A bill to prohibit racial profiling was introduced in Congress on Feb. 26. Introduced by Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) in the Senate and Rep. John Conyers in the House of Representatives, the bill would define racial profiling, as well as institute data collection systems to identify and track racial profiling, which would help repair frayed relations between police and minority communities. Additionally the bill would make grants available to police departments for in-car video cameras, police training and portable computer systems. A significant aspect of the bill is that it would require police agencies to collect data on traffic stops and would allow people to sue when they have been subjected to a pattern of racial profiling. The Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) welcomed the introduction of the bill. “Racial profiling is a serious issue for the approximately half a million Sikhs in the United States,” said SMART National Director Preetmohan Singh. “Prior to 9/11, we supported efforts to combat racial profiling which predominantly targeted African Americans and Latinos. Unfortunately, this ineffective practice has broadened since the terrorist attacks. Sikh Americans, along with others who are or appear to be Arab, Muslim, or South Asian, are being unfairly targeted by law enforcement,” he said in a release.