And so should you.
Blogging about the “Ground Zero Mosque” isn’t an exercise in politics du jour. If these arguments against the mosque and resulting decisions, however distracting from real American problems of the economy and jobs, are not combated early, often and vehemently, a lot more than an argument stands to be lost here. The freedoms of Americans like me are next up on the chopping block. And why not? We will have precedent.
Sepia Mutiny | America has a Nativism problem, not a Muslim Problem
Islamaphobia is not what afflicts our nation. It is merely a symptom of the underlying malady which, like chronic malaria, can flair [sic] up and leave the collective us, the American people, weak until treated. It will never be totally eradicated. Treating the problem by adopting an enlightened us vs.ignorant them mentality will make things worse, as will appeasement.
… In no way am I trying to say that Muslims should not be both concerned and saddened by what is happening right now. On the contrary, I am saying that none of us non-Muslims should for a second believe that we will be spared or that we need not concern ourselves because we are not the immediate targets of this ugly behavior by some politicians and media organizations. This isn’t just the Muslim and Latino community“s problem. This is the Global American“s problem too.
First Draft | The 9/12 Project and National Unity
… that’s who we were, a lot of us, on 9/12/01 — assholes, painting our chests red, white and blue and high-fiving our drunken buddies while we beat up Sikh cabdrivers and yelled. That’s who a lot of us were, and boy, were we ever grateful, weren’t we, for Osama bin Laden giving us an excuse for a self-important hoedown.
… I know a lot of people have memories of examples of kindness and decency from those days; all I have is notes of phone calls from people talking about yet another container of pig’s blood smashed on a mosque doorstep (CLASSY) and some dipshit accosting me at a rally yammering about how the “dune coons” were taking all our jobs away. It was high-level horrific, because Lower Manhattan was still actually burning, the entire country pretty much hadn’t slept, and here come these people … marcher Colin Zaremba, 19, told The Associated Press, “I’m proud to be American and I hate Arabs and I always have.”
Listen up, brown Americans out there who operate under the delusion that you’re white: Enough with the support of racial profiling of all browns and bigotry against Muslims and illegal Latinos, in particular. These are not justified behaviors just because, in your shameless desire for western approval, you deem all Muslims and illegal immigrants as driven by nothing but megalomania and greed, respectively. What’s with the self-loathing? You think that by distancing yourselves from the latest object of Rah Rah We’re America’s ire, they will consider you their friends and on their side, on the side of self-proclaimed Good. How blind are you? Have you observed how folks like Mr. I’m Proud To Be American And I Hate Arabs here look at your brown skin? The content of your character is worth approximately nothing to people like him. So, when they eventually call you a name, discriminate against you in housing or employment, leave a flaming cross on your lawn or worse because they can’t and don’t want to differentiate between an actual Muslim terrorist, just another Muslim and you, don’t run crying to me.
Instead, come back to real America now and be a real American who fights for the rights of all who want freedom regardless of race or religion. And stop offending my brain acting this way.
Update: Manhattan Cab Driver Stabbed By Passenger Who Asked “Are You Muslim?”
Amen