In a scathing letter to the editor of the Freeport News/Nassau Guardian, Dionisio D’Aguilar accuses the United States of discriminating against Bahamians in the new U.S. departure terminal at the Lynden Pindling International Airport.
The Bahamas Local owner is upset that U.S. Customs and Immigration officers handle U.S. citizens before processing Bahamians en route to the United States.
Mr D’Aguilar forgets that those border agents work for the U.S. tourists they are expeditiously processing and that the pre-clearance system was set up for the benefit of U.S. tourists, whom all Bahamians should want to ensure have a safe and enjoyable trip to the Bahamas.
D’Aguilar feels that Bahamians have a “right” to be processed as quickly as American citizens because, “The Bahamian taxpayer did not spend all this money on a new airport to make the process longer and more frustrating.”
While that may be true, Mr D’Aguilar should also remember that Bahamian taxpayers constructed the new U.S. Departure Terminal to ensure that U.S. citizens can be comfortably processed upon their return to their home country, without having to suffer delays that may cause them to rethink a next trip to The Bahamas.
Hmmm, one wonders if that is why the new terminal is called the U.S. Departure Terminal.
Mr D’Aguilar conveniently forgets that upon entry into the Bahamas, Bahamian residents are also segregated into a separate line, which often moves a little faster than the lines for tourists.
D’Aguilar apparently feels that it is okay for the Bahamas government to process citizens in separate lines but it is not okay for the Americans to do the same.
D’Aguilar sums up his rant by attempting to play the old race card, saying that, “The days of segregation and discrimination against Bahamians by foreigners operating in The Bahamas ended in 1973.”
Having a separate line for U.S. citizens is not discriminating against Bahamians, nor is it intended to provide Bahamians with inferior service. It is merely accommodating the people who the pre-clearance system was created for. It was not created for Bahamians who travel to the United States, it was created for American tourists who travel to The Bahamas.
If Mr D’Aguilar does not like the way U.S Customs and Immigration officers do their job, perhaps he could find another destination to travel to. Haiti is nice this time of year.
