I wanted to jump in this thread, and add my observation on 2 local stories
(that have not made it to national coverage), and a third story that was
shown on a local station, but still involving children. The comman thread
that I can see, is what are the adults teaching the children?
Events.
Story 1:
http://forums.ibsys.com/viewmessages.cfm?sitekey=okl&Forum=171&Topic=5355A so-called "Black Pledge of Allegiance" on the Millwood Public School's
Web site has led to a raft of angry e-mails from people who say the statement
amounts to black separatist doctrine.
Here's what it says: "We pledge allegiance of the red, black and green,
our flag, the symbol of our eternal struggle, and
to the land we must obtain, one nation of black
people with one God for us all, totally united in
the struggle for black Love, black freedom and
black determination."
Story 2:
http://www.kdfwfox4.com/default.htmFRISCO: MASCOT CONTROVERSY
(FRISCO, February 20) -- A north Texas high school mascot is causing quite a
controversy. Some people in Frisco say the school's fighting coons mascot is racially
insensitive. It's been the team's name for 80 years since Frisco was an isolated farm
town and African American parents say the time's come for a change. Frisco
parent Ken Sallier said, "They are not the ones being teased behind it. All the jokes
and racial slurs. They're not getting that, so they wouldn't know." And parent Jim
Newman said, "I really feel sorry for something that happened in another part of
the country. That has never been a part of our culture. There's never been a
problem with racism in Frisco." The Frisco school board will face the issue in two
weeks.
Story 3:
http://www.kdfwfox4.com/default.htmCHILDREN OF JIHAD
To a casual observer, the videotape seems so benign. "The Children's Club" is a
show on Palestinian Authority Television, produced by the Palestininan Ministry of
Education. There are puppet shows, and a character that looks like Mickey Mouse
and lots of music. But when you translate the songs and the poems the little children
sing from Arabic to English, the veil of innocence is ripped away. For example, a
beautiful litter girl sings "Oh, my sister singing constantly, about my life as a suicide
warrior. And throw it into the abyss of death." Another pre-teen girl chants loudly,
"For me, my life has little value, because I'm returning to my Lord. And my people
will know I'm a hero." "On your life, I forsee my death and I rush towards it," shouts
a little boy. "And he who seeks the death of a suicide warrior, this is it. And how I
suffer the chains of the Jews."
Israel has been taping and distributing excerpts of this kind of television for several
years, complaining that the Palestinian Authority uses television to incite violence.
In America, at least, those complaints have largely fallen on deaf ears. But since
September 11th more people are listening.
"These are beautiful children," said Mark Briskman of the Anti-Defamation
League. "And they're teaching them hatred. They're teaching them to be,
ultimately, suicide bombers. You are condemning a whole next generation to this
kind of hatred and violence."
But Mohamed Elmougy, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, saw and
heard the tape differently. "What we're seeing is a natural reaction to oppression
and occupation," said Elmougy. "This is not hatred. This is patriotism. There's a
very fine line between hatred (and patriotism). They're not saying, 'Go, kill Jews.'
They're saying, 'We want to defend our country.'" Elmougy argued that the
translation was a bit skewed , that the word for "suicide" was not used. "I'm deeply
concerned about what I'm hearing on both sides. There's a Rabbi (in Israel) that
has used some of the same rhetoric about Palestinians and Arabs in general."
"You might have individuals who have prejudices," countered Mark Briskman. "But
there is no systematic indoctrination of children in Israel to hate Arabs, to talk
about spilling blood to kill Arabs, to talk about a holy war."
It may surprise you to learn, however, that Mark Briskman and Mohamed Elmougy
can watch the same videotape -- see and hear it so very differently -- and yet,
together, the two men continue to work on forging an alliance and more
understanding between local Muslims and Jews.
"As Americans, first and foremost, we have a lot of issues we have in common,"
said Mohamed Elmougy. "We can certainly work on them and still respect some of
our differneces."
Mark Briskman agreed. "Concern for religion in public schools, concern about hate
crimes, job discrimination, religious bigotry -- in those areas we certainly have a
common agenda."
What's going on in the Middle East may seem hopeless, but Elmougy and Briskman
offered a glimmer of hope for Muslims and Jews in the United States.
