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Screw US Customs

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Just have the right documents next time. Do you think, with all those people crossing the border everyday, that the US Customs has the time and effort to make exceptions, especially with how tight the security of the country is at the present time?
 
You are required to have a passport, not an arrangement of other documents.

While I don't agree with said profiling, you didn't have the proper documentation. You're damn lucky you got in at all.

Nevt time, have your paperwork ready, and correct.
 
Originally posted by: saymyname
Do any of you guys see the hypocracy here?

The "land of the intollerant redneck"? You complain about profiling and then make a statement like that?
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exactly i totally agree with you

in the end everyone is racist the important part is not letting it affect you and if your going to flip sh!t about a sily incident like this than your just as bad as the "racist" border officer

being able to forgive is what's important
 
they let you in without a passport? kinda makes me nervous. And customs officials are probably some of the lowest down americans on the intelligence ladder. What do you expect?
 
You didn't have the proper documentation. What the hell did you expect? You assume way to much for a customs officer.
 
"I'm visiting my caucasian side of my family. "


Most people say I'm visiting my mom's side of the family or my dad's side of the family.
 
Originally posted by: SuperSix
You are required to have a passport, not an arrangement of other documents.

While I don't agree with said profiling, you didn't have the proper documentation. You're damn lucky you got in at all.

Nevt time, have your paperwork ready, and correct.
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You do not need a Passport to go from Canada to the US or vice/versa.
 
Originally posted by: RyanSengara
Background Info: I'm a half-East Indian half english citizen of Canada, and my East Indian side of my family has probably been in North America for longer than most of you guys. I'm 5th generation

Here's a slight rant:

Post 9/11 I've been subjected to some pretty ludicris ******, though given what happened to you guys I can't really blame the precautions, I'll even take the blatant 'random testing' of brown people, hell all except for two of the Islamic people I know are religious crazies.

But I'm getting pretty sick of this ******. I don't wear a turban, I have no Koran, I go to temple maybe once or twice a year for weddings or funerals, my dad is a non-practicing Sikh and I'm nothing (my mom is Anglican).

My first encounter with US Customs was 3 years ago in High School, I was crossing the border with my school for a Model United Nations trip, when I went through customs in Montreal. I gave the guy my customs declaration form, but it was upside down, the customs officer told me to turn it over. I quickly grap it with my hand and flop it over with my palm. The customs officer looks me straight in the eye and says 'Why did you do that?', with a puzzled look on my face I say 'Do what?'.. he says 'Flip over the form like that?'.. followed by more comments by me like 'I have no idea what your talking about..'

In a thick drawl the guy goes 'I don't give a damn who the hell you are, it's my job to keep people like you (by that he meant brown people) out of my country'. At which point I shut up because my teacher told me to just let it go (I have a very explosive temper).

That was my first encounter.

My second encounter (amongst other minor encounters) was today. I was crossing at the pacific border crossing just south of Vancouver to go to Roche Harbour for my grandpa's 70th birthday.

I'm visiting my caucasian side of my family. My passport is currently in a box being shipped back from college because I'm home for the summer, and my birth certificate is with it. As a result I bring my drivers license, federally issued Social Insurance Card, BC Health Card, and my photo student ID (Provincially Issued).. hoping that it will be okay.

My brother was coming with me and we have the same home address' and he brought his passport so I thought we would be okay.

After waiting for 40 minutes to cross we finally get up and some dumb FOB tells me that my 4 pieces of ID aren't good enough and he needs a birth certificate, at which point I tell him to look at my brothers passport, our home address and last names are the same and we look almost identical. We tell him our mom went down yesterday and give him her name (he brings her file up on the computer and sees a white woman)... at which point he looks at us funny because my mom is white.

Yes douchebag, my mom is white, my parents are in a mixed marraige, not all of us are backwards and xenophobic like you, you piece of ******. Of course I didn't say this to his face.

He starts getting all angry at me, and starts asking some personal questions, where I'm from, where I go to school, what I'm studying, what my summer job is, what year of university I'm in. Total bullshit stuff, at which point I tell him to slow down because I'm getting a bit nervous, the guy is trying to light a fire under my ass.

This of course is in front of my little brother.

Finally the prick lets me through. I get to Bellingham Airport and fly for half an hour to meet up with my caucasian family members who brought down their 3 boats.

When I arrive I hear about their terrible experience with US Customs.

The fat white lady wouldn't let my uncle in, because he, like me, couldn't get his passport and only had his DL, and SIN card. She treated him like ****** till he told her he was a pallative physician and to stop giving him ****** because is stressed out from dealing with people that have terminal cancer and that she should shut the ****** up and annoy someone else.

Of course, I've never seen my uncle lose his temper, after dealing with people in pallative care for so long he's become pretty somber.

My other uncle got the same ol bit too.

****** Customs.

Cliffnotes:

Read the ****** post.

P.S. My family has a place in Hawaii and we bring our title of ownership with us every trip ( we go down once or twice a year for the past 15 years and they give us garbage everytime )
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you should know better. they want a driver's license and a birth certificate or a passport and no excuses. i cross the border a lot and those are the ID's they insist upon until we all have to have passcards to cross into/back from Canada. yeh, i said passcards. they are going to be a cheaper form of a passport.

i think you are looking to get offended.


and btw, while there might be a dick employed by US Customs, i've encountered Canadian Custom Agents who fit the same bill.

 
Originally posted by: sandorski
Originally posted by: SuperSix
You are required to have a passport, not an arrangement of other documents.

While I don't agree with said profiling, you didn't have the proper documentation. You're damn lucky you got in at all.

Nevt time, have your paperwork ready, and correct.
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You do not need a Passport to go from Canada to the US or vice/versa.
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true, but if you have no passport on you a birth certificate and a form of picture ID, preferrably a license, is mandatory.

soon you will need a passport of sorts though.

 
Originally posted by: buzzsaw13
Racial profiling FTW
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Honestly, do we really need to stop some elderly white woman because she might be packing explosives in her girdle just so we can give the illusion of not profiling? Who gives a crap if the border patrol profiles? I'll agree, some of the comments from the border patrol in this case were a bit unwarranted; they should act like professionals at all times but I don't care if they use racial profiling.
 
Originally posted by: RyanSengara
Originally posted by: BlancoNino
Originally posted by: buzzsaw13
Racial profiling FTL
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Why? It makes things more efficient. Life isn't fair.
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Fine, so I hope your ass gets racially profiled in the Middle East. The problem there is that they aren't as 'refined' as the rest of us 'over here'.

Over there racial profiling comes with a whip, a bullet, or a frag grenade unfortunately. As a person of eastern descent I do NOT condone terrorism at all.

But do unto others as they do unto you, and it's a vicious cycle.
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So, you're saying that by being hassled at the border that they are turning you into a terrorist? 😕
 
Here's the thread ending cliffnotes:

1. Middle eastern looking person crossing border
2. Has only part of the required documents
3. Is hassled by white (ZOMG! HES TEH REDNECK!) customs officer
4. Assumes it's a racism thing
5. Posts even more racist post on ATOT

At least the immigration officer's JOB is to take the time to investigate each and every human being that crosses our border. What's your job? To whine about it?

BTW: It will soon be law to have your passport for each crossing. No short term crosses with just a drivers license and birth certificate will be allowed any more for anybody. Which sucks because of the arctic circle trip I'm still hoping to do next year. I have to get a passport now.
 
Sad to know my friend, but stuff like this is bound to happen in some way or another. All I can do if I had a similar encounter is to stay cool, courteous, and cooperate.

Being mad, raising voice or even b!tching during the moment wont make it any better (same as for officers 😉 )
 
Originally posted by: DurocShark

BTW: It will soon be law to have your passport for each crossing. No short term crosses with just a drivers license and birth certificate will be allowed any more for anybody. Which sucks because of the arctic circle trip I'm still hoping to do next year. I have to get a passport now.
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you might be able to escape that if you are going next year.
"New requirements will affect air and sea travel starting in 2007 and land crossings starting in 2008"
http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_ha...irements_would_harm_trade_and_tourism/

i've heard it may be pushed back to 2009 now.

 
Originally posted by: kami333
Originally posted by: saymyname
I've had problems getting into France before simply because I asked them to stamp my passport.
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hahaha, the Canadian immigration guy at Niagra Falls looked at me like I was crazy when I asked him to stamp my gf's US passport, told me she didn't need one. I had to explain to him that she wanted a stamp in her passport since she didn't have any from other countries (depending on what country you land in in the EU, they really don't stamp anymore so the only one she had was from US and the Czech). He was kind of shaking his head while he stamped hers, probably thought we were a bunch of crazy stupid Americans😀
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I know that when canadian immigration stamps an american passport it automatically means they only get 30 days in the country vs 6 months. That's why they don't like to do it.
 
Now that I think about it, the last time I was in Canada a few months ago the Canadian border agent wouldn't stamp my passport. That bastard! It's because I was white! Why do they have to hate white people so much? I saw them stamp an Indian's passport ahead of me. Hmph!
 
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