To Attorney General John Ashcroft

Ref: Harassment of my children, monitoring my friends and family, intrusion on my privacy and civil rights.

Mr. Attorney General John Ashcroft,

My neighbor came up to me few weeks ago and informed me that an agent from the Federal Bureau of Investigation called him again regarding some information about my activities and other personal matters.  Mr. Frank R. specifically told me that the agent inquired about the kind of car that I drive since your agents cannot find any records of car ownership for me in Travis county or the state Texas.  I was surprised to hear that from him since not even my closest friends know that I do not own a car or any property, fixed or mobile in the state of Texas or the United States.  It was my choice at the age of forty to give up all material things and devote my life to something meaningful besides racking up dollars in my bank account.  For your information I do not own a car, a house, a yacht and my bank accounts have less than one hundred dollars in them.  Your agents should know the car that I drive since it has more than 20 bumper stickers in support of the people of Palestine, against the occupation of Palestine, against the war in Iraq and one that states “ A village in Texas is missing its idiot,” and I think he now lives on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.  If you can not identify the car and for your convenience, I have written  “ I am an Arab, Ana Arabi” in large characters ( In Arabic and English) on the rear window even a visually impaired person can see, unless they are blind in the mind and the heart like you and the rest of the administration that your represent.  I keep 300 dollars out of my paycheck, fifty percent of the rest goes to my two children for their college education and the other fifty percent goes to families and children that I sponsor in Palestine.  Now, you know that piece. Anything else you want to know. Oh yes, I forgot, my personal attire.

I own five shirts. One light pink shirt that I have had for over three years.  I use both often to show my feminine side because I know how much you and the rest of this administration hate gays. One dark pink shirt that I have had for over three years.  One blue George W. dumbass look style shirt with a hole under the armpit.  One puke green shirt ala Tom Ridge’s face with a stained collar.  A chicken poop yellow shirt, ala Ashcroft’s face to wear to work on sunny days.  Also, I have six pairs of socks, all with holes in them so that would not allow me to take off my shoes at doctor’s offices or during romantic encounters.  Imagne. The socks go under two pair of shoes that share much with you in character and substance.  They are both old and worn out and have no soles just like you have no soul.   Five sets of underwear made in China since this administration “outsourced” so many jobs to China because the schools in the United States graduate now only football players, baseball players, cheerleaders, dancers and cash register operates or McDonalad’s and Randall’s (A regional grocery store chain in the Southwest). All undergarments have holes in them set to let gas out when I see on television the images of Bush, yourself, Ridge, Rumsfeld or any of the other geniuses that God has blessed this country with to take it down into moral and financial bankruptcy.  Other personal belongings include a large Palestinian flag, a large Iraqi flag, a small Palestinian flag to hang from left side back window of the car that I drive and do not own.  A small Iraqi flag to hang from the right back window of the car that I drive and do not own.  A membership card in the Law Library of the State of Texas.  A membership card in the Public Library in Austin, Texas.  A membership card in the University of Texas System libraries.  Five pieces of paper indicating that I have completed the requirements for seven college degrees.  A piece of paper indicating that I have completed a proficiency test in the Japanese language at a college level.  49598 deception dollars to distribute to my friends, colleagues, passers by at events against the war in Iraq or in support of the people of Palestine and to expose your lies about who is to blame for the September 11th, 2001 events.

Mr. Ashcroft,

I am writing this letter because my two adult children just came back to the United States from visiting their extended families in Lebanon and throwing stones at the fascist “Israeli” soldiers across the border in occupied Palestine.  My daughter, who is 22, a Harvard honors graduate was “ randomly selected” four times in 4 different airports in less than 24 hours for inspection and humiliation with no probable cause.  Her personal belongings were thrown all over the table in front of hundreds of passengers, she was asked personal questions and questions regarding her political beliefs which is not relevant to the security or the safety of the people of the United States.  She is a proud Arab, a proud Muslim and was the proud president of Harvard Arab Students Society who voted a Jewish United States citizen to become a vice president to burry once and for all the lies about the so -called differences between Arabs and Jews.  Yes, she writes extensively against the United States foreign policy and for the human rights of Palestinians and Arabs in general.

My son Abdullah on the other hand, was inspected and interrogated by three different inspectors at the same time for two hours, although he is only 19 with no criminal record, a National Merit Scholar graduate from his high school and an honor student with mathematics major at the University of Texas at Austin.  He never committed a crime in his life, never used drugs, does not drink and was a vegetarian till your government showed us the pictures of the innocent Iraqi prisoners being tortured.  Abdullah came home and started eating meat and I looked at him and said “ Abdullah, this has meat in it.”  He looked at me and said: “ we kill human beings for no reason.  I guess we can kill animals to eat them.”

Besides the destruction of his personal property, the abusive talk by the inspectors, he was asked about personal things such as his girl friend, his personal social and political preferences and other questions that had absolutely nothing to do with the safety and security of the people of the United States.  He was even asked why had taken a jacket with him to Lebanon because the ignorant inspector thought that Lebanon was a desert and does not have cold weather.  I find it appalling that paid government officials dare to ask citizens of the United States questions about their personal lives and interfere with the beliefs and personal habits.  Additionally, your employees are knocking on the doors of my friends, colleagues and people that I work with to give the innocent children of Palestine a hope to inquire about “ threats to the elections,” and other none sense that the government is inventing to distract the people and to cover up the lies and crimes committed against the people of Iraq and Palestine in our name.  It is insulting to our intelligence and our pride that FBI agents knock on the doors of our neighbors and friends, intimidate us at airports and public facilities simply because we are Arabs and Muslims.

Mr. Ashcroft,

I do not know how many natives of this land your ancestors killed to settle here and steal the land and water of a nation and peoples with a history and a heritage. I do not know what the agents have in mind when they stop my children and myself at the airports every time we travel, and sometimes several times in the same day since they already know all they need about us.  The only thing that I can suggest is that it is intimidation, humiliation and interference with our human and civil rights to keep us tamed and in fear so we do not speak up and expose the injustice that is being done to Arabs, Muslims and Palestinians.  Mr. Ashcroft, Listen good.  I did not come to this country to be intimidated, scared or humiliated at the hands of few thugs who think that they can scare us and hold us down because we fight for what is just and what is ours.  I did not wash dishes, clean tables, teach at a college and ran world class companies to raise my children to have your thugs humiliate them, interfere with their personal belongings and to harass them when they travel.  We are a proud family of Arabs and Muslims who will not be deterred by you, your department or the government of the United States for that matter.  However, I have to admit that one positive thing happened from all the events that took place in the last three months.  My son who used to criticize me for abusing the government of the United States around the morning coffee, the afternoon tea and the late Arabic dinner and always accused me of having  “ a chip on my shoulders.”  Since he came back from Lebanon and after being humiliated at the airports by your thugs, he talks like me, he feels like, he thinks like me and yes, you have created another Arab who detests and despises the government of the United States for its illegal, criminal and unjust treatment of Arabs, Muslims and Palestinians.

Mr. Ashcroft,
I am a non- violent person with an impeccable record in community service here in Austin, Texas and was never engaged in any illegal activity as long as I have lived in this town.  There is a reason for me to believe that the activities of the agents around my neighbors and friends, is to intimidate us and force us to stop our work and political activities for peace and justice.  Please take a note that we will not stop, we will not be intimidated, we will not be scared and we will prevail.  Please take note that next time I am harassed at any airport or border crossings of the United States, judges James Nowlin and Sam Spark in the Western District here in Austin, Texas will have to put up with me again and my multiple lawsuits against you for violations of my civil rights till you cease and desist from harassing us or go bankrupt whichever comes first.

Riad Hamad

And your agents should know the rest of the information.