Secretary Napolitano Unveils PSAs for "If You See Something Say Something" Campaign
Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano unveiled new Public Service Announcements (PSAs) for the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) "If You See Something, Say Something" public awareness campaign, aimed at educating the public on the importance of reporting suspicious activity to state and local law enforcement authorities.
"Our nation's security is a shared responsibility and every citizen plays a critical role in identifying and reporting suspicious activities and threats," said Secretary Napolitano. "The new 'If You See Something, Say Something' PSAs encourage citizens across the county to work together to build a strong foundation for a more secure and resilient homeland."
The new PSAs will be distributed to television and radio stations across the country. The radio and televisions PSAs, available at www.dhs.gov/IfYouSeeSomethingSaySomething, present scenarios involving suspicious activity and educate viewers on how to notify authorities regarding potential threats.
During her remarks to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce at an event entitled, "State of Homeland Security Since 9/11: Looking Back, Looking Forward," Secretary Napolitano also announced a new partnership between DHS' "If You See Something, Say Something" campaign and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber will share the PSA with its members and provide supporting campaign materials at its regional offices.
The 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 transportation and law enforcement authorities.
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(tm)" 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.
Recent partnerships with the "If You See Something, Say Something(tm)" campaign include the Indianapolis 500, the U.S. Open, 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), the National Football League (NFL), Walmart, Mall of America, the American Hotel & Lodging Association, Amtrak, and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. In addition more than 9,000 federal buildings, the general aviation industry, and state and local fusion centers across the country also participate in the campaign.
DHS plans to continue to expand the campaign nationally, to help America's business, communities and citizens remain vigilant and play an active role in keeping the country safe.