It’s only natural to feel that what one has not done has to be mighty difficult. Trained in the sciences, physicians understand their arena well. Lobbying Congress is more than Greek to doctors. And yet bless their hearts they were out in droves to do what they do not do best.

It is election year and it was smart to have the Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America, APPNA’s, summer meeting in Washington D.C., the hotel only a shuttle ride away from Capitol Hill. Prior to lobbying their respective congressperson a detailed educational session was held to explain the infamous Patriot Act, which allows unprecedented invasion of privacy and curtails civil liberties like never before and the CLRA or Civil Liberties Restoration Act and the Safety and Freedom Ensured or SAFE Act and armed with the information the doctors set out towards the Hill.

The April 2003 Department of Justice Inspector General Report documented that hundreds of people that had no connection to terrorism were jailed after 9/11. Many were detained for weeks or months without charge, kept from meeting their families and subjected to mistreatment. Since September 11, the Executive branch has instituted many initiatives that leave minority communities besieged and isolated, this in turn making it more difficult for law enforcement to obtain information critical to battle terrorism.

On June 16, 2004 Senator Edward Kennedy (D. Ma.) and Senators John Corzine, Richard Durbin, Russ Feingold, and Patrick Leahy, and Representatives Howard Berman and William Delahunt introduced the CLRA Act. The CLRA affirms the values of fairness, equality and open government that have made the United States strong. It allows us to move forward with liberty and security as equal and attainable goals. It promotes the integrity of the American system of justice, reaffirming our core constitutional values, restoring basic rights to all and extending special rights to none. The CLRA reaffirms that government and law enforcement carried out in secrecy is inconsistent with American values. Secret arrests and secret trials deprive the American people of their right to know whether or not their government is acting fairly and lawfully.

Senator Larry Craig (R. Idaho) is the primary sponsor of the SAFE Act, which enjoys bipartisan support as well with Senators Durbin, Crapo, Feingold, Bingamann and Sununu. It is aimed at some specific concerns that have been raised about the Patriot Act, and it focuses on protecting the rights of law-abiding individuals in our nation’s fight against terrorism without impeding that fight. It focuses on areas of activity that have been particularly controversial: delayed notice warrants, which are also referred to as “sneak and peek” warrants; wiretaps that do not require specificity as to either person or place; the impact of the new law on libraries; and nationwide search warrants. This bill would amend, not eliminate these tools or repeal the USA Patriot Act in these areas.

Before detailing one of the greatest stupidities ever, I must call to mind the three Muslim medical students that were traveling to Florida last year and were misunderstood by Eunice Stone as they talked, for she squealed that they were about to bring down a building, when in actuality they were talking about bringing a car down to Florida. Additionally, Brandon Mayfield a Portland Oregon lawyer, spent two weeks in jail for the FBI insisted that his fingerprints were found on a bag in Madrid, Spain when the train was exploded. Even to the lay person’s eye there is a world of a difference between his fingerprints and the ones found on the bag, and the Spanish spokesman said that they had tried to convince the FBI that the two fingerprints were different, but “the Americans seemed to have something against this man”. Could it be that Mayfield, a white male, had reverted to Islam?

The day prior to leaving home I had called my accountant to discuss the June estimated tax payment and the extension for taxes that he had filed for me, and which comes due in August. He returned my call whilst I was on the shuttle to the Capitol, and whilst discussing the extension due I said, “The bomb will drop in August”. My own shock at my stupidity and the sudden disconnection of the phone were simultaneous. All this at the time of Reagan lying in state in the Rotunda and security at its tightest and the country on orange alert.

In a state of shock and awe I negotiated my way to the Raeburn building to meet with my Representative Marcy Kaptur’s (D. Ohio) legislative assistant, Steve Fought, for Marcy was in Toledo. Steve was a particularly well-informed person and the conversation about the Patriot Act, CLRA, SAFE Act, Pakistan-American relations, Kashmir and especially the erosion of civil liberties was very stimulating. There appears to be a sentiment on the Hill that Steve verbalized: “Pakistan is arguably the most important nation in the world, a fulcrum as it were for the entire Muslim world appears to tip in the direction that Pakistan takes.”

Still shocked and awed I mentioned to Steve that I was only discussing taxes when I uttered the stupidity that I did and that should they come to get me, I shall scream Marcy, Marcy, Steve, Steve. We’ve got you covered, he said, and then eerily in reference to how Orwellian life in our USA has become, “I’ll take care of it, provided they do not get me first.”

About 120 physicians spoke to their congresspersons that day. We then traipsed clear across to the Russell building to find a standing room only crowd of physicians and the deferential flow of congresspersons all seeking an audience with them. Senators Tom Harkins, Hillary Clinton, Tom Carper, Tim Johnson, Blanche Lincoln, Lincoln Chafee and Arlen Spector together with Congressman Rob Simmons, Sheila Jackson Lee and Mike Ross waited to be able to give a short speech to the over 300 tightly packed doctors.

Senator Tom Harkins said that Pakistan had fought every war with America and that the aim of the relationship should be for America to reciprocate and to work with Pakistan in the area of education. Representative Rob Simmons (R. Ct.) stressed the importance of the Bill of Rights and that a lot had changed since 9/11 but what must not change are civil rights. Senator Tim Johnson (D. S.D.) underscored the importance of Pakistani-Americans for with their help “we let the architects of the Pressler Amendment know that times were a’changing, and that Pakistan needs to be recognized as a strong ally”. He introduced Harun Khan, his and Senator Diane Feinstein’s campaign finance director, as a new generation of Pakistani-Americans that are gaining a place in America. He spoke about how Pakistani-Americans up to this point were involved with realizing the American dream and now they were finding a place on the political map. Senator Arlen Specter (R. Pa.) said that the United States was very much indebted to Pakistan in its fight against terrorism. He said that the United States had a commitment to civil rights and the problem of racial profiling needed to be addressed.

The feisty congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D. Tx.) may well be the modern day Martin Luther King, if her electric speech is anything to go by. At the inception she said, “I feel power here” and proceeded to underscore civil rights and bringing about changes in the Patriot Act. The reception was to be primarily a speech by Senator Hillary Clinton (D. NY) and APPNA president Dr. Omar proudly introduced her as the future president of the United States. A beaming Clinton spoke about her deep interest in Pak-US relations, especially in regard to education. She echoed the sentiment of all the congresspersons that the Patriot Act needed to be addressed, especially how it reaches deep into and decimates civil liberties.

The whole event had an Alice in Wonderland feel to it and it amazed me how quickly the Pakistani-American community had come so far. So it was natural to expect that presidential candidate John Kerry would be the keynote speaker at the Saturday banquet. When he was not, I spoke to Dr. Saud Anwar, the secretary of PAK-PAC (Pakistani American Public Affairs Committee) who had coordinated with Dr. Omar Atiq to bring us the Day on the Hill. Dr. Anwar told me how he had spoken to Cam Kerry after a $10,000 donation from PAK-PAC to the Kerry campaign, about how the Pakistani American community is a vital part of the American Muslim community, and how they decide 5% of the vote, as well as being careful about what statements he makes about Pakistan and coming to the meeting would be quite the oomph for his campaign. It would have been easy to raise $50,000 for the campaign if Kerry had come, but Dr. Anwar was careful to mention that the money of Pakistani Americans would only be forked over after Kerry’s position on various issues was articulated, especially on the ones that impact Pakistani and Muslim Americans. There was an awkward silence Dr. Anwar tells me and later that Cam would get back to him. He did not and Kerry lost an opportunity to speak to 3000 people, at least 60% of them voters.

All in all it seemed that Pakistani-American physicians as well as the US Congress had been jolted out of a deep narcosis as it were. The former now on a run to arrive politically, and the latter (Kerry excepted) realizing the vitality and wealth of this heretofore-untapped group. There was a unity of purpose that made the Day on the Hill such a resounding success, and for us to reach the threshold of the political dream, we must remember and practice the adage “Jahan ittefaq hai wahan roz Eid hai” (where there is unity, everyday is Eid). It will certainly make the rest of the run quite the sprint.

(Mahjabeen Islam is a physician practicing in Toledo Ohio. Her email address is mahjabeenislam@hotmail.com