, regardless of how much sense they make or not. As far as I can recall the TSA has never prevented a terrorist attack. It has been the governmant agencies that hire college educated people, i.e. FBI, CIA, NSA, etc. Let's face it, the TSA is like religion..... piece of mind for the weak of mind.
And how many of you have been "randomly chosen"? TSA says "you have done nothing wrong, you have been randomly chosen". Even though you did nothing wrong, you are still screened as if you had and they will not allow you to get your stuff, it sits there unattended and they will not allow you to fetch it. If I asked for private screening we would have missed our flight, as it was I was held up for 20 minutes. Meanwhile dubious looking characters are walking through with bags, baggy clothes with no searches to them.
But they do not do anal searches... so how safe do all you pro-searchers feel now?
et tu brutte!
Maybe a digital rectal and a reach around would get You off..It may come to that...If Not already....
Insert is the kind of American that we don't want to become.
Oh no, too late. He's just ignorant.
How about profiling? Profiling works. Profiling is offensive to criminals because it works. I don't recall any female cancer patients bombing planes or flying them into buildings. I DO recall the dozens of young Middle Eastern men doing those things however. If it looks and sounds like a duck, it probably is a duck. Look at Israel for example. Not a single terrorist attack on any of their aircraft in over 40 years because of their extreme security which employs profiling.
Sign the Petition:
Abolish the TSA, and use its monstrous budget to fund more sophisticated, less intrusive counter-terrorism intelligence.
https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions#!/petition/abolish-tsa-and-use-its-monstrous-budget-fund-more-sophisticated-less-intrusive-counter-terrorism/c7L94bFB
I fly every week and I offer this advice. Stand close to the TSA agent, close enough that you are in their personal space. THEY HATE THIS! I go through the same airports and see alot of the same agents and I know they know who I am. This provides me endless fun and I always tell the people I am waiting in line with to watch if I get pulled out