as small as a world and as large as alone

7:40pm November 13, 2011

allies-person:

loridorn:

At what point does the need for security eclipse human dignity and compassion?

Yesterday I went through the imaging scanner at JFK Terminal 4 for my Virgin America flight to San Francisco.  Evidently they found something, because after the scan, I was asked to step aside to have my 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.  

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 (pictured) and asked to retrieve it.  This request was denied.  Instead, she called over a female supervisor who told me the exam had to take place.  I was again told that I could not retrieve the card and needed to submit to a physical exam in order to be cleared.  She then said, “And if we don’t clear you, you don’t fly” loud enough for other passengers to hear.  And they did.  And they stared at the bald woman being yelled at by a TSA Supervisor. 

To my further dismay, my belongings, including my computer, were completely out of sight. I had no choice but to allow an agent to touch my breasts in front of other passengers.  

I just didn’t understand why these agents were so insensitive to the situation. I would have been happy to show her which bag was mine and have her retrieve the card, but she did not allow even that. I have been through emotional and physical hell this past year due to breast cancer.  The way I was treated by these TSA agents added a shitload of insult to injury and caused me a great deal of humiliation.

I understand the need for safety when flying, but there is also a need for those responsible to be compassionate and sensitive to each situation.  These agents were neither.

I can only comfort myself with the fact that Karma is always circular.

I hate that there are so many TSA horror stories, particularly from PWD it seems to me.

Yuck.

Yet another reason I shouldn’t fly even if I magically got the stamina required not to eventually collapse on the plane.

I don’t even know what kind of exam they’d try on me: I’ve got an implant that basically prevents my spastic urethra from preventing me from peeing. It’s basically a battery in my butt, with a wire threaded through my tailbone and into the relevant muscle. It sends signals to the muscles, I don’t know all of how it works, I just know that it makes it so I don’t have to catheterize. (Apparently this site has info on how it works but I’m really bad at understanding that stuff.)

What made me immediately freak out about this was oddly enough the card. I’ve got a very similar card to that, that I was specifically told to use if I had to go through airport security. Yes, that means that the people who create the implants actually have to think about what the TSA would do if they saw the implant. Which disgusts me. And I’m not sure I want to know how they’d try to feel for this thing. (The battery is easily felt through my right buttock, but the wire wouldn’t be possible to feel from anywhere.)

Anyway, this is just wrong, and it doesn’t even make anyone any safer. I hate that kind of rule, where it’s around to make people feel safe, but actually takes away people’s rights and makes us if anything less safe. But I’m sure other people have put it way better than I could, so I’ll shut up now.

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