Continuing to repost blogs lost during a computer glitch; this ends October 2010
As a poet and copyeditor-that is, as an expert in the close analysis of words and their contexts-I feel the need to point out three things being overlooked by those bashing National Public Radio for supposedly infringing on free speech by firing commentator Juan Williams over remarks made on a Fox News program. First, Williams' questionable statement wasn't his revelation that he feels nervous when he sees fellow airline passengers in "Muslim garb." Here are his exact words: "I mean, look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the Civil Rights movement in this country. But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous.'' The truly outrageous allegation here is that a significant proportion of American Muslims identify themselves as Muslims first and Americans second, and the way they dress proves it. In the context of air travel this accuses them, not merely of a lack of patriotism, but of a broken allegiance serious enough to lead them to commit acts of terrorism. This is far more than an ethic slur, especially in an era of heightened concern over the likelihood of American-grown terrorism. There was a time when people might have said that a priest's collar or a rabbi's yarmulke symbolized their un-American affiliation with foreign sources of authority, but no one would take any such statement seriously now. They shouldn't find Williams' statement acceptable, either. Second, it's worth questioning whether Williams would have blurted out anything so loathsome it he had not been in the Fox News environment of impatience, interruption, and angry overstatement. Civility matters in civics, but this realization, enshrined in Vermont in the town meeting Moderator's role in enforcing moderation in behavior, seems to have been sacrificed in the quest for higher ratings and, arguably, an effort to sidetrack serious analysis by promoting inflammatory public behavior. Finally, I would like to see Williams put to the test in identifying people's religions by their appearance. Would he have called a Sikh a Muslim? Very possibly, if his judgment is so superficial. There are circumstances throughout life when statements are made that can't be forgotten or forgiven, and sorry isn't enough. This is one of them.
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