Suburban Utopia
February 26th, 2005
Categories: General
My sister Carrie is living with my oldest brother in Maple Valley, a suburb about 45 minutes outside of Seattle.
Since transferring to a 92% white area high school there, she has heard the following from fellow students (paraphrasing based on her relay of these conversations and encounters):
- The Japanese internment didn’t really happen.
- If it did, they deserved it.
- If it did, they were given money afterward, so they should just get over it.
- The proper term for Japanese-Americans is “Japs”.
- The Holocaust didn’t really happen. Devious Jews made it up.
- “You have black friends?”
From a woman leading a church youth group she was invited to visit by a fellow student (again paraphrasing):
- Seattle Public Schools teach kids that homosexuality is acceptable.
I give Carrie credit for informing the woman that Seattle Public Schools teach kids to treat people equally — sexual orientation has nothing to do with it. - Homosexuality is a sin.
- Homosexuality is a choice.
Those red values come shining through in all their ignorant, bigoted glory!
Ignorance is hardly contained by political leanings. Ignorant people know no boundaries and you can find them everywhere. Worst of all, like incompetence, those who are ignorant aren’t aware of it.
Ignorance is indeed apolitical, but it seems to be primarily conservatives that wish to impose their ignorance on others.