The Council on American Islamic Relations said the allegation was that the teacher had remarked, “I do not negotiate with terrorists,” when the Palestinian American student asked for a seat change.
Recent U.S. incidents involving children include the attempted drowning of a 3-year-old Palestinian American girl in Texas and the fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American boy in Illinois.
Other incidents include the stabbing of a Palestinian American man in Texas, the beating of a Muslim man in New York, a violent mob attack on pro-Palestinian protesters in California and the shooting of three Palestinian American students in Vermont.
That is totally different and you know it.
I really, genuinely don’t. You may not believe it, but those feel equally charged to me.
But I think that’s at the crux of our disagreement. My lived experience is that that phrase is uncharged, and your lived experience is that it’s terribly charged. This is probably due to regional or cultural differences, and honestly, that’s fine.
We could debate who’s lived experience is the more generalized one. Who is more representative of the average American. But honestly, I don’t know that it matters.
And even if you found out that 95% of people think it’s uncharged (which I’m not saying is the case), it still wouldn’t make it feel any different for you I’m sure, as again, in your lived experience that phrase is tantamount to a slur.
But all that said, I appreciate the discussion about it. It’s always interesting to come across these things that, due to fluctuations in region or age or whatever, both seem so obviously true to each side, while being so polarizing.
And I know I see you around here a lot, and I generally agree with you on stuff. So like, I know you’re not an unreasonable person or whatever. I respect your opinion on the issue even. We just disagree this time.