Is This a Way to Ease Muslim Fears?
L O S A N G E L E S, Dec. 24 -- Shawn Eliaspoor says he will never look at America the same way.
"I thought this was the place of freedom — a place where I could come and become someone. But the last couple of days, my mind has really changed about the United States," said Eliaspoor, who was 6 when his family moved to Southern California from Iran.
Eliaspoor's changed outlook follows his detention by Immigration and Naturalization Service officials in Los Angeles last week. It's an attitude that surprises those who view Eliaspoor as a typical 18-year-old American.
"He's really just a white boy," said sister Shadi Eliaspoor. "He used to play football when he was little and now he likes basketball and video games. He doesn't even know how to speak Farsi."
Shawn Eliaspoor is not alone. Hal Kay, 22, was born in Iran, but is a Canadian citizen who has lived in the United States since age 16. Also held last week by the INS, he also feels betrayed by the government of the country he considers home.
"I really didn't know the INS was this backward. It felt like in America there are situations where it's practically like it is in Iran," Kay said.
Sixteen-year-old Hossein Ahmadi is an Iranian-born British citizen who lives with his mother in Encino, Calif. Ahmadi said he was working on his literature homework while waiting to speak to an immigration official but 30 minutes later he was led away in handcuffs as his 7-month pregnant mother watched.
"They sat me in a tank with three other boys and I was the only INS case," said Ahmadi. "I asked them what they were doing in there. One of them had done a burglary and one of them had stabbed someone. Just being among them, I felt like a criminal."
Feelings of Betrayal
Like hundreds of other Middle Eastern males, Eliaspoor, Kay and Ahmadi lined up at a federal building in Los Angeles to register voluntarily for a new INS database to track foreigners who enter and leave the country on tourist, business and student visas. Dec. 16 was the deadline for male visa holders ages 16 and older from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan and Syria.
Popular Reads
ABC News Live