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Momma said wonk you out

« Populist in Substance AND Speech | Main | Percentile Equality »

We Shall Overcome

Wow:

One thing is for sure: the discrimination represented in that lunch monitor’s tap on my praying nephew’s shoulder will not stand. Like Rosa Parks, religious conservatives refuse to shuffle to the back of the bus.

The story there, for interested readers, is that the nephew prayed before lunch, a hall monitor told him not to, the kid's dad called to complain, the hall monitor apologized the next day. Yes. Just like Rosa Parks. This country's dominant religion will not submit to continued discrimination from Bull Connor-like hall monitors. He took a whole day to apologize! And nor, we should warn, will the evangelical Christian who is our president, the members of the Supreme Court who are devout Christians, the Senators, or the congresscritters. Freedom now! Freedom forever! We shall overcome! Shit, the hall monitors got a firehose attack dogs detention slips! Shield the children!

Posted by Ezra Klein on February 24, 2005 2:09 PM | Permalink

COMMENTS (24)

Of course, there was also the coded Dred Scott nonsense from Bush in the 2nd debate with Kerry. Then again, the question of Roe v. Wade and SC nominees really is a serious issue, unlike a kid getting tapped on the shoulder.

Posted by: Haggai | February 24, 2005 2:14 PM

Christians are the new Jews. Not.

Posted by: Roxanne | February 24, 2005 2:36 PM

The whole mobilization of religious conservatives by the GOP is dependent upon them believing that they are somehow persecuted, somehow connected to the great Christian martyrs. They've done a great job of convincing them that they're persecuted without actually giving real examples of it. Therefore, whatever happens is just more 'proof' that Christians are persecuted.

What makes them such willing partners in this deception is that focusing on 'persecution' helps them to deal with the fact that they are ignoring what Christianity is really all about. "I would give more to the poor, but I'm so darn persecuted!"

Posted by: Stephen | February 24, 2005 3:30 PM

What makes them such willing partners in this deception is that focusing on 'persecution' helps them to deal with the fact that they are ignoring what Christianity is really all about.

Indeed. You'll note that the target of the "discrimination" involved ostentatious praying in public.

Matthew 6:5 (although 6:7 probably applies as well).

Posted by: Phoenician in a time of Romans | February 24, 2005 4:18 PM

That quote just hunded down Rosa Parks and killed her, just so it could make her spin in her grave.

Posted by: Zen | February 24, 2005 5:19 PM

hunted. But you knew that.

Posted by: Zen | February 24, 2005 5:20 PM

What the hell was the hall monitor's problem, anyway?

Posted by: Grumpy | February 24, 2005 5:43 PM

True that, Grumpy! At least he realized he was being an asshole.

Anyway, good point Ezra. Mistakes noted and quickly repented may be annoying, but widespread oppression they ain't.

Posted by: Scott | February 24, 2005 5:57 PM

There was a great piece on This American Life by Sarah Vowell about a phenomenon of people comparing themselves to Rosa Parks.

You can listen
here. It's at 47:45.

Posted by: Javier | February 24, 2005 6:56 PM

A guy in boot camp prayed over his food, I asked him to include mine in his prayer.

Posted by: merlallen | February 24, 2005 10:28 PM

If Christians want to feel persecuted, we need more lions...

Posted by: donna | February 25, 2005 12:01 AM

Xianity's fundamental problem seems to be that once it became the state religion when Constantine converted, it never recovered. Long after it should have, it kept the stance of victimhood and persecution that had served it so well, and more or less accurately, for its first 300 years. The big thing to track is how Xianity has maintained that sense of victimhood throughout its history . . .

Posted by: Karl the Idiot | February 25, 2005 10:04 AM

Donna: As a Christian, I say a-f*cking-men! The Christian community should really count their blessings.

I mean, hey, aren't we supposed to be doing that anyway?

Posted by: southerner | February 25, 2005 10:17 AM

Note that this event happened "a number of years ago," probably when the whole "prayer is schools" thing was new, and indeed there was some (a lot of) confusion about what was allowed and what was not. I even remember a Johnny Carson joke about a kid who was in trouble for praying in school, but it turned out he was getting a drink a the water fountain. THAT's how old this is.

I think I know the problem with Xtians and Neocons and all. They have it all, now -- the media, the government, the economy -- and now they're having that "Alfie moment." Is this all there is? We won! Why isn't it better? Why am I still unhappy? You hate me because of my opinions (not to mention the results of my actions) because it didn't all go away! It didn't work!!!

That's why. It's the "Alfie moment" for the Republican right wing.

It's called "reality." And it sucks.

Posted by: Ed Drone | February 25, 2005 10:18 AM

Like Isaac Jaffe (Robert Guillaume) on the late, great Sports Night said: "No young rich white guy has ever gotten anywhere with me by comparing himself to Rosa Parks."

Posted by: Ann | February 25, 2005 1:16 PM

A former southern baptist once told me that in the fundamentalist churches, they have a saying: "If you're not being persecuted for your faith, you're doing it wrong."

As soon as I heard that, I understood right wing politics, and the religion that underpins so much of it, much better. It explains almost everything about their world view. Of course they have a persecution complex! If they allowed themselves to believe they aren't beset on all sides by enemies of the faith, that would mean they aren't proper christians.

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Posted by: apply for master card | April 8, 2007 3:31 PM

that's a great story...

------------------------------------------------
freetomanifest.com team; place you can read Rosa Parks biography.

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