A government surveillance agent wrote glowing letters praising the student he monitored

Evidence

When college-application time rolled around, she asked the COSA to write a letter of recommendation for her, and he gladly obliged. “Perhaps the most exceptional quality about Yasmin is her dedication to her cultural and religious beliefs,” he wrote. “She has brought about an awareness of cultural diversity to our school, the likes of which we have not seen before. Yasmin is leading our school’s transformation from a climate of mere tolerance to that of understanding and acceptance. Her commitment and willingness toward promoting intercultural harmony is most inspirational.” To this day she and the COSA have remained friends. — Moustafa Bayoumi, How Does It Feel to Be a Problem? Being…, 456

Categorization

• DEEPTHINKING: The COSA’s surveillance role and his sincere praise collide: the state apparatus surveilling a Muslim teen also becomes her advocate and recommender — an unsettling paradox about how institutional power can be both menacing and personally supportive.
• SEED: Essay angle: when the surveillance state becomes your mentor — the strange cosiness of COSA relationships as a lens on post-9/11 community policing.