From the WSJ Opinion Archives
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Whose
Prejudices Matter Most?
This Washington story from the Examiner, a multicity newspaper/Web site, caught
our attention:
Michelle Rhee heard the chatter 15 years ago, that as a Korean-American she doesn't belong teaching in an all-black school. So it will come as little surprise, she acknowledged, if similar criticism is leveled against her as chancellor of the predominately black D.C. Public Schools. . . .
"When I taught in Baltimore, when I first showed up I would say the community there was a little taken aback to see a Korean woman in their schools, which were 100 percent African-American," she said Tuesday, referring to her three-year stint at the Harlem Park Community School. . . .
The race issue is sure to crop up, [Northeast Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Kathy] Henderson said--unfortunately.
"We are in many ways a city still polarized by race and disparity, and you see that most poignantly in the school system," she said.
One could make the obvious point that the story would be told quite differently--that is, judgmentally--if it were a black administrator contending with prejudice from people of pallor. At the same time, it's obviously understandable, in light of America's racial history, that white prejudice, especially against blacks, is seen as especially invidious.
But we'd like to suggest that in this day and age black prejudice, even in its most benign form, does far more to perpetuate de facto segregation than white prejudice does.
We got to thinking about this the other night when we attended a debate on "The Future of Black America" sponsored by the Smith Family Foundation and Demos, a liberal think tank. An audience member prefaced her question by saying that she is employed by a magazine that targets a black readership and is very happy to work in an office with "people who look like me." The woman evinced no hostility toward white people, merely a preference for the company of fellow blacks.
Suppose a white person in America similarly expressed a preference for being with "people who look like me." It would be, if not objectionable, at least odd--for the simple reason that the vast majority of Americans are white.
As of 2005, according to census estimates, 80.2% of the U.S. population was white and 12.8% black. That means that in a perfectly integrated workplace--one whose racial proportions match that of the population as a whole--there would be more than six white people for every black person. The reverse--an office with a black-to-white ratio of 6 to 1--would be highly segregated. And the more blacks are concentrated in mostly black workplaces--or colleges, or neighborhoods--the fewer blacks there are elsewhere.
The desire to associate with one's "own kind" is simply part of human nature. But if segregation harms black Americans, working to diminish this desire would be helpful.
'New Thinking'
The New York Sun* reports that the EastWest Institute
held a conference yesterday "to promote 'new thinking against violent extremism
and radicalization.' " Among the speakers was Harvard's Jessica Stern:
Dr. Stern opened her remarks by saying that, while it may be true there is presently more violence being committed in the name of Islam than in the name of other religions, "all three major monotheistic religions have produced violence." . . .
"I've heard a lot of bashing of Muslim clerics for not stepping up to the plate and condemning extremist violence," she said. "But Catholic priests are not stepping up to condemn those who kill abortion doctors . . . [and] rabbis are not condemning the violent settlers' movement." . . .
When asked to cite specific examples of violence undertaken by this "violent settlers' movement," she mentioned Yigal Amir's 1995 assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin, a crime that was almost universally condemned by Jewish leadership.
Bill Donohue of the Catholic League quickly weighed in with a rebuttal of Stern's anti-Catholic remark:
There has not been a single abortionist killed in the U.S. since 1998. When there were killings in the mid-1990s, Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles, chairman of the Pro-Life Activities of the bishops' conference, said that such shootings make "a mockery of everything we stand for." When there were two killings at Massachusetts abortion clinics, Cardinal Bernard Law not only denounced them, he ordered a moratorium on sidewalk protest vigils outside abortion clinics in Boston. Cardinal John O'Connor's response in New York was profound: "If anyone has an urge to kill an abortionist, kill me instead."
It is of course true, and worth noting, that not all fanatics who murder in the name of religion are Muslims. But Stern seems to have drawn these false equivalences for the purpose of excusing decent Muslims who remain silent when others commit atrocities in the the name of Islam. How can this possibly be helpful? If this is an example of "new thinking," we'll stick with the old kind, thanks.
* Disclosure: Heather Robinson, author of the Sun story, was our guest at an EastWest Institute dinner last week.
Our
Hopeful Step, Your Foolishly Unilateral Withdrawal
Yesterday we
noted that the Boston Globe was blaming Israel--and in particular "Ariel
Sharon's foolishly unilateral withdrawal" from Gaza in 2005--for Hamas's
violent takeover of Gaza. Blogger Harry
Forbes notes that in 2005, the Globe sang quite a different tune:
To argue, as Benjamin Netanyahu did in resigning from the Cabinet, that disengagement from Gaza would create "a giant base for terrorism" is to argue that there should never be a two-state solution to the conflict. Denying Palestinians a homeland has been counterproductive for both peoples. Denying them even the hope of a homeland would be a road map to war everlasting.
Another protest frequently voiced by the Israeli right is that the withdrawal, scheduled to begin on Wednesday, only rewards Palestinian militants for the second intifadah--five years of attacks and other violent resistance to Israeli control. But this stance is backward-looking and self-defeating. . . .
Begun as a unilateral move announced by Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the step has since attracted a level of coordination that is encouraging on its own terms. . . .
The settlements have often been called facts on the ground. The withdrawal from Gaza, if successful, will be another important fact.
Well, at least the Globe wasn't wrong about everything. There is no denying that the withdrawal from Gaza is an important fact.
- "FBI officials said the audit found no evidence that any agent knowingly
or willingly violated the laws or that supervisors encouraged such violations.
The report in March also found no evidence of intentional criminal misconduct."--Reuters
dispatch, June 14
- "FBI Finds Abuse in Getting Terrorism, Spy Records"--headline, same Reuters dispatch
Wannabe
Pundits
"Moonves and 'The CBS Evening News With Katie Couric,' like George W. Bush
and Iraq, is in sore need of an exit strategy."--TV critic David Bianculli,
Daily news (New York), June 14
Biden His Time
Joe Biden is running for president, and oddly enough it isn't 1988. A reader
passes along a campaign email in which Biden takes solace in a recent poll showing
that only 8% of New Hampshire primary voters said they have "made a final
decision" about their vote:
I repeat: only 8 percent said they have made a final decision!! Presidential campaigns are not sprints; they more closely resemble marathons. There are ebbs and flows; runners that break away from the pack early frequently run out of steam at the end.
Caucus attenders and primary voters need time--and will take time--to get to know who the candidates are, what they stand for, and whether they are ready to lead our country during these perilous days. These voters will become increasingly engaged and serious-minded as election day nears. And as time goes by and as voters are able to compare and contrast the capabilities of the various candidates, Joe Biden will rise in their estimation and slowly, gradually, he will rise in the polls.
We're going to go out on a limb and predict that events will unfold exactly as Biden expects. Soon thereafter, Hillary Clinton will clinch the nomination.
'This
Is a Fashion Disaster!'
"Frank Critical of Bush on Suits"--headline, Washington Post, June 14
He
Looks Great in Orange
"Ashcroft Can Remain in Detainee's Suit"--headline, Associated Press,
June 14
And
We Thought Babies Came From Storks
"Cop Interrupts Pair Having Sex on Crane"--headline, Associated Press,
June 14
Night
of the Living Dead
"FBI Tries to Fight Zombie Hordes"--headline, BBC Web site, June 14
As
if the Teasing He Endured as a Child Wasn't Bad Enough
"Home Invaders Attack Man With Swordfish Snout"--headline, Australian
Associated Press, June 13
'My
Son Loved to Play With Them'
" 'Thomas and Friends' Railway Toys Recalled"--headline, Reuters,
June 14
Detroit
Is Even More Violent Than We Realized
"I'm taking the two winners of the 'Win-a-Trip contest' to the Great Lakes
region, where at least five million people have died in what is sometimes called
the continent's first world war."--Nicholas Kristof, New York Times Web
site, June 14
Breaking
News From 9400 B.C.
"Atlantis' Return May Be Delayed"--headline, Associated Press, June 14
Breaking
News From 1800
"Group Announces Support for Jefferson"--headline, Associated Press,
June 13
Breaking
News From 1920
"Rural Ky. Area Hopes for Running Water"--headline, Associated Press,
June 14
News You Can Use
- "In Health Care, Cost Isn't Proof of High Quality"--headline,
New
York Times, June 14
- "Scientists to Warn Public of Danger on Hot Days"--headline, San
Jose Mercury News, June 15
- "Breakfast Costs More These Days"--headline, Seattle Times, June 14
Bottom Stories of the Day
- "Crews Repaint Intersection Markings"--headline, Florida
Today (Melbourne, Fla.), June 14
- "Not a Lot of Defaults on Local Mortgages"--headline, Seattle
Post-Intelligencer, June 15
- "From Sidelines, Kerry Rips GOP Field Over Foreign Policy"--headline,
Boston
Globe, June 15
- "Dirty Diaper Spoils Trip to D.C.'s Post Office Museum"--headline,
FoxNews.com,
June 14
- "Oil Companies, Bush Blamed"--headline, Hartford Courant, June 14
Solitary
Confinement
The Associated Press reports from Peterborough, Ontario, on the strange case
of 24-year-old Steven Cranley:
Cranley, who has been diagnosed with a dependent personality disorder, attacked his girlfriend in an argument after their breakup.
He tried to prevent her from phoning the police by cutting her phone cord and punched and kicked her. He finally stabbed himself with a butcher knife when police did arrive, puncturing his aorta.
Cranley pleaded guilty and received an unusual sentence: The judge ruled that he "is not allowed to have a girlfriend for the next three years."
All we can say is that if this ever happens to us, we hope we get credit for time served in high school.
(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Justin Dillon, Rob Slocum, Sean Dougherty, Dagny Billings, Thomas Szyszkiewicz, Robert Huck, Bob Vorick, Wayne Boerger, Jan Nicholas, Bob O'Hara, Jim Orheim, Thomas Haight, John Nernoff, Dennis Murphy, Roberto Juarez-Garza, Roger Heinig, Stefan Sharkansky, Charlie Gaylord, Scott Wright, Jerry Rhoden and James Eckert. If you have a tip, write us at opinionjournal@wsj.com, and please include the URL.)
Today on OpinionJournal:
- Joseph Lieberman: Iran remains a problem, but Anbar has joined the fight against terror.
- Kim Strassel: It's payback time for another left-leaning lobby.
- Peggy Noonan: It takes secure boundaries for America's affection for immigrants to flourish.
- The Journal Editorial Report: Tune in this weekend for discussions of the law of war and earmark follies.
And on the Taste page:
- Naomi Riley: Some bankers bring capital where it's desperately needed.
- Tony Woodlief: Raising three sons has helped me appreciate the manly virtues.
- Mollie Hemingway: The decline of the Sabbath in America: Less praying, more working and playing.
