Based on your opinion and your references answer the following questions in your thread.
Homeland Security might be viewed as one agency, that being DHS, but this forum views
homeland security as a verb with all the stakeholders who carry this action out.
What does homeland security mean?
The act of securing the homeland had gone through many changes as the world continues to go
through major transformations. Using a specific definition to define homeland security is not an
easy task but according to (EPA, 2022), the act of homeland security is an American national
security effort to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other
hazards where American interests, aspirations, and ways of life can thrive. According to Dr. Fox
(Liberty University, 2021), Homeland Security is a very broad concept that centers on safety and
security with the focus on making citizens as safe as possible while at the same time maintaining
the sovereign principles of liberty and freedom that citizens have come to enjoy.
What is the mission of homeland security?
According to Dr. Fox (Liberty University, 2021), the goal of homeland security is to provide
safety and freedom to the people of the United States and as a result, the federal government has
enlarged the security and resilience of the US by preparing for hazards that pose a greater risk to
the security of the nation. The act of securing the homeland against threats was in existence
before the 9/11 attack but after the 9/11 attack on World Trade Center and the Pentagon in 2001,
securing the homeland became a major priority which led to the Homeland Security Act of 2002
that established the Department of Homeland Security as agency taking homeland security to a
different level with the mission to secure the homeland from all hazards through mitigation,
preparedness, response and recovery efforts using adaptable coordinated structures to align key
roles and responsibilities to deliver the necessary capabilities (EPA, 2022)
How effective and efficient is homeland security?
Protecting the homeland from all forms of hazard is the cornerstone of homeland security and I
believe homeland security has continuously transformed and been effective. Looking back from
history till now, there are continuous efforts by the federal, state, and local governments to crack
down on threats facing the homeland. According to the third Homeland Security Secretary
Napotalino in her inaugural “State of America’s Homeland Security” address, “the nation is more
secure than it was two years ago and more secure than when DHS was founded eight years
ago…we are all safe when the local law enforcement work together with communities and
citizens they serve and their partners in the federal governments and private sectors to protect
against the threats we face”(Homeland Security, 2009). The coordinated efforts of all the levels
of government in homeland security cannot be ignored. When Hurricane Katrina was not
properly tackled by the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) as part of DHS was given the authority in 2006 through the Post-Katrina
Emergency Management Reform Act (PKEMRA) to lead disaster management making it easier
to coordinate efforts and respond to emergencies (Sylves, 2009) which have been more effective.
What interests you the most about homeland security (what part of it) and why?
What interest me in homeland security is how all the levels of government make continuous
efforts to learn constantly from experience and devise new strategies in emergency management
to secure and protect the homeland. Looking back on history, one can deduce that most of the
strategies in place today were not the same one or two decades ago; governments can learn from
experiences and rectify shortcomings in laws protecting the homeland based on how well they
protect the people of the United States. For instance, the Stafford Act enacted in 1988, which
confers on locality affected by disaster to qualify and have access to federal aid, has been
improved multiple times through various legislations. For instance, the Disaster Mitigation Act
(2000) amended the Stafford act by including local, state, and tribal governments to be part of
emergency management (FEMA, 2022) followed by the Post Katrina Emergency Management
Reform Act (2006) which modified the Homeland Security Act and the Stafford Act with regards
to organizational structure making FEMA responsible for emergency management followed by
the Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013 and many more (Sylves, 2019). All these are
efforts being made by stakeholders to manage emergencies facing the homeland.
If you could fix any 1 thing completely within homeland security, what would it be and
why?
Communication is key in homeland security and if I can fix anything it would be establishing a
mechanism that would highly impact positively on interoperability among all the levels of
government and every stakeholder that ensures the safety of the homeland and management of
emergencies in the US. The inability of first responders, police officers, firemen, medical teams,
etc. to successfully communicate effectively with one another due to fragmentations and
bureaucracies in government is a problem. This contributes to ineffective response during
emergencies in many areas of the country that needs to be addressed because it can cause the loss
of lives of both individuals affected by disaster and first responders.
Finally, apply at least 1 biblical passage to the concept or practice of homeland security.
Explain why you picked the passage and what it means to you.
Psalm 127 says “Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the Lord
keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.” This bible verse opens my eyes to the fact that
without God there is not much that humans can do to protect the homeland but when we factor
God into all our efforts, the homeland will be secured both spiritually and physically making
every concerted effort put in place yield better results.
References
FEMA. (2022, May 24). Regulations and Guidance. FEMA.Gov.
https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management/hazard-mitigation-
planning/regulations-guidance
Fox, J. (2021, May 26). Introduction to Homeland Security [Video]. Liberty University.
https://canvas.liberty.edu/courses/347631/pages/watch-introduction-to-homeland-security?
module_item_id=36054942
Sylves, R. T. (2019). Disaster Policy and Politics: Emergency Management and Homeland
Security (3rd ed.). CQ Press.
US Department of Homeland Security. (2009). Homeland Security Starts with Hometown
Security. Homeland Security. https://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/dhs-accomplishments-fact-
sheet.pdf
US Environmental Protection Agency. (2022, July 25). Homeland Security Defined. US EPA.
https://www.epa.gov/homeland-security/homeland-security-defined
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