Tolerance.Diversity.
Non-discrimination.
These are the high and mighty values by which our modern society measures its morality.
They sound nice.
They sound lofty.
They sound inclusive.
But never judge a word by its sound.
These words may evoke good feelings in you. But it is how words are defined that counts.
Farah then shows a copy of a memo from a talent agency looking for a Latino talk show host- what essentially looks like a casting call.
This is what tolerance, diversity and non-discrimination really means in Hollywood, in the world of government-subsidized broadcasting and in academia. It doesn't mean, as you might believe, all people are welcomed. It doesn't mean employment on the basis of merit alone. It doesn't mean non-discrimination.
It actually means discrimination on the basis of sex, skin color, ethnic origin, age, etc.
I suspect if you as an employer sent out such a memo recruiting for a white male of a certain age range, you would find yourself prosecuted. But as long as you are searching for people other than white males of a certain age range, it's anything goes.
Of course, color-blind Joe's objection against Hollywood typecasting would be a lot more hard-hitting if he hadn't repeatedly penned wacky screeds like this calling for racial profiling.
...I never seem to get checked.
Why am I complaining? Because I fit the profile of the very people who are most likely to hijack an airplane or blow it up in a suicide attack.I am an Arab-American. I have an Arabic surname. I look Arabic.
I know what you are going to say: "Farah, pulling you out of line would be profiling. It's not American to discriminate against people because of their national origin or racial characteristics."
Need I remind my fellow Americans that we are at war? I personally would much prefer to see our country use its precious security resources more wisely. Not everyone is a security risk. Common sense needs to be employed if we are to make this country safer. Isn't it preferable to inconvenience me and people who look like me than to turn our entire country into a virtual police state?
...There is a way to make our airliners safe. We should follow the El Al model. I have flown El Al often. On El Al, I am treated with suspicion. All Arabs are. And that is why El Al had not witnessed a hijacking in 20 years until last week when an Arab secreted a knife on board a flight with a plan to commandeer the plane into an Israeli skyscraper. Sky marshals wrestled him to the ground and averted a disaster.
Why would I want to see a security system that would cause me more hassle? Because I want to see my flights land at airports – not in buildings. A few moments of irritation are well worth it. When I fly El Al, it gives me peace of mind to have my bags searched, to go through extra security checks, to be interrogated longer than non-Arabs.
Yo Joe, your brain's dripping on my shoes. Got a towel?
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