On 08/10/2011 06:05 PM, Sumana Harihareswara wrote:
[…]
In both cases I was traveling alone. And in both cases I was myself, a US citizen whose parents and name and skin color came from South Asia. I can't pass as anything else.
This is simply racism and harassment. There can be no excuse for that kind of treatment. If this is the way even a citizen of the western world is treated, I can understand very well why there were (almost?) no members of the Arab world in Israel.
I find it regrettable that next Wikimania is going to be in Washington D.C. Airport harassment might not be as severe as in Israel, but perhaps severe enough so that Arab Wikimedians are prevented or discouraged from attending.
Don't get me wrong, Wikimania in Israel was fantastic and D.C. will probably be, too, but we have to focus more on accessibility for *all* Wikimedians.
Regards, Tobias