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  • Whispers in the Closet: Reflections on TSA and Solitude
  • Taraneh R. Wilkinson

Privacy is not the same as solitude. Privacy involves a composite set of legal definitions and, as a distinct civil right, lacks definite consensus. Solitude, like privacy, can be a vague term, but it also tags additional theological and spiritual dimensions. As the rhythms of cities and lives change to reflect an increasing population and a growing penetration of technologies into our most intimate realms, it is safe to say that both access to privacy and solitude may be at risk. Yet, privacy can come at the cost of convenience or even safety. How, then, do we adjudicate between the benefits of privacy and security in today’s uncertain world?

TSA‐induced reflections on privacy

In the American context, the legal and social understanding of privacy has evolved over time and remains a territory of constant negotiation. One space where this ongoing negotiation has been highly visible is that of airport security checkpoints. Founded in 2001 shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Transportation Security Administration, an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, represents the American choice to prioritize security over privacy at the airport and other places of public travel. However, with new technologies and changing political climates, the trade‐off between security and privacy has not been static. Whether it be the now obsolete back scanners that produced near‐naked images of passengers or the DHS (paid) Global Entry program, various new protocols have come into place over the years that renegotiate the line between security and privacy for airport travelers. Sometimes, as in the case with the back scanners in 2013, Americans may consider a line of privacy crossed that is not justified by the projected gains in security.1.

Take for instance the present increase in additional security screening. Since at least 2016, some passengers have been subject to non‐random extra security screening as part of the TSA Secure Flight Program, first implemented in 2009. At the time of writing this article, it has become common for many frequent fliers to obtain a Redress Control Number from the Department of Homeland Security to avoid this non‐random extra security screening at airports.

As an illustration, I offer my own encounter with this extra screening. Like most air‐fairing travelers, I do not look forward to security checks—socks on cold, public floors, awkwardly juggling toiletries, human bottlenecks, or extra x‐rays are usually not crowd‐pleasers. While passing through security checkpoints, a microcosm of our so‐called modern age, individuals are reduced to numbers and mechanical procedures. Privacy is momentarily forfeited for the greater good, and indeed privilege, of discovering and connecting with the world. Normally, I accept this trade‐off without much thought.

However, in August 2019, while preparing for a domestic flight, I found I could no longer check in online. At the check‐in counter my boarding card had a large “SSSS” written in the corner. And while I was aware of US citizens being detained and questioned at international border crossings (apparently over 33,000 times in 20182.), I was not aware that the SSSS entailed targeted extra screening for any US flight, domestic or international. The boarding card elicited a conspicuous red flash on the officer’s machine at the security checkpoint. They explained to me that I would be subject to special screening and proceeded to take me away from the crowds, scan my luggage separately, open all of it, conduct a chemical swab of external and internal contents, ask me to turn on all my electronic devices for them to see, and give me a thorough and physically invasive pat down.

At the gate, I asked the attendant what the meaning of this extra screening might be. She replied that they must have lowered the threshold for security threat. This left me with a distinct impression that she took for granted that I, or anyone with an SSSS on their boarding pass, was automatically a security threat, even if not of the highest level. I was unnerved that she unquestioningly accepted TSA’s treatment of US citizens who have not been...

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