AUSTIN, Texas -- The fate of Flight 587 is not just a
free-standing tragedy, but almost the last thing we needed. Even if the
cause remains a mystery, the edginess quotient just shot back up again.
It has seemed to me the media have been engaging in a slightly
unseemly amount of navel-gazing concerning our nerves, with perhaps
excessive media temperature-taking of anxiety levels, crooning over stress
on the home front, etc. Americans on the front lines of this war, including
the NYFD, are handling their jobs without swooning, and from my own travels
around the country, it seems to me most of the rest of us are managing to
comport ourselves with reason and dignity, whatever our anxiety levels.
Unfortunately, the few nincompoops among us now have fresh
occasion for hysteria: the always-timely advice THINK comes to mind. The
absolute last thing we need is another round of Arab-bashing.
Our most valuable resource against terrorism in the long-run
will almost certainly be Arab-Americans. Among them are the bravest of the
brave. Look at why many of them are here: They are Iraqis who fought Saddam
Hussein, Syrians who fought Assad and Iranians who opposed the Ayatollah.
They are Lebanese who saw their country torn to shreds by fanatics. They
have the language, the culture and the commitment. We can't send blond,
blue-eyed Texans to infiltrate Al Qaeda. (I have a life-size vision of a
Texan in the back of some terrorist meeting room saying, "Don't mind me,
y'all.")
The misguided zeal of our most pinheaded patriots has already
led to attacks on individuals (including one dead Sikh from India) and on
mosques. Most of us agree such attacks are criminal folly, but there are
still many who condone and encourage prejudice and discrimination in the
name of patriotism. Since Sept. 11, Arab-Americans have not only been
physically attacked, but also harassed, discriminated against, fired because
of their ethnicity and treated shabbily in a variety of ways, up to and
including being rounded up and held on the flimsiest imaginable grounds.
This is, among other things, profoundly stupid.
We all understand the pressures on law enforcement. Heaven
forbid anyone should let an actual terrorist go. Of course they'd rather err
on the side of caution. But even our flimsy visa system should have provided
evidence by now about who is an established American citizen and who is here
illegally.
When in doubt, hold them -- fine. But it is not the fault of
Arab-Americans that we had a visa system so full of holes. The Boston Globe
has reported the families of Arab-Americans who died in the World Trade
Center are having an especially difficult time with the hostility directed
against them because of their ethnicity.
If we had our wits about us, we would be showering
Arab-Americans with tender loving care. In fact, the more thoughtful among
us have already circulated lists via e-mail about what those who know
Arab-Americans can do to help -- call, offer escort, etc.
The situation of the Sikhs, turbaned Indians of a different
religion entirely, is pathetic. Perhaps we need one of those old National
Brotherhood Weeks -- Take a Sikh to Lunch. Older Japanese-Americans are in a
special position to understand what Arab-Americans are going through, as are
other Americans who have experienced racism. The Transportation Department
has already put out a circular to airport security personnel advising them
of the humiliation suffered by Sikh men and Arab women forced to uncover
their heads in public.
Also on the hysteria front, assorted armchair warriors have
advocated using torture against the detainees. Look, we got through two
world wars without stooping that low -- and, sticking to the "whatever
works" program, torture doesn't. You can torture someone into confessing
anything, but that doesn't help move an investigation forward. As all cops
know, false confessions just screw up an investigation. Put the bastinados
away.
Most Americans are behaving noticeably well -- that astringent
Midwestern sensibleness is so helpful in a crisis. How many times has
President Bush said this is going to be a long, difficult struggle? He's
right. And one of the things we can do to help is try to prevent our more
easily excited citizens from going off half-cocked against Arab-Americans,
one of our most valuable national resources.
To find out more about Molly Ivins and read features by other
Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web
page at
www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2001 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.
