Today in a critical move to protect civil liberties, the Obama administration is formally dismantling the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS), a national registry created after 9/11.
Equally ineffective as it was discriminatory, NSEERS did not convict a single terrorist. The registry, meant to bar entry from those in countries with active terrorist groups, has gone unused since 2011, but will now be legally terminated.
“By terminating the regulatory framework for the post-9/11 National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS), President Obama has taken an important step forward in defending civil liberties," said Ray Offenheiser, President, Oxfam America.
"The NSEERS program was discriminatory, dangerous and ultimately ineffective as a security measure. The program was ended in 2011 and has been dormant since then but legally remained in effect. By eliminating the framework entirely, President Obama has ensured that NSEERS can’t be revived by the new Administration to track people travelling to and living in the U.S. based on country of origin, race or religion.
Oxfam applauds this step by President Obama and calls on President-elect Trump to uphold the protection of civil liberties as a core value of the United States. Any steps to track people living in the U.S. based on country of origin, race or religion are an affront to those national values and must be rejected.”