Citing growing concerns over border patrol’s persistent targeting and ongoing detention of people at the border based on their race, ethnicity or religion, a coalition of concerned advocacy agencies in Michigan have announced the creation of a border complaint hotline in honor of International Human Rights Day.

People with complaints are encouraged to call 313.578.6832 or to file a formal complaint online at www.aclumich.org/bordercom.

The hotline’s launching coincides with the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

“For two hundred years, America has shined as a beacon of personal freedom and justice.  These last eight years have taken a toll on our national reputation,” said Kary L. Moss, American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan Executive Director.

“Once a leader in the human rights arena, the U.S. has wavered in its commitment to upholding the values it puts forth. The racial and religious profiling that is allowed by the FBI and Border Patrol is only one example of how we have let our own protection of basic human rights and dignities degrade.”

The hotline is designed for people to report law enforcement profiling based on race, ethnicity or religion, unreasonable detention at the border and airports, random stops by border patrol agents inland from the border, and seizure of electronic equipment at the border.

It is a project of the ACLU of Michigan, Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS), American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Council on American-Islamic Relations, Detroit Branch NAACP, Metropolitan Organizing Strategy Enabling Strength and the Arab American Institute.

The groups are concerned with the racial profiling, electronic seizures, and the massive amounts of information the government is collecting on citizens crossing international borders. The information collected can be stored for 15 years and may be used in criminal and intelligence investigations.

In addition to launching the hotline, the coalition partners asked elected officials to: Exercise oversight of the FBI’s new guidelines, end the repeated detentions at airports of U.S. citizens re-entering the United States from the Middle East, hold Congressional hearings on and pass legislation to end violations of Americans’ civil and human rights at the border and the 100-mile inland zone defined by the Federal Government as part of the “external boundary,” ensure equal treatment and due process for all people at the Canadian border, and end the seizure of laptops and cell phones at the border without any suspicion of wrongdoing.

For information about International Human Rights Day, visit www.udhr60.org.