Can we learn not to hate?
September 12, 2001 12:11 PM   Subscribe

Can we learn not to hate? Anti-Arab graffiti in Chicago.
posted by aladfar (14 comments total)
 
Are anti-arab sentiments cropping up in your neighborhood? What's happening on the sidewalks and streetcorners of our communities?

Note: This image is on my servers as I couldn't think of another another way of sharing it - I've no hidden agenda in "self linking". As I expect requests may tax things on my end, any who feel like mirroring the image are more than welcome to do so.
posted by aladfar at 12:20 PM on September 12, 2001


The thing that confuses me about these sentiments is that as far as I've seen, there is still almost absolutely no evidence as to who actually did it. In fact, most of the usual suspects were rather swift in divorcing themselves from responsibility.
posted by Su at 12:20 PM on September 12, 2001


I just posted this in another thread, but it belongs in here:

I saw graffiti spraypainted on the sidewalk outside of a 7-11 in Santa Monica this morning. It said "Bomb the Arabs" in big red letters.
posted by waxpancake at 12:21 PM on September 12, 2001


Would it be wrong for the rest of us to counter-vandalize with "Peace" and "Love" graffiti?

Also, should we all start listening to more Beatles music?
posted by Ptrin at 12:31 PM on September 12, 2001


Go do something about it. If you see graffiti, clean it up or go buy some red, white, and blue spray paint and paint an American flag over it. There is no reason that this type of behavior should be tolerated.
posted by LeiaS at 12:33 PM on September 12, 2001


is anyone in disagreement with the notion that graffiti is just fucking stupid?

with apologies to people who create art.
posted by donkeysuck at 12:39 PM on September 12, 2001


No, we can't all learn not to hate.

Many of us can, but never all. Look at some crime statistics. People rape and murder, and we're to be suprised that they write hateful things on walls?

Ignorance will always be with us. It's how we deal with it that matters.
posted by marknau at 12:41 PM on September 12, 2001


Last week, as I drove home at four in the morning, I noticed Nazi-swasticas on the Irak Air offices here in Copenhagen. It angered me much me at the time. I wish I had thought of what LeiaS said then. Go paint over it. Now.
posted by dabitch at 12:41 PM on September 12, 2001


There is no reason that this type of behavior should be tolerated.
I agree, but since it's pretty clear that, in the end, the Pentagon is going to do exactly that (i.e. "bomb the arabs"), I'm not sure we should worry too much about a few angry guys who like to stain walls with paint
posted by matteo at 12:49 PM on September 12, 2001


This kind of attitude makes me feel even worse. At the same time I'm grieving over the friend that I lost on the 105th floor WTC 1, I'm worrying about my Palistinian friends in DC and what will happen to them.
posted by witchstone at 12:50 PM on September 12, 2001


Jish was getting static earlier today. Sick, sick, sick.
posted by mathowie at 12:54 PM on September 12, 2001


It's probably just some stupid kids shooting off their mouths. In time, they'll either grow out of it or be left behind by the rest of the world.

"Kill the Arabs" is inappropriate, because it could incite violence here in America. But "Bomb the Arabs" is a different story. Assuming (big assumption) that they were responsible for the terrorism, then bombing will quite possibly be our response. No sense pretending like it's not true, or not what many people want.
posted by gd779 at 1:41 PM on September 12, 2001


Hmmm... maybe I didn't think that last post through thoroughly before posting. Consider it withdrawn.
posted by gd779 at 1:54 PM on September 12, 2001


Agreed: racism in its many ugly forms shouldn't be tolerated.

FWIW, this item about the graffiti is hardly surprising--not necessarily knocking the practitioners (I'm always happy to deplore the practice), but I don't recall ever seeing a single insightful, educated graffito anywhere.
posted by Big Dave at 5:41 PM on September 12, 2001


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