Blond Bashing (attacks on Jessica Lynch)

[economic justice]

From another post by a DUer:

"cash in as the blue eyed-blond haired tool"

Am I the only one that's a little ticked off at all the racism shown by these kinds of posts? I see little difference in what the poster wrote above and what some RW nut would write about another ethnicity. Or, is it open season if you're white and of European descent?

This, to me, is a very legitimate issue and I would hope that DUers, of all people, would denounce these kinds of attacks on white females that appear to be targeted at anyone who is white, female, blond, and has blue eyes.

We should all stand up against racism, and I have, but that doesn't mean the left should be haters of all things white. I see this enough with the "white male" thing that is constant here, but since skin has been turned on a young girl who has gone through all she is, I'm sorry I just don't get it.

Thoughts?

[trotsky]

1. I could be wrong

but I think this is more of a sarcastic way of pointing out why Lynch has been singled out as a propaganda tool by the right. And maybe pointing out the general racism that still exists in the US - people are much more interested in the pretty blond female POW than any of the others.

[economic justice]

8. Stereotypes

Tht really is my point. It's a racial stereotype. And before someone says, "No, it's a commentary on our society," I would say that the same thing has been said by Freepers who talk about the problem of black men=mugshot=criminal. Racial stereotypes should be condemned and not excused away by anybody.

[arcane1]

14. exactly. That's why we condemn the Lynch hype and PR

and the total silence about Ms Johnson's captivity. I guess she didn't suffer since there were no tv crews sent to "rescue" her

no book deals

no movies

no attention whatsoever


you are grossly mis-judging this site, its posters, and the left with this nonsense, and probably deliberately

tell Sean we said hello

[economic justice]

35. Excuse me?

Disagree with you and I'm a freeper? "Say hello to Sean for me?"

[imhotep]

2. those blond blue eyed women

cant get a break can they?

[Brian Sweat]

19. They have it worse then us white men.

[Maple]

3. Jessica was chosen

as the 'blue eyed blond haired tool' precisely because of her appearance.

There was another American woman taken prisoner...have you heard anything about her?

She's black.

So if there's any racism involved ...it isn't coming from DU.

[Walt Starr]

7. Thank you

I always question DUer's copmments that are taken out of context, but even on this one, it's pretty clear the racists are the ones who won't even talk to the black woman.

[economic justice]

11. Oh!

Since Shoshanna hasn't received attention - let's slam Jessica due to her color? That's the kind of thinking that will keep the left on the fringe. That's too bad, too, because we need to stand up against ALL kinds of racial stereotypes!

[arcane1]

20. "let's" slam Jessica???

listen, how foolish must you be to think that a single quote on a board of thousands constitues "we"?

see, what happens is, you go looking for something to condemn us for, something the "left" doesn't need. Then you ignore the enourmous number of posts that go against what you are looking for, and now: presto! All of DU is "slamming" Jessica due to her color

give us a break, please.

[economic justice]

37. Read the Posts!

Why are you framing this us/we??? I AM A DUer!! I also consider my self of the LEFT. Now, it is NOT a "single" post and YOU KNOW IT! I got tired of reading what color of hair Jessica has! Brother....

[arcane1]

51. where are the slams?

I saw the one you quoted, but 99% of this board is NOT responding that way

it is dishonest to start a thread suggesting otherwise


am I the only Duer who is sick of people joining this board to put us down?

[Name removed]

25. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[economic justice]

40. "stand against WHITEY"??????????

bigot

n : a prejudiced person who is intolerant of any opinions differing from his own

[arcane1]

4. where is the thread this came from? Link?

I haven't heard any criticism of Lynch herself, but there has been much (justifiably so) about the Admin's PR team exploiting whiteness for whitey's sake, and the dis-service they do to this young woman

sorry, we'll need more than just your claim about this. Too many of these cut-and-paste judgements of the "left" going on around here for me to take this seriously

try again

[economic justice]

13. To clear something up..

I **AM** from the left.

[Kanary]

5. yes

I'm more than a little put out with all the vitriol being extended here. It's just more of the same sexism, which this site is becoming famous for.

The woman asked for none of this, so how 'bout we all open our hearts a little, and offer her some support?? I really feel for her and what she has gone through, and continues to go through.

She did what we wanted her to... she told the truth. Now she is paying the price for that. Can't we reach out to her instead of exercising our egos?

Kanary

[Maple]

9. People on here

have expressed admiration for Jessica and her courage in standing up to the military and media and saying none of this story is true.

And I very much doubt this site is 'famous' for sexism.

Pul-eeze.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

21. Yep. I've been in a lot of Lynch threads today. General Consensus...

She may not have been a hero then, she sure as hell is now.

[economic justice]

24. And before today?

Taunts for being blonde and blue-eyed. If only a few are willing to admit that this is even going on....forget it!

[arcane1]

26. where are the taunts?

show me

[Screaming Lord Byron]

30. She is being manipulated. Part of that is because she is aryan and cute.

Discussing that is pretty fair game, i don't see it as racism.

[economic justice]

41. Well then....

Let's talk about how many "aryans" start at wide receiver in college football, the NFL! Fair game, huh? The problem is we CANNOT discuss attacks on a girl for being "aryan" and "cute" without being accused of --- yep ---- racism.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

44. OK. You think we're racist on this. I don't

I don't know where we can go with this except flame war.

[economic justice]

56. Agreed

With that I will end my participation in this thread. You're right about this, it's just a flame war. Sorry for that.

[Kanary]

22. "where is this rampant sexism? Does a single post by one person stand for

Actually, many women have been trying to bring the sexism here to the attention of others, because it is very hurtful.

But, that's not what this topic is about.. it's about Jessica.

How can we start putting this in a positive direction, and give the woman some support? What she's going through is horrendous.

Kanary

[arcane1]

28. she's been getting TONS of support here!!!

The people being condemned by the MAJORITY on this board are the assholes who told all the lies about her in the first place.

THE VERY SAME PEOPLE SHE CRITICIZED IN HER ABC INTERVIEW!!!


we agree with Jessica 100%, and the trolls say we're slamming her


They see what they want to see, I suppose... :crazy:

[Name removed]

32. Deleted message

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[economic justice]

42. "you wingers"

I thought this was against the rules???? I am hardly a "winger" of the right type. Maybe the left, but nowhere even CLOSE to rightwing as you suggest.

[StClone]

68. Ok, edit it to "those wingers"

;-)

[curlyred]

6. is the other female POW getting this kind of attention?

The truth is the government and the media honed in on blond, blue-eyed Jessica to the detriment of all others. You're not hearing Shoshanna's story, are you?

[Catherine Vincent]

12. Well with today's technology, Shoshana can get blue contacts and

color her hair blonde. She may also be able to lighten her skin like Michael Jackson, but he won't tell his secret.

[nadinbrzezinski]

15. Goes beyond that

Shoshana got 30% disabilty

Jessy is geting 70%

Now all thngs being equal the VA may have done the calculations fairly
but under this administration?

Why is it that I do not believe that

[Bronco69]

27. My friend Denise Lee plays Shoshana

Johnson in the Jessica Lynch movie that's on Sunday night. I asked her, and I believe she's going to, contact Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn about the discrepancies in disability pay. We both agreed that this is an outrage and needs to be addressed!

[economic justice]

23. Unbelievable

This is what I'm talking about. I suppose the same goes for kidnappings, too? If they're white, blonde and blue-eyed, we at DU have to be angry they get any attention because other kids don't. That kind of thinking is called one thing: racist.

[arcane1]

34. focusing on the white, ignoring the black

is racism

pointing it out is not

there IS a difference. You are going to have to try harder if you want to get away with claiming the DU population is some kind of anti-white racist group :eyes:

[Name removed]

45. Deleted message

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[arcane1]

54. I'm white

:eyes:

[Skittles]

38. NO

IT IS RACIST THAT WHITE KIDNAP VICTIMS GET ATTENTION OTHER KIDNAP VICTIMS DON'T.

[Stupdworld]

16. careful

watch what you say around here. some people don't appreciate this kind of "racist" criticism

[Woodstock]

17. My take

I'm white and of European descent and here is my take. The fact is, in this country, whites have the majority of wealth and power. And the fact is, Jessica Lynch was picked because she was proto-white in appearance. In an attempt to manipulate the majority of citizens (who are white.)

No one is saying all white men are one way, or all blue eyed blonde women are another way. But if there are charges of the majority (which happens to be white men in government, or white men and women in the general population) using their race to unfair advantage, then not mentioning the identification of their race would be absurd.

Hopefully, however, charges will have some basis of reality, and be respectfully stated. There's no reason to make things worse by throwing fuel on the fire. There are always going to be bad eggs (of any race or gender.) But most people here are good people who believe in equality.

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Ripley]

29. Who is whitey?

Is that a racial slur?

[Syrinx]

58. yes, but an acceptable one

:shrug:

[Ripley]

61. Good one.

Hi Sy! :hi:

The hypocricy is thick as black strap molasses in here.

[Syrinx]

64. yes indeed

Hi Ripley. :hi:

Racism is evil, and Whitey must pay!

:grr:

[Ripley]

66. Question for you...

Years ago 2 black guys on a street corner looked at me as I walked past them and laughed and said something about "moon pancakes." Do you know what that means? I don't have a clue if it was an insult or a leer. Well, actually just looking at the phrase now I bet they were saying my white ass is flat. I suppose that was an insult. :shrug:

[Syrinx]

67. I've never heard that one before

Sorry, wish I could help. :)

[economic justice]

31. Appeal to ----WHITEY?????

Read your post heading and ---- lecture me about racism?

[arcane1]

36. I'm white. I say "whitey" too

am I racist?

[Name removed]

47. Deleted message

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[DemVet]

48. No, but

it still doesn't make it right. It's not an acceptable term no matter who uses it.

[Gman]

52. Whitey... you know, "Whitey"... "The Man"

You hear what I'm saying? Whitey.

In this country, if you ain't white, you ain't shit.

[Skittles]

33. I AM A BLUE-EYED BLONDE-HAIRED FEMALE VETERAN

AND YES SHE IS CASHING IN ON THE FACT SHE IS BLUE-EYED/BLONDE-HAIRED. THAT IS NOT BLONDE-BASHING; THAT IS A F***ING FACT.

[economic justice]

49. The way you rant

The way you rant skittles about her hair color (how many threads now) I am getting to think you are a tad jealous!

[Hep]

39. She was THEIR poster girl!

They embellished every aspect of her story and made it into big news so that public support would increase. Now that she is CORRECTING history, they're all pissed at her for shattering the myth that they created.

And what about those four soldiers involved in her rescue that have met mysterious fates?

[undergroundrailroad]

43. Shoshanna Johnson -- I See Me

SHOSHANNA JOHNSON

 

TO SHOSHANNA JOHNSON

By Janie Watts Spataro

When I see your eyes, I see a vast desert,
A surprise attack, the shock of ending
up in enemy hands,
When all you wanted was to cook.
When I see your eyes, I see the girl trapped
in a soldier’s face,
Comfortable with an M-16 but
preferring a spatula,
The sense of order in your corn rowed hair
Offsets a face filled with perplexity.
When I see you, I see someone’s daughter,
Someone’s mother,
Someone’s P.O.W.
When I see you, Shoshanna,
I see me.

[Kanary]

46. "I See Me"

Beautiful!

This should be in a separate thread.. away from the arguing.

Thanks so much for sharing this... inspirational..

Kanary

[economic justice]

53. Excellent!

I think this is awesome. Post it separately though so it gets attention.

[Gman]

55. By Janie Watts Spataro...

Any kin to J.C. Watts?

[Military Brat]

72. I think Shoshanna is a great-looking woman!

Someone posted a message somewhere on DU that Shoshanna wasn't picked because she isn't as "pretty" as Jessica.

Okay, Jess is pretty in that "all American" way, but Shoshanna is a looker in that "all American" way, too. I want to see her on the silver screen in Ice Cube's next movie.

[DuctapeFatwa]

50. Stereotypes are profitable. Is it racist to say so?

Suppose you are making a movie about the difficulties of being a single father while holding down a demanding job, trying to advance in your corporate career?

You go in with your treatment, the suits love it, they even give you a seat on the casting committee, and think your idea of using unknown but slam-bang talent is terrific.

The actor you bring in to read for the lead is without a question a better actor than any top box-office draw. But the committee looks uncomfortable, and after he leaves, they tell you they just don't think Ahmed is right for the part.

People don't want to see an Arab with a beard trying to explain the etiquette of standing-up bathroom use to his little boy, or learning to French-braid his little girl's hair, or doing a slow burn when he hands over that last-minute report - dotted with grape-jelly fingerprints.

That makes it a whole nother story.

And to make the Iraq propaganda flick about Shoshana would make THAT a whole nother story. That would be the story of a strong woman doing what she had to do to reach her goals and take care of her little girl.

The Jessica story is not about Jessica. It is about how Americans feel about slender little blond girls being man-handled by big evil brown men.

It is the same story that D.W. Griffith cranked out with Lillian Gish in the starring role every other week in the Biograph years, then he finally made it into a long one, called it Birth of a Nation, and it was a big hit.

This attitude is unfair to blondes. Blondes are like anybody else, Hutsis, Tamils, Tuareg. Some are smart, some are dumb, some are good, some are bad. Some can do anything, others can do nothing.

But it is nevertheless a popular attitude, and a profitable one.

Why is it racist to say so?

[PROGRESSIVE1]

57. Lynch said that the Pentagon Lied!!!!

http://news.yahoo.com/fc?tmpl=fc&cid=34&in=us&cat=jessica_lynch

[Gman]

59. This thread tells a lot about many people here at DU

It's starting to look like a lot of people at DU are just as intimidated by someone that is not white as are Freepers.

How many people here have ever considered going to a predominantly Black Baptist Church on Sunday?

How many people here have ever gone into a predominantly Black housing project on a voter registration drive?

How many people here have ever gone to a migrant worker center to do volunteer work?

How many people here bought lettuce or table grapes when they were being boycotted?

How may people here want to support Al Sharpton or Carol Mosely Braun rather than the very white Dean because you really like what he says but you won't because they're Black?

A lot of people here (not everyone by any means) talk a real good game about being liberal but there aren't a whole lot that have ever walked that talk. And I'm not talking about protesting this illegal occupation in Iraq.

[Woodstock]

60. and your posts say a lot about you

You are making an awful lot of assumptions. I bet the answer to your questions would surprise you. And - news flash - if you asked them the other way around, you might be surprised by the answers, too.

Look in the mirror.

[PVnRT]

63. What?

So you get to define what liberal is. That's nice. Could you email a checklist?

This will be a nice witch hunt now. If you don't support Sharpton, you're a racist! If you don't go to black churches, you're racist! If you don't volunteer with migrant workers, you're racist!

Never mind that, where I live, there are no black housing projects, or predominantly black churches, or migrant workers, but that doesn't matter! I'm a racist! I'm not a real liberal! :eyes:

[Name removed]

69. Deleted message

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[Name removed]

70. Deleted message

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[QC]

65. Your protestations against racism would be more credible

if you did not run around using racist terms.

It's hard to take your appeal for unity seriously when you call others "whitey."

[PVnRT]

62. Racism?

No, it's not racism. It's just a reaction to a war few here at DU support, and a movie and book that are going to be used by the Bush regime to show how right they were. They will use Lynch in every way possible to win in 2004, and it's sickening.

That said, I don't like the attacks on Lynch, either, but there's plenty of things said here that I don't like.

[Name removed]

71. I am locking this thread.

It has become inflammatory.

Thanks,
MrsGrumpy
DU Moderator