Posted by Sadie from ? (160.129.27.22) on Thursday, February 27, 2003 at 1:32PM :
In Reply to: Re: the Confederate flag posted by Alexander from 92.52.26.24.cfl.rr.com (24.26.52.92) on Wednesday, February 26, 2003 at 10:33PM :
: The Iranians and Armenians never used to describe the middle east as the middle east, but as Iran, or Persia, or Ilam Province etc.
xxx That's true.
: Also, what kind of rifle does your father shoot? I have a rifle too. Is it a hunting rifle or another kind?
xxx My dad has a duck hunting rifle but he got it in case of burglary or assault. Our country house was broken into many years ago, & that's what inspired him to get the gun & license. If he actually hurt anything, even game, with the gun, my mom would have a fit. We also have that house guarded with some pretty mean looking big dogs, who also serve as excellent hiking companions. Dogs are the best & strongest weapons & most loyal companions anyone could ever hope to have. Who needs an alarm system? & anyway, out in the rural areas, it would take the cops too long to show up & do anything if we had an alarm system out there.
: Also, I used nations to describe the people only because it would take to long otherwise. For instance, I mentioned Pakistan... Do you know which Pakistanis I am most familiar with?
: I'll bet you tend to think of brown hair or eyes and darker skin when you think of Pakistan, or maybe Islamabad, but I think of only one area. The beautiful area in the northwest that once used to be joined with northeast Afghanistan. Before the colonisation and imperialism of interfering nations that it. I think of the tribal people who don't worship any Christian, Moslem, or Jewish god, but their pagan system. But to be general, I simply said Pakistan. However, I do agree with you about these generalizations. There's nothing wrong with them. The only one I don't like is those like "middle eastern" because it just seems to broad. South West Asia or something like that seems more appropriate- but that's just me:)
xxx I have an Indian friend who has the biggest, prettiest green eyes & light brouwn hair - people think we're sisters, because our complexion & overall look is so similar (but I don't have green eyes). I think stereotypes are mainly used by those in power to keep people under control by limiting their ways of thinking about themselves.
xxx A few years ago, I spent the summer in Birmingham, AL to do an internship. One of my best friends there was an African-American girl who came from Tuskegee University to work on a similar project as me. Actually, it was kind of an interesting summer, because I dated a Jewish boy, & hung out with him, this Pakistani girl, & my African-American friend all at the same time - I called us the "United Nations" as a joke... Anyway, I remember how my African-American friend & I would go out together, to the mall or out to eat or to a movie, & she would always point out the people staring at us. She was so sensitive to the fact that I looked "white" & that she looked "black" & that people, even strangers passing by, didn't think we could be friends. It was so different for me to see things through her eyes. Yes, I'd had other close African-American friends in my life before her, but for some reason they'd never pointed out to me that we were so different externally that other people couldn't see us as friends. I don't think of color... & here's a friend telling me to think in those terms. It was incredibly weird, & so painful, too. In some ways it hurt me to hear those words - that people would condemn us to being enemies merely for skin color & perceived ethnic differences. & I still can't think in terms of color. If I do think in terms of nationality or ethnicity, it is mostly to appreciate someone's cultural heritage - it's another story that fascinates me - but I think of them, overall, as my earthly brothers & sisters. Anyway, I'm rambling & I have to get back to studying now.... I don't really know what the point of that was...
-- Sadie
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