La Shawn Barber has an excellent post on the unevenness of the Mainstream Media's coverage of race issues. When whites make racially related statements, the MSM is quick to cover and denounce them. When blacks make racially related statements, the MSM is quick to keep its mouth shut.
In her "Unrelated Update," La Shawn links to Michelle Malkin's post on the media's use of "African-American" to the point of absurdity. Malkin said, "CNN anchor Carol Lin referring to the two French teenagers of Tunisian descent whose death sparked the Paris riots as 'African-American.'" (emphasis in the original)
When the use of "African-American" started, I had two women acquaintances who were black but were British citizens living in the US. I wondered then what we were supposed to call these women: African-British? They certainly weren't Americans. The term, "black," included them. The term, "African-American," excluded them. But the MSM and the African-American leadership didn't seem to care about the exclusion of a number of residents by this choice of name.
But now, due to habit, "African-American" has become so inclusive that even French-Tunisians are included. And so are black Vulcans (see Michelle Malkin's post).
Perhaps the inclusive nature of hyphenated Americans has spread enough that now I can be counted as Asian-American. After all, I'm a quarter Hungarian, and the Hungarians are descended from the Huns, who came from Central Asia, possibly with the Mongol hordes. It makes as much sense as any of the rest of the PC race lingo.
2 comments:
In my lifetime I hope to see the black and white churches in this country united politically on conservative moral issues. Rod Parseley from Ohio has been working on this and may be partly responsible for Bush's victory in the Buckeye state. I wonder as we differently-colored believers get closer if much of separateness-lingo will be left behind in our churches. Surely its a feeling of alienation that sparks the need for a unique identifier other than simply American. I hope that kind of unity is coming.
How do you sophisticates on the west coast see us "Bible-thumping" hayseeds with pig poop between our toes? You all kind of intimidate us.
Chris,
You said, "Surely its a feeling of alienation that sparks the need for a unique identifier other than simply American."
You're so right. When we don't feel as though we belong to a group, we separate ourselves into groups we can belong to. Being simply "American" has lost a lot of its meaning and its ability to give people a sense of being included. No wonder we've started hyphenating ourselves. It's a shame.
As for us west coast sophisticates, I didn't know about the toe thing.
I think the sophisticates go to a different church, where they don't approach new people but let them blend into the scenery. Sophisticated people can be shy that way. They connect in their small growth groups.
At our church, we talk to people and hug them and go out to lunch, so the shy folks don't stick around too long. I think we'd be just fine with you hayseeds. Just don't bring the poop inside...
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