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Introduction: Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, airline travelers have witnessed a dramatic change in airport security procedures. These changes affect everyone, young or old, man or woman, white skinned or dark. Race, sex, or age is not considered in determining likely suspects for terrorist involvement, which means that a three year old child traveling with her eighty year old grandmother is considered equally as a twenty year old Arab man. These new security procedures are intended to boost airport security for precautionary measures to prevent other such act of terror. However, there is much debate about the efficiency and reliability of these new airport security procedures. Some question if these new procedures appropriately filter out those with ill-intentions of committing these sorts of acts. Should other such measures be implemented to decrease the possibility of these perpetrators getting through airport security? Racial and ethnic profiling has come up as a possible, but highly controversial means of screening passengers. This paper will focus on the arguments both for and against racial and ethnic profiling as a means of heightening security for airline travel in and to the United States.