Information classified

When it comes to counterterrorism, we always hear both sides of a story, but we never get to hear the whole story.\nYet again, the public is kept in the dark as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security recently revoked the work visa of a Swiss Muslim scholar who was supposed to teach at Notre Dame. Russ Knocke, a Department of Homeland Security spokesman, said Tariq Ramadan's work visa was revoked because of a section in federal law applying to aliens who have used a "position of prominence within any country to endorse or espouse terrorist activity." Notre Dame, the Council on American-Islamic Relations and Ramadan himself all say they disagree with the decision and that it was probably due to political pressure.\nSome accounts claim that Ramadan preached radical Islam while others claim it was more moderate. The bottom line is that we don't know all of the reasons why his visa was revoked and without this information it makes it seem like his views on Islam were the sole reason for the decision. It's news items like these with only half the story presented (not from lack of reporting but from government secrecy) that have contributed to the increased prejudice Muslims have faced since Sept. 11. If we want to reverse this racism, we need to have more information released to the public.\nWith the 9/11 Commission and the national outcry for declassification of documents, it has become apparent that the American people have grown tired of blindly trusting the decisions made by the anti-terrorism forces in our government. We understand that some details in intelligence gathering need to be kept confidential, but that can't be used as a crutch. Even if the reasons are revealed after the fact, the public needs to know how and why our decisions are made so we can make decisions of our own when it comes to Election Day.\nt is unfair to assume the Department of Homeland Security's reasons for revoking Tariq Ramadan's visa are solely based on his views of Islam. Ramadan has also been criticized for alleged links to Islamic militants and anti-Semitic remarks. And just because we don't know everything about Ramadan's situation doesn't mean we should make quick judgements.\nPerhaps we should trust the Department of Homeland Security. As always, there is a fine line the government treads when releasing anti-terrorism information to the public. It's a lose-lose situation for the government because if it releases too much information, our safety could be threatened. But when it's too secretive, the American people cry "Big Brother." \nPerhaps some Americans have abandoned the blind-faith approach, but wouldn't we rather be safe than sorry? It's about time those who defend our borders get tougher on immigration and visa rules. If we don't, we run the risk of welcoming terrorists into this nation. I don't know about you, but I don't want another Sept. 11. \nChristina Galoozis