2008 Woodie Awards
Student probed by FBI for looking Middle Eastern
Student's looks prompt questions
KRISTEN COULTER
Issue date: 4/7/08 Section: News
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A University student, a history professor, a reporter and an FBI agent met at Gumby's Pizza on Thursday morning. It was there that FBI agent William J.H. Filson came to confirm that junior Jim Diffly was, in fact, a student working on a class project - and not a terrorist seeking to destroy North Georgia's chicken plants.
"It was the same as the phone conversation we had," Diffly said in an interview after the meeting. The agent said he needed to "meet me face-to-face to make sure I wasn't Middle Eastern."
In the meeting on Thursday, Filson explained he had to meet with Diffly to make sure he is a "Caucasian student" because of a call he received from the Hall County Sheriff's Office complaining that Diffly was taking pictures of chicken plants.
Filson said the individual who called Hall County said Diffly, who has a dark beard and long hair, may be Middle Eastern. But Diffly is white.
Diffly said his friends tease him because they say he looks Middle Eastern. He said they call him "Jim Laden." But after the meeting, Diffly said he doesn't find humor in it anymore.
"It's not as funny when it's coming from the FBI or a police officer," he said.
The situation "feels like profiling and almost harassment," Diffly said.
This investigation began during spring break, when Diffly went to Gainesville to take pictures of poultry plants as a part of a project for a Georgia history course.
He called one plant before arriving but was unable to make arrangements to tour the plant.
His history professor, John Hayes, who was at the meeting with the agent, told Diffly it wouldn't be a problem. He said he thought Diffly would be able to get into the plants without a reservation.
But Diffly faced strong opposition and was denied access to four plants.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 63
msfreeh
posted 4/07/08 @ 7:08 AM EST
for a partial list of crimes committed by FBI agents over 100 pages long see
campusactivism.org
click on home in upper left
click on forum in upper right
scroll down to FBI WATCH
Anon. because I'm different
posted 4/07/08 @ 8:34 AM EST
Wow. How incredibly scary.
"... when someone looks different... police may be called."
Being different warrants law enforcement involvement. I'm sure that there are folks who support this and don't see no problem with it. (Continued…)
Winfield J. Abbe
posted 4/07/08 @ 8:36 AM EST
Dear FBI agent: Would you please talk to the Athens Clarke County Mayor and Commissioners and the Georgia DOT and request that they address the very dangerous situation on Jefferson Rd. (Continued…)
stapler
posted 4/07/08 @ 9:16 AM EST
He is lucky that he's not in Gitmo right now. Hell, he's lucky he wasnt sent to Egypt to be "renditioned" either. I'm 1000x more afraid of this FBI agent than I am of some college student. (Continued…)
RP
posted 4/07/08 @ 10:08 AM EST
As a brown man who has been stopped for these sorts of suspicions before, this is not a shock at all.
Welcome to our world.
ain't buying it
posted 4/07/08 @ 11:16 AM EST
I'm not buying all of the supposed quotes that are being attributed to the officers and the agent. This article was written completely from the side of the "white" guy, as he was referenced several times. (Continued…)
buzzkill
posted 4/07/08 @ 11:51 AM EST
ain't buying it seems like the kind of person who would stand in the "she was asking for it" crowd in a rape case. no one is looking to get interrogated by the fbi, dude. (Continued…)
Frank
posted 4/07/08 @ 1:39 PM EST
Some of this is quite disturbing indeed. However, let's not forget the fact that the student was specifically denied access, then took it upon himself to snoop anyway. (Continued…)
Chicken Hawk
posted 4/07/08 @ 2:14 PM EST
Hell, what do you expect? What would anyone do if this dude showed up outside your house, or your place of work doing the same thing? Ignore him? Dude asks permission to tour, gets denied, and shows up at or near the property anyway and start taking pictures. (Continued…)
BC
posted 4/07/08 @ 2:49 PM EST
An article written with such ignorance...even if it is scary. First of all folks from the Middle East and North Africa are technically Caucasian (aka white). (Continued…)
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