The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Some Blunt Truth About ‘Hate’

Posted on | August 17, 2022 | Comments Off on Some Blunt Truth About ‘Hate’

Who is attacking Asians in San Francisco and other major cities? Everybody knows the perpetrators of these atrocities are black, but almost nobody in the media wants to talk about it, because the media — as I have discussed elsewhere — are committed to a one-sided portrayal of black people as victims, rather than perpetrators, of “hate.”

San Francisco police announced the arrest of an 18-year-old and three juveniles, ages 11, 13 and 14, in a particularly brutal attack this month on an elderly Asian woman, an attack that was captured on video:

Some thoughts from Darrell Owens, a black activist in Berkeley:

“Ching chong aye yah,” hurled one of the two Black kids to an elderly Asian woman on the 30-Stockon bus in San Francisco. I had kept quiet for a few minutes but I couldn’t keep quiet anymore.
“Hey, if these Chinese people called you a nigger you’d be mad,” I told the kid. “So don’t go saying ‘ching chong’ and shit. Leave them alone.”
“Nobody cares, though. Mind your business.”
“Just leave them alone,” I reiterated. “Respect yourself.”
This wouldn’t be the first time that I had witnessed these kind of anti-Asian slurs. Many of my friends growing up were Asians: Chinese, Tibetan, Laotian, Taiwanese, Cambodian and Punjabi. I knew the families of two Asian business owners growing up who watched out for me like their own kid.
Because I was close to them, I witnessed the instances of street racism they endured, and unfortunately most of it was by young Black boys. Young boys who would mostly mock how they spoke when they entered their stores. Afterwards those Asians would often turn to me and ask me why those Blacks acted like that. My friend from China was much less guarded than his American counterparts and would never cease to ask me: why are all the poor people here Black? Why are those loud kids Black? Why are the criminals Black? . . .

You can read the whole thing, but I think the main point is in the two words Owens said to that kid on the bus: “Respect yourself.”

There is some problem around self-respect and self-image highlighted by such behavior. Decent people do not wish to be seen as bullies. One of the reasons Trump has been such a controversial figure is that he is widely perceived as a bully, and people don’t like that. And this is related to the perception of Trump’s supporters as “racist,” because people think of these two phenomena — racism and bullying — as closely connected.

It doesn’t matter if we think these perceptions are unfair, just as it doesn’t matter if Darrell Owens thinks it is unfair to judge all black people by the misconduct of unruly teenagers. As individuals, we must be mindful of our own behavior if we wish to avoid negative perceptions about whatever group we belong to, and I believe this is what Owens had in mind when he told that kid on the bus, “Respect yourself.”

My son, Jefferson, left for law school this week, and before he left, I handed him a letter of paternal advice, including this:

Dress well. Try at least to wear a button-up shirt to class, rather than a T-shirt or sweatshirt. Wear a sports coat and slacks, rather than jeans. And pay attention to your grooming and manners. We may not be rich, but you should try to convey the impression that you are a properly-raised gentleman from a good family.

This may seem like a trivial matter, but it’s not. A future lawyer should not dress like a slob or act like a slob. People will judge you by your behavior — how you dress, how you talk, how you carry yourself — and in a competitive environment like law school, it behooves a young gentleman to mind his manners. You’re not trash, are you?

The first step to solving any social problem is to avoid being part of the problem. Crime and violence in the black community are harmful in many ways, including the harm done to the general reputation of black people, as a group. How much “racism” is simply a result of the kind of observations that led Owens’ friend from China to ask, “Why are all the poor people here Black? Why are those loud kids Black? Why are the criminals Black?” White people are powerless to affect this dynamic.

“Respect yourself” — it’s good advice for everyone.




 

Category: California, Crime, Racism

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