October 3, 2001
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I Never Knew Racism Would Be Politically Correct
Yesterday, my husband hosted the radio show again. He didn't KNOW he was the host until an hour before he went on the air, so he had to grab something quick to talk about.
He found a USA TODAY/FOX survey that 70% of Americans think it's okay, at least for now, that Arabs and Arab Americans in the U.S. be treated differently because of their race. 70% of our fellow Americans believe racial profiling is suddenly alright, and that it's ok for the FBI to go into a mosque and demand a list of their membership. 70% of our country's citizens feel it's alright for police to tail anyone with middle eastern-looking skin to "see what they're up to."
My husband is partly Mexican, and his cohost yesterday was a Puerto Rican blend (I'm making them sound like coffees, aren't I?). They were aghast at this survey -- but sure enough, about 70% of the callers to the show agreed. African Americans, Hispanics, Europeans -- across the board, people believed it was okay to step backwards 40 years and pretend that the civil rights movement never happened.
Now, today, a man in the US on a Croatian visa has slit the
throat of a Greyhound bus driver in Tennessee, sending the bus rolling, and somewhere between 6 and 10 people were killed (including the Croatian). Croats are from Eastern Europe and are generally white, but with an accent. (Do you watch "ER"? Goran Visnjic, pictured right, plays Louka, that handsome doctor... he's from Croatia.) Should we target all Croatians? Here's a few things I'm thinking:
- I have the misfortune of being the same shade as Timothy McVeigh -- but I haven't heard anyone hollering for racial profiling of people with skin the color of Wonder Bread.
- Suppose we'd had Arab racial profiling in place pre-9/11. Still, the guys that crashed the planes seemed NORMAL -- to their friends, coworkers and neighbors. NO ONE WOULD HAVE KNOWN ANYWAY.
- What's next -- interrment camps like we did for the Japanese in WWII? Stars of David on folks' heads, like the Nazis did?
- I think Dr. King is rolling over in his grave. Did he do all that work for nothing?
- Are you willing to give up your liberties? Really?
Give me some feedback here, folks. I'm beside myself.
- I have the misfortune of being the same shade as Timothy McVeigh -- but I haven't heard anyone hollering for racial profiling of people with skin the color of Wonder Bread.
Comments (22)
Well Bin Laden has operatives that are Nigerian, so if we stand for this, guess who is next and who is it going to be after that?
I'll tell you... Last week I saw a middle eastern (looking?) woman cross the gym with all eyes on her. Mine too!
Not for a moment did I think she was UP to something. I was looking because everyone else was looking (and thinking who knows what), and to be very candid, if I was her I don't think I could stand it. I was terribly sad for her, but I don't know what to do. I thought to approach her would be presumptious.
the world is full of momos.... unfortunately, america gives them the right to state their opinion!
I am Mexican myself, and would wholeheartedly agree with an across the board profiling. I dont care, let them profile me. I've got nothing to hide, I'm law abiding, so I don't care. If it means a few less murders, a few less robberies, and even just a small % drop in crime in general, then I'm all for it.
Maybe profiling wouldn't have prevented this from happening, but maybe we'd at least have an idea that perhaps these people were capable.
Its time we untie the hands of the FBI and CIA and let them get things done, the way we know they can get it done.
Godmike may not come back here... but HOW will profiling people help? Details, man, details!
If people know that the almighty police force is profiling for n'er-do-wells who look like they belong to the race we've decided it's OK to hate, then they'll feel more secure. They won't *be* more secure, but that doesn't seem to matter.
No one ever learns.
It's all part of the same knee-jerk reaction that gives us poll results saying things like 98% of Americans support indiscriminately bombing Afghanistan "back to the Stone Age" if there's a reasonably good chance we might kill Osama bin Laden in the process.
Americans are united in our fear for our safety and our strong desire to see some sort of payback. But collectively, we can still be dumb as a post.
Yes, yes, yes!
godmike, I'm truly shocked. Just aside from human rights, apparently you've never had your purse searched in front of people after being followed around in a store for an hour with your sister-in-law, just because she's the darkest person currently in the store (Mexican). Say that again, when you're pulled over "just as a precaution" and your car is searched, or you're detained without arrest, or deep cavity searched for weapons and drugs at the airport, simply because you're the profile of the week...
I don't think that there can ever be an excuse for racism and it's sad to see some people who have used the incident as an excuse for racism. I don't like seeing the reactionary panic to it either with people thinking that it's all suddenly ok and that it's only "ok" to be certain colours... Actually, it makes me very sad.
I am wholly with you, Sadzi. I've debated racial profiling for years, and this doesn't change my opinion now.
People are idiots. Racial profiling is idiotic. Therefore, people will do it. Alas!
I'm appalled. How could racial discrimination EVER help matters? It will only DIVIDE this country and the world, more than it already is.
Disgusting!
Frighteningly enough, I heard on CNN last week that they had conducted a poll of the American people, and a full 39% (that might not be the correct figure -- I'll have to check my blog and see) were in favor of sending all Arab-Americans to "detainment" camps, or whatever they were referred to as. Arab-Americans are Americans, period. The Arab part shouldn't even be considered.
I say as long as you live in the USA, then you are American... no matter what you look like or what color you are. I do not agree with racial profiling..
Why call it Profiling? It's Prejudice. Ouch. you don't like it? Prejudice. Prejudice. Prejudice. Bloody Politicians with their politically correct terminology. I think they are creating most of the havoc with this bs... anyway, that'll be another blog one day. Good on ya Sadzi.
Someone: "Racial profiling" is hardly politically correct. It means targeting someone because of their color. It's worse than prejudice, which is simply how you feel about someone, based on their color. Racial profiling implies an action associated with prejudice... prejudice to the next step, as it were.
This is very disturbing. To put people on a list because they're muslim does nothing to secure our safety. In fact, it abdicates the very safety we desire. Safety to be able to live our lives free.
Yes, OUR lives, OUR freedom. First of all, Arab Americans are part of OUR country/society/world, and second, it doesn't stop with them (as it didn't start with them). Once you give away that kind of power to anyone it proceeds from Arab to black, to mexican, it extends to women, and religions, and the poor, and people with stand up for them, of have any kind of dissenting opinion.
Kudos to you Sadzi and to your husband.
I just can't agree with racial profiling. I am so glad that as the world becomes more global, and more children are of mixed race it will soon be next to impossible to profile people.
Yeah, this one's tricky.
On one hand, you have a terrorist network that are largely Arabic living amongst us planning attacks.
On the other hand, 90% of Arab-Americans are honest, hard-working people.
It's a fine line to walk...security vs civility. I personally don't know how to respond. There will be some natural tendencies to be distrustful of Middle Easterners. That is simply ingrained in our instincts. If a tiger bites you once, you are a little weary around other tigers.
I think because this jihad has been declared, it's a unique situation. After all, they HATE us. This is truly a hate crime.
The other day (on talk radio of course) someone mentioned that an Arab man was walking around downtown Nashville with a notebook. He would stop at the base of our skyscrapers (all 4 of them haha) and it appeared as if he were counting the floors.
Were he anything but Arabic, this would most likely be overlooked. So...should his behaviour be considered suspicious? It's very, very tricky.
Like I said, I don't know how to think about it yet.
icculus - I think the percentage is probably a lot higher, probably 99.99 or something.
Also, although some have claimed that it is justified because 100% of the terrorists are arab, that isn't true either (case in point Timothy McVeigh, and also I heard that Bin Laden has some operatives from African countries).
I wouldn't be as opposed to a little profiling if people were then investigated in inobtrusive ways, and with respect until there was some other evidence to suggest otherwise. Like, someone could start a friendly conversation with the guy counting floors, or something.
Getting lists of people because they go to Mosque (the terrorists that lived in Jersey City never went to the Mosque - they prayed at home), is absolutely unacceptable.
I'm all for that, Prom -- right after we start profiling people that are the same race as McVeigh. All of them.
It's the same here in the UK
I hate the idea of profiling, but the trouble is, I don't know what the "right" solution is 
racial profiling... ugh... a clinical, sanitary name for an ugly practice. i don't agree with it at all. If you go back far enough, MOST of the people on the CONTINENT aren't truly "Americans". Bloody get over it... love your fellow man... oh yeah... I'm subscribing to your blog.