January 10, 2003 Representative Nancy Pelosi FAX# 202-225-8259 Washington DC FAX# 415-861-1670 San Francisco, CA Dear Leader Pelosi, I am writing you as a concerned citizen about a problem that has come to my attention that I hope you will do everything in your power to resolve immediately. I am very concerned about the current program of "Special Registration" going on at the INS for men from 20 countries. Requiring people to register on pure basis of ethnic origin and immigration status is the worst form of racial profiling. The targeting of specific countries of origin generally in the Middle East, South Asian area, and more and more immigrant communities shows a pre-mediated racism. I am also outraged at the use of these registrations to effect mass detentions of immigrants from these areas. According to the New York Times, the detentions reached such large numbers in Los Angeles that the INS ran out of plastic handcuffs. The entire program has the appearance of mass roundups similar to the internships of Japanese during the second world war, and other occasions in this country's history which we are all ashamed of. I urge you to use your power in Congress, both as the House Leader of the Democratic Party and as the longest serving Member of Congress on the House Intelligence Committee, to encourage: * The INS to stop detaining people who came forward to register * The abolishment of the special registration program * The immediate release of all detainees * The release of the number and names of all the detainees taken by the INS * A congressional investigation of government policy since the passage of the PATRIOT Act and its role in the undermining of our civil rights liberties Sincerely, [Your name]