An “anonymous” tipster [Thanks, gf.] passed on a link to the Cornell American, which seems to be a free newspaper available on campus up there in gorge-us Ithaca. Apparently, it is a publication so desirable, you are limited to one copy per person, but I’m keeping you from the relevant background info so I’ll give you a sec to peep the following blockquote about the awesomeness which is The Cornell American:
Founded in January 1992, its mission is to “raise a traditional American perspective, so as to balance debate on campus and to further conservative ideals.” The opinions presented in the Cornell American are solely those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the advertisers or persons listed as staff.[link]
The alert mutineer who blew up our hotline asked this salient question:
Satire or “Ivy Twerps [being] Ivy Twerps” to quote Siddhartha?
She posed that query regarding a mock schedule of events for “Islam Awareness Week 2007!”, a piece so significant, it didn’t have a byline more specific than “staff”. How thoughtful! How helpful.
Here’s what I have to say to that— and by responding thusly, I have now officially turned in to my parents, but I think their take on such things is appropriate in this case, especially– if you have to hide something, doesn’t that tell you you’re doing something wrong? Eh, edi?
Highlights of the agenda after the jump.
This past week, The Muslim Educational and Cultural Association held its annual Islam Awareness Week 2007. As if Islam wasn’t made painfully aware to Americans already, we at The Cornell American decided to co-sponsor some events of our own. The following schedule of events this past week were both enlightening and entertaining…
Tuesday, 4/10
3:30 — Campus-wide militant riot. Meet at CJL. B.Y.O. AK-47.
5:00 — Flag-burning on Ho Plaza Denounce the imperialist agressors.
8:00 — Sunni-Shia Hockey Showdown at Lynah Rink Losers beheaded according to the will of Allah.
Wednesday, 4/11
4:30 — IED Construction Dos and Don’ts with the Chemistry Department (Baker 101 E) What has some bang? What fizzles? Don’t embarrass yourself—come to this instructional seminar!
7:30 — Make your own kidnapping video with the Film Department (Schwartz SB23) Ropes, victims, masks, and large blades provided.
10:00 — CUTV presents Jimmy Carter’s self-detonation for Palestinian rights Broadcast live from Haifa.
Thursday, 4/12…
8:30 — Burqa Beauty Pageant @ Schwartz Auditorium in Rockefeller Hall Grand Prize: Be stoned to death for being a shameless harlot. Runner-up gets a goat.
Friday, 4/13
Noon — Jihad on Day Hall Occupy Day Hall until the Campus Code of Conduct is changed to reflect sharia law…
* Camel Parking provided.
** Security at all events provided by CUPD and Hezbollah.
Well, kittens? Whatcha think? Offensive? Ignorant? Intolerant? Stupid? Not worth our time? SO worth our time? Less interesting than whether or not Abhi’s outfit was lame, at the BollyVedding of the century?
Oh, and are any of our readers current students who can give us mutineer-on-the-scene commentary?
AMFD: Please feel free to comment again! And please read #146 along with #143.
I haven’t been around on SM as long as you seem to have, and am more than willing to be enlightened.
I know this is at a slight tangent from the main thrust of the thread, but feel free to try again 🙂 And BTW, there was no India-vs-Pak element in my comment, so it might be nice if we could keep that angle out of this.
I actually thought that the agenda was funny as hell. Couldn’t stop laughing after I read it.
Just some college kids having a good time folks.
Bang Gully — I mostly agree with you. SM is a reflection of the community commentors and bloggers, and it is not a good place for conversations about Muslim Desi life. I mostly disagree with everythin LL has to say, but Salil is right, we had these debates about the nature of SM years ago. Saurav (an old dissenter) left and became part of a different brown community website. I’m sure others left as well.
Me, I think the SM community is a huge electronic argument for the existance of Pakistan (which is why I call you an electronic Suhrawardy). But half my family lives in India, so I stick around here.
Cachaji — the figures you givee are wrong (they confuse west pakistan with 1947 Pakistan), but are repeated often. Here is the comment where we SMers sluethed out the truth. Wikipedia is also wrong.
Suprisingly, the proportion of non-Muslims in the population has declined twice as much in India than in Pakistan(3.56% to 3.48% in PK, 90.3% to 86.6% in India).
So when is a fatwa gonna be issued against the cornell american. Lol.
Thanks, then I stand corrected. So the number of Hindus for 1947 in ‘Pakistan’ include those who were in present-day Bangladesh back then. Fine. I sort of suspected something like this. I was only quoting Wiki, and am in no way vested in the ‘accuracy’ of the figures. Also, these figures were not making any central point in my comment, they were more ‘by the way’. We know there was a serious displacement of Hindus from present-day Pakistan to present-day India during 1947-51, and that may be hard to capture in statistics. Even if we could, that wouldn’t, by itself, speak to how Hindus in Pakistan today are treated or feel they are being treated.
Guys, you need to stick this on your flyers and banner headlines, along with all the other ‘praise’ you get from Hindu right wingers who detest you.
Yum, persecution and negativity, just in time for lunch! Yay! We are never good enough! Wheee! I love the constant criticism, which doesn’t even make sense! Hindus think we cow to Muslims! Muslims think this is an electronic argument! Liberals thing we are too conservative! Conservatives think our hearts are too bleedy! Awesome!
If there aren’t enough discussions on desi muslim life, initiate them; send in tips, comment and THEN condemn us if we fuck up, why don’t you.
What would make me feel better right now…ah yes. It starts with a “P” ends with an “N” and contains a conjunction in between. Al Mujahid, your audition commences in 25 minutes.
Speaking of banners, and off on another tangent – I’ve been noticing the really nice banners up top. I think they are really really nice, just like the ones from before, maybe even better 🙂 And while the text content on this site is certainly super-fabulous, the graphic visual appeal of the site is really really great too. Thanks to all the Mutineers and other volunteers who make this site so great. And – thanks again!
Who are the fluffers?
Where’s SpoorLam when you need him?
Man, HMF that is just silly. Plenty, PLENTY of this attitude in big Northern megalopoli too. The South has (somewhat justifiably) been the American whipping-boy on race, but there’s lots of blame to go around even today. Read James Loewen’s “Sundown Towns” for a great, more inclusive history of American racism, which continues to this day.
I just got back to this site (no internet connection at home) and am only now getting an opportunity to respond to HMF
HMF – my perception continues to be that your initial blanket statement about the South is that you are doing exactly what you criticize (overgeneralizing and essentializing).
I understand your observations about the South (but not your conclusions from your observations) but they are out of place when you are arguing for not overgeneralizing Islam. Please….talk about essentializing.
The people who lambast Islam, believe that it is Islam’s very essence to be violent, that the religion itself is geared towards violence.
I can restate this and say “the people who lambast the South, believe that it’s Southern culture’s very essence to be bigoted and violent†and that is what you are saying about the South based on your “observations”.
Really, if I take your way of arguing, I can take “observations†of my brief trip to Oman to support the fact that “Islam†is oppressive. I can take historical instances to support how “Islam†is oppressive. And the whole “laziness†in the South, I could support “laziness†in Islamic communities, with your way of arguing.
From how you defend yourself I feel that you base your arguments on political correctness – it’s policitically correct on SM to protect Islam from being essentialized (though apparently some readers disagree)…but that argument also extends to other cultures/religions/etc. And I reiterate, in my book, you defeat your own purpose of protecting a group of people against bigotry by essentializing another group of people.
No, it’s not silly. I thought I pre-empted this line of thinking by stating, “this doesn’t mean that everywhere else is Disneyland”, further more I also stated, and you quoted “Because, as racism was prolific historically, all over the US, I don’t think anyone would deny the South has historicaly been the most vocal and unapologetic about it.”
Now, there have been members of the civil rights movement, who actually see this as a good thing. Malcolm X has always said, it’s better to deal with a wolf than a fox (ie someone who’s bearing who he is, and not hiding behind nice sounding words like “integration”) As he himself never lived in the South (Detriot, Boston and NY), he’s also said, “Stop talking about the South, it’s not just the South. When I talk about the South, It’s south of the Canadian border”
…but his goals were a bit different. I’ve read James Loewen, not that particular book, which I will have a look at. But read James Loewen’s “Lies my teacher told me” , in particular the chapter called “Gone with the Wind” and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
Are you categorically stupid? Did you not read this from my previous post:
It’s undeveloped thinking to label every group collectivization equally motivated, and equally justifiable (or injustifiable). This is what you are doing.
In addition, a religious collectivazation and regional collectivization can never be equivalent. There’s no way to make general statements about a religion and not have it be “essentializing” to their inherent nature, where as statements about a region can be drawn from historical record and observed instances coming from said region. So I can be making a statement about how a society operates in that physical location, without making any claims on the inherent nature of the individuals.
If the Cornell American made references about Islam as its’ practised in Saudi Arabia, or in the middle east, or something like that. then maybe you’d have some kind of case. but they didn’t, so you don’t.
It starts with a “P” ends with an “N” and contains a conjunction in between. Al Mujahid, your audition commences in 25 minutes.
Hold on, I need to get ride of my brief first.
I meant rid and not ride!
Chachaji: I was not addressing you in the comment. For the last couple of years, some commenters on SM have used the pre-1955 numbers of Hindus and compared them to the present number of Hindus in Pakistan as evidence of the mass migration of Hindus from Pakistan because of intolerable conditions. That is why I brought up India in my comment. You of course were saying no such thing. Peace 🙂
Hey HMF – can we stop with the “are you categorically stupid” stuff? Kindof juvenile to me.
I’ll answer you later – don’t have time right now, but you make no sense to me and you contradict yourself. And quickly – I’m not understanding the difference between generalizing a culture (the south) and generalizing islam. geography/culture/religion can often times be conflated and is…I’m not talking about the Cornell paper, I’m talking about how YOU try and attack the generalizers. I don’t care that you said “the south isn’t doomed” – you contradict yourself b/c you in the same statement say “the south is…(now and has been in the past)”. I believe Clueless had some points to say about how “islam is…. (now and has been in the past)”. You attacked him, (why do you always seem angry in your posts?) and one of the ways that you attacked him and defend your statements about the South is to say that you can generalize about the South (whether you see it as a region or culture) – but by the way you can’t generalize about Islam (whether its seen as a religion/culture/ or even region.
Please explain to me why There’s no way to make general statements about a religion and not have it be “essentializing” to their inherent nature, where as statements about a region can be drawn from historical record and observed instances coming from said region … I’m not understanding this difference at all.
I really should get back to work – SM can be addictive.
Another thing HMF – I’m pretty sure (now I’m speaking for others, so others can correct me if I’m wrong) that the people in this thread that were generalizing about Islam – are saying that Islam is doomed to forever more be….
I think they are making overgeneralized statements and drawing conclusion of how Islam is now and has been in the past and essentializing them, which is exactly what you do to the South.
woops, Let me restate:
Another thing HMF – I’m pretty sure (now I’m speaking for others, so others can correct me if I’m wrong) that the people in this thread that were generalizing about Islam – are NOT saying that Islam is doomed to forever more be….
Of course you don’t care. If you did, you’d see the fallacy of your argument. Please point out where I said “The south is…”
Gladly. A religion is at it’s root, a belief system combined with a set of physical practices (ultimately to “realize” that belief system), I believe both are required to correctly constitute a “religion.” Any general statements made about religion, directly attack that belief system. Because if you’re not attacking that, what else are you attacking?
But. a statement on region, makes no such direct claim on that belief system being inherent to the region. It’s not the same to say, because such and such acts have come out of this place historically, and such and such writings have come out of this place historically, and such and such laws were written on the books in this place historically, that it would take great effort to challenge these ways that have been perpetuated from generation to generation (with a little bit of erosion as time passes)
And certainly many people can break free from the society that has done a number on their brains, for example, Tim Wise, who I absolutely respect as an authority on race relations and race hisotry, who happens to be a Southern white man (He fought David Duke’s campaign just out of college at Tulane)
I shouldn’t have called you silly HMF, and for that I apologize.
I still think you’re wrong though 🙂
I guess I agree with that Malcolm X quote. The chapter you cite in “Lies” is important in understanding the very real violence in the Reconstruction-Era South, and the “nadir of race relations” (as Loewen calls it) in the US afterwards. But he basically stops at the early 20th century in that book (though he fleshes the story out a LOT in “Sundown Towns”). That perspective basically ignores the events of the Civil Rights Era, which saw a number of victories in the South that were not usually matched by activism in the North. Remember that Martin Luther King Jr. won in Selma, Alabama but lost in Chicago. Remember that Northern Civil Rights leaders were assassinated by the government (eg: Fred Hampton). Remember that the race riots that hit the country after MLK’s death were most violent and sustained in Northern cities, partly because peaceful activism had failed in the North.
The South was the most visible front in the battle for civil rights. That was partly due to real historical circumstance, but it also reflected institutional biases. It’s always easier for the media to pick on an “Other” and the rural South was way more “Other” to New York and Washington-based journalists than the American inner-city. Bull Connor turning his hoses on the black protesters in Alabama is an iconic image these days. The people who firebombed homes in white neighborhoods in places like New York, Chicago, and Milwuakee to prevent integration are virtually forgotten. In many ways, the fight for true equality is still stalled in Northern urban areas, as any current list of the most segregated cities will show. The South may have some backwards people, but it’s been kicked in the ass enough that it’s had to move forward.
Anyway, this is WAAAAY off topic, so I’m sorry. But I basically grew up in the South and semi-rural Midwest, so I had to respond to this.
Then you should also agree with the context. Malcolm wasn’t pardoning the South, he was indicting the entire US, making sure the Northern atrocities (as you mentioned, his house was firebombed by Klan members in Detroit) weren’t forgotten. He agreed the South had great potential for violence though, as he talks about when setting up the Atlanta NOI temple.
I’d say, large part. Malcolm once said, “White people called King a communist and anti-American, then when we came along, they thanked the lord they have a Martin King” If the geographical locations were switched, so would be the “victories.”
No problem. I’m glad you did. (respond, not growing up in the South)
Bang Gully :
On the contrary people in this site take a lot of care to highlight Muslim issues in the diaspora, despite a much lesser presence of Muslim commentators and bloggers. I can recall quite a lot of Muslim related issues in the last few months, the Kazim Ali, the Mosque in england and many more.
I don’t think it fails to live up to the standard. I think the essence of a progressive blog is the ability to critically debate religion. Agreed, there have been a few trolls (especially some guy who posted stupid vitrol and was banned and deleted), but the majority of discussions were centered around critically examining religion. Thus you would expect offensive stuff posted about certain religions and you might see them as “bashing”. I for one is a regular “basher” of Hinduism. I would hate it if SM became more regulated and severly moderated all discussions about religion. That would insulate religion from any sort of debate and certainly dent the progressiveness of the blog.
Now if you are easily offended by any critical questions asked about your religion, then it’s a different discussion altogether.
Clueless, that’s why I did this ” ” around the term red-neck. And I only used it on here coz it was on here that I first came in contact with the term since my return from India, so I figured the term was “ok” with the bloggers/poster here on SM. I remember asking for a definition of “red-neck” here when I first saw it, based on the answer I got from a poster here on SM, I used the term above in the same context.
Bang Gully:
I’ve been reading this site from just before that time and I have never come across anything like that at all. Care to give examples?
As a muslim I’ve never found this blog to be offensive at all, on the contrary ALL of the bloggers and most of the commentators are very understanding when it comes to Islamic issues. I guess you’re just chucking an MSNBC/Newsweek and using one or two comments to judge an entire community (something which we muslims are constantly asking others not to do).
I really havent noticed any rants against just one community in general
I’m glad Sepia Mutiny includes postings about things which concern Muslims.
When a crime and other injustice happens against a non-Muslim brown person, where the perpetrator clearly intends to victimize a Muslim, it upsets me when I hear or read people say things like, “But he/she wasn’t even Muslim!” — as if the fact that the victim was not a Muslim makes the infraction somehow worse, because the clear implication is that if the victim were a Muslim it would somehow be “more understandable.”
However, I’m glad when I read comments here expressing that crimes and injustices are just as bad no matter who the actual or intended victims are.
I agree with the idea that these things affect us all, no matter what our religious identity is. I can understand people feeling insulted for being perceived as something they aren’t. However, even if the favored hatred target of the day isn’t one’s own group, that group could easily become a target in a climate of hate. Vigilance against all hate is much better than solely concerning oneself with the hate aimed at one’s particular group.
Further, it’s much more productive to fight all hatred than to pass out pamphlets and flyers to haters telling them how to tell the difference between a given group and the hated group of the day.
If anything, the Cornell American parody of an awareness event shows us exactly what young conservatives think (and are made to think) before they become the legislators and steady voters of tomorrow. Such perspectives are reinforced to the extent that they are taken as facts; we are in a sociopolitical era where individuality, logic and objectivity don’t matter any more and hive-mind anecdotes prevail.
Case in point: Creation Museum (my favorite paragraph from this article: “When the Gallup Poll asked people about their views on the subject in March, 47 percent of Americans polled said that God created humans pretty much in their present form some time in the last 10,000 years. That belief was strongest among those with less education, regular churchgoers, people 65 and older, and Republicans.”)
These Cornell students are moneyed and with that sheepskin will be the decisionmakers of the near future – they have nothing to lose and everything to gain by keeping the herd dumb.
Last but not least, it helps to know what those with such mentalities think of Brown.
They think the same of Yale, Dartmouth, and Harvard as well.
Roddy @ 177: Words of Wisdom, brother! Couldn’t have said it better myself, and more power to you!
The Ho Plaza is actually located steps from the Kroch Library. I am not making this up.
All of you “enlightened” liberals, do yourself a favor and go live abroad anywhere outside of the US and you’ll realize that the ONLY ones taking the moral high ground are Americans, in Middle Eastern Countries there are no “Political Correct” movements to “understand” and “befriend” westerners. Personally I love the post…I dare anyone to tell me that all of the “stereotypes” from it arent true…just watch CNN for a couple of hours…
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