Source: Religion News Service
UNITED STATES, March 2010: Canadian lawyer Kerry Gearin is planning to fly to Washington, D.C., this summer for a conference on Islamic family law, but the full-body scanners being deployed in some U.S. airports make her wonder if she’ll be forced to leave her modesty at home. “When I saw the pictures, I thought, it’s too much information,” said Gearin, a Muslim.
The scanners, which are produced for the Transportation Security Administration can detect items — guns or small containers, for example — or explosives hidden under clothing. The images are basically grainy outlines of the human body, but also show the outlines the flesh. To minimize passenger discomfort, screeners who view the images work in separate booths away from screening lines, and don’t see the passengers they scrutinize. All images are immediately deleted.
Concerns about the grainy body images produced by the scanners prompted the 18-member Fiqh Council of North America to issue a fatwa, or religious edict, which said the scanners violate Islamic law. Muslims, the fatwa said, should instead request a pat-down. “It is a violation of clear Islamic teachings that men or women be seen naked by other men and women.
Buddhism and Hinduism, however, seem to have fewer problems with the scanners. “Everything in Buddhism is a matter of intent. If the screening is done to oppress and in a way that is insensitive, then it’s bad,” said Andrew Olendzki, executive director of the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies in Massachusetts. “But if it’s done to protect, and done respectfully, then it’s OK.” Modesty is also important in Hindu tradition, but it does not trump a serious security threat, said Suhag Shukla, managing director of the Hindu American Foundation. “Hindu tradition is replete with examples of sacrificing for the greater good,” she said.