Public freedom vs. public fear
Crowded trains, downtown libraries, baseball stadiums: After 9/11, they all feel different. HILLARY RHODES looks at what's changed in public places.
Security barriers and tighter surveillance have been set up at some national parks and historic sites, including the Washington Monument. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Tighter security has also been implemented in some places frequented by thousands of people, like the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn. (AP Photo/Ann Heisenfelt)
Airports continue to have the tightest security. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
The anthrax attack exposed vulnerabilities at postal offices. (AP Photo/Daniel Hulshizer)
Five years after four hijacked planes burned a fiery hole through America's shield of innocence, the land of the free, home of the brave has become the land of the fearful, home of the 77,069 national assets identified by the Department of Homeland Security.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, public places that have traditionally been free to all tend to make us feel anything but free, as if at any moment you could be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and end up on the casualty list of the next Big One.
And the government's watchfulness only reinforces our concerns, even if it makes us safer -- itself a matter of constant debate.
Spending on domestic security across all U.S. federal agencies is expected to reach $58 billion in fiscal 2007 -- up from $16.8 billion in 2001, according to the Office of Management and Budget.
Does this make us feel more secure or more worried when we're out in public?
Either way, the way we experience America's public spaces has profoundly changed. Here are some examples of what's different now.
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PUBLIC SPACE: Railroads
POST-9/11 CHANGES: Amtrak has implemented some new security measures since Sept. 11, some of them since the Madrid train bombings in March 2004 and others since the London train and bus bombings in July 2005. In general, that means more police officers in stations and on trains, canine teams by the baggage areas, and random ID checks of about 10 percent of passengers on board.
Amtrak does not, however, have airport-style security. Because there are so many points of entry, it's just not possible, according to Amtrak spokeswoman Tracy Connell.
PUBLIC SPACE: National Parks and Historic Monuments
POST-9/11 CHANGES: Security cameras and barriers to block vehicles have been set up in some national landmarks.
According to National Park Service spokesman David Barna, visitors now go through airport-like screening at the following locations: The Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, D.C.; Independence Hall and the Liberty Pavilion in Philadelphia; the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (commonly known as the St. Louis Arch) in St. Louis; Liberty Island and Ellis Island and Federal Hall in New York; and the USS Constitution in Boston.
PUBLIC SPACE: Libraries
POST-9/11 CHANGES: Security hasn't changed tremendously, according to Leslie Burger, the president of the American Library Association. Since Sept. 11, Burger said, more people have been seeking out the kind of community space provided at libraries.
However, Burger said, the passage of the USA Patriot Act brought "the possibility that even though libraries weren't trying to institute more security, law enforcement saw libraries as being a potential site for terrorist activity and therefore wanted to be able to get easy access to our records."
PUBLIC SPACE: Airports
POST-9/11 CHANGES: Heightened security. Including plenty of random searches.
Since 9/11, airports have seen the highest-profile security increases. More than 700 million pieces of baggage are being screened for explosives each year, according to the Department of Homeland Security Web site. Any plane is considered a potential missile if the wrong people or the wrong items are allowed on board.
The US-VISIT program uses biometrics and machine-readable passports to keep an eye on foreign visitors. The Department of Homeland Security said of the 44 million foreign visitors it had processed, US-VISIT had detected 950 people with criminal histories or immigration violations.
PUBLIC SPACE: Shopping malls
POST-9/11 CHANGES: The Mall of America, in Bloomington, Minn., declined to give any details about its post-Sept. 11 security measures other than to say they have really close ties with the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and local and state officials.
"The average shopper wouldn't notice most changes," mall spokesman Daniel Jasper said. "There have been many changes and improvements but it wouldn't be visible."
asap asked if these super-secret security measures were James Bond-like in nature. Even that could not be revealed, Jasper said.
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MORE ON SEPT. 11
For more stories related to the fifth anniversary of the attacks, look at asap's special report Living with 9/11.
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Hillary Rhodes is an asap reporter based in New York.
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