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Bar News - April 4, 2003 NH Lawyers Asked to Help Avoid Mistreatment of Minorities THE IRAQ WAR and ongoing tensions over terrorism could lead to harassment by citizens or law enforcement authorities of individuals who are Middle Eastern in appearance. Disquieting rumors about the activities of individuals of color —sometimes Hispanic or other dark-skinned people are mistaken for people from the Near East—can fly quickly in a country preoccupied with a war in that region, said Franklin Pierce Law School Dean John D. Hutson. Hutson is participating in a hastily formed, informal group of community leaders, ACLU volunteers, and police trying to take precautions to protect innocent people who may become victims of war-induced prejudice or persecution. Hutson said he wanted to inform NH Bar members of the nascent effort and to invite them to contact him if they were interested in assisting if the need arises. Speaking to Bar News at press time, only a few days after the Iraq war had begun, Hutson acknowledged that the initiative had not been prompted by any ac tual events in NH, but by the presence of rumors and the potential that war tension could lead to problems. "It’s a delicate issue— we don’t want to create problems where none exist, but we want to be prepared if, for example, the war is not going well or if there is a domestic incident that heightens tensions. We want to be prepared." The effort, which was initiated by NH Episcopal Diocese Bishop Douglas Theuner, may have a legal component, such as developing a referral network linking people needing legal help with these issues to volunteers, and providing training for lawyers to handle hate crimes prosecution or instances of excessive profiling by police. A major component of the effort is creating a "rumor hotline" so that rumors regarding threats can be addressed with accurate information. If an attorney is interested in participating in this initiative, contact Dean Hutson or Pierce Law visiting professor Nermien Al-Ali at 228-1541.
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