OK,
Has America gone off the frickin' deep end? Rachel Ray was in a commercial for Dunkin Doughnuts iced coffee. See image below.
The ad has been yanked following what has been called the "keffiyeh kerfuffle" when right-wing blogger Michelle Malkin claimed that her wardrobe choice made her appear sympathetic to Islamic Jihadists. Huh? Looks like a fringed, paisley scarf to me, and no doubt did to Ray as well when the wardrobe person brought it to her.
And what if it was a keffiyeh? Yes, Khaddafi wears a keffiyeh, and so did Arafat, but so does almost every other arab male. Does wearing a traditional arab headpiece make you a terrorist? Evidently in some people's eyes it does.
It has become fashionable for those in solidarity with the palestinian cause to wear a black and white keffiyeh draped over the shoulders and back, but that does that mean that EVERY black and white scarf now has political connotations? And is everyone in sympathy with the Palestinian cause a terrorist? Evidently so. I would appear to know several Jews who are actually secret Islamic Terrorists....
What scares me the most is to think how this must appear to an American Muslim. If a beloved, white celebrity like Rachel Ray can get castigated for wearing something that looks kind of like a keffiyeh, what does that say about what could happen to someone of arab complexion wearing a Hijab? It points out how xenophobic we still are as a culture and that the message that all Muslims are terrorists is still a pervasive meme in our society.
Fear controls us still.
"Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell." - Matt. 10:28
"All fears other than reverent fear that are offered to us, although they come under the pretense of holiness, yet are not as true" - Julian of Norwich
“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” - Yoda
David+
Hi All: Please sign a petition to tell Dunkin Donuts we don't believe Rachel Ray's scarf is a terrorist symbol and that we're disappointed in their decision to pull their ad and capitulate to the hysterical fringe of the right-wing blogosphere: http://www.eztrackz.com/tracking.aspx?id=85106
Thanks!
Posted by: Ladona | May 29, 2008 at 04:09 PM
Hi All: Please sign a petition to tell Dunkin Donuts we don't believe Rachel Ray's scarf is a terrorist symbol and that we're disappointed in their decision to pull their ad and capitulate to the hysterical fringe of the right-wing blogosphere: http://www.eztrackz.com/tracking.aspx?id=85106
Thanks!
Posted by: Ladona | May 29, 2008 at 04:09 PM