Secretary Napolitano Announces "If You See Something, Say Something™" Campaign

[The Patriot]

Secretary Napolitano Announces "If You See Something, Say Something™" Campaign Partnership with the Indianapolis 500

05-29-2011 04:00 AM

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010

INDIANAPOLIS—Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today joined Indianapolis Mayor Gregory Ballard, Indiana State Homeland Security Advisor and Emergency Manager Joe Wainscott, and Indianapolis Director of Public Safety Frank Straub to announce a new partnership to bring the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) “If You See Something, Say Something™” public awareness campaign to the Indianapolis 500—an effort that will help ensure the safety and security of fans, employees, and race crews by identifying and reporting suspicious activity.

“Security is a shared responsibility and every citizen plays a critical role in identifying and reporting suspicious activities and threats—particularly at large events such as the Indianapolis 500,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Bringing the ‘If You See Something, Say Something™’ campaign to the Indianapolis 500 is an important part of the Department’s ongoing efforts to engage the American public in our state, local and national security efforts.”

The “If You See Something, Say Something ™” campaign—originally implemented by New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and now licensed to DHS for a nationwide campaign—is a simple and effective program to engage the public and key frontline employees to identify and report indicators of terrorism, crime and other threats to the proper transportation and law enforcement authorities.

The Department of Homeland Security originally partnered with the state of Indiana on the campaign in January 2011. The “If You See Something, Say Something™” campaign partnership with the Indianapolis 500 will feature both print and video materials—including an “If You See Something, Say Something™” public service announcement with Indianapolis 500 Driver Graham Rahal.

Over the past year, DHS has worked with its federal, state, local and private sector partners, as well as the Department of Justice, to expand the “If You See Something, Say Something ™” campaign and the Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Initiative—an administration effort to train state and local law enforcement to recognize behaviors and indicators related to terrorism, crime and other threats; standardize how those observations are documented and analyzed; and expand and enhance the sharing of those reports with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and DHS—to communities throughout the country.

Partnerships with the “If You See Something, Say Something ™” campaign have recently been launched by the Washington State Ferries, The City of Los Angeles, AEG Worldwide, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Football League (NFL), as well as in Colorado, Minnesota and New Jersey, more than 9,000 federal buildings nationwide, Walmart, Mall of America, the American Hotel & Lodging Association, Amtrak, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the general aviation industry, and state and local fusion centers across the country. Secretary Napolitano also previously released the “If You See Something, Say Something ™” public awareness video, available here.

In the coming months, DHS will continue to expand the “If You See Something, Say Something ™” campaign nationally to help America’s business, communities and citizens remain vigilant and play an active role in keeping the country safe.

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