Too much to say
By Libby
As it turns out I don't have time to reply to Jim's posts and the commentary here this morning on immigrants at the moment, but I do have a lot to say in response that I hope I can get to this evening if I get home at some kind of decent hour. For the time being let me just say that what distresses me when I hear people I like and normally consider reasonable thinkers talk like that is I believe it leads to incidents like this.
Or subsititue, religion-deep for those last words to avoid having this debate center on racisim, because I don't believe it's so much about skin color as cultural differences. I see this sort of broadbrushing of Muslims as creating the environment that breeds violence in response. As I said, I'll be revisiting this when I have time but for the moment let me paraphase Robert Jamieson here and just say that fear doesn't seem to lead to rational discourse.
As it turns out I don't have time to reply to Jim's posts and the commentary here this morning on immigrants at the moment, but I do have a lot to say in response that I hope I can get to this evening if I get home at some kind of decent hour. For the time being let me just say that what distresses me when I hear people I like and normally consider reasonable thinkers talk like that is I believe it leads to incidents like this.
Rita Zawaideh of the Arab American Community Coalition told me her group's hot line recently got a call about six men who took a ferry Aug. 12 on their way home from a camping trip. The men were met at Colman Dock by a show of law enforcement and questioned for more than an hour. From India, Pakistan and the Middle East, they are in America on work visas.
"They said they were stopped because of 'suspicious behavior,' " Zawaideh said. "For breaking into small groups when they got out of their cars on the ferry."
The FBI and Seattle police had no comment about that incident Monday.
A Seattle police report said after 10 p.m. Aug. 12, a ferry captain did call authorities about "persons of interest" -- possibly including men from the photos -- on board. A ferry spokesman said authorities questioned two carloads of people, examined their cars and let them go. Another Seattle police report -- from an incident earlier Aug. 12 -- said a passenger on another ferry called 911 about a "Middle Eastern man with olive skin" who was "holding a video camera."
When ignorance meets fear and simple actions become freighted with the worst of intentions, that's when it happens: Innocent people become criminals in the minds of those who see only skin-deep.
Or subsititue, religion-deep for those last words to avoid having this debate center on racisim, because I don't believe it's so much about skin color as cultural differences. I see this sort of broadbrushing of Muslims as creating the environment that breeds violence in response. As I said, I'll be revisiting this when I have time but for the moment let me paraphase Robert Jamieson here and just say that fear doesn't seem to lead to rational discourse.
Labels: immigration
posted by Libby Spencer at 3:27 PM
2 Comments:
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When ignorance meets fear and simple actions become freighted with the worst of intentions, that's when it happens: Innocent people become criminals in the minds of those who see only skin-deep.
When we have a known enemy and do not remain ever vigilant then planes have been known to fly into buildings.
We know who the enemy is and if to practice vigilance means offending a few people, then so be it.
When Irishmen threaten this country with death, then I won't be offended when asked about taking pictures of ferrys.
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