read this

[rm]

This morning I was getting a roll and a juice at a cart near my office. As I was waiting on line a sanitation officer (it took me a while to figure it out, I was unfammiliar with the uniform), came up to the cart and started yelling at the man in it, insisting he had cursed at him earlier in Arabic.

"What did you say to me?"
"I said nothing sir."
"You cursed at me, I want to know what you said."
"I didn't sir. You wear a uniform. There is no problem."
"Look, I keep my city clean, I keep my country clean, and you better not have a problem with that."
"I don't sir."
"So you can tell me what you said because this is America."
"There is no problem, sir, you wear a uniform, there is no problem."
"I said, I keep my country clean, I'm an American, so why don't you tell me what you said."

At this point, I turned and interjected, to the officer. "I don't know what the problem is here, but please don't make it about patriotism. It's offensive and unfair."

"Mind your own business ma'am. He cursed at me in Arabic."

"You're making this racial," I said, "and it's making me uncomfortable."

"Get out of here, and mind your own business ma'am."

"This is America, I don't have to mind my own business," I said, and walked off, the sanitation officer still shouting at all who would listen about his patriotism.

I've been shaking about it all morning. I was raised to respect authority, was yelled at for calling police officers "cops" as a child -- I don't look for them to be doing wrong, am not innately suspicious of them, although like anyone, I am wary and polite.

Then I walked by one of the wholesale stores by my office. They were selling a sports-jersey style shirt. It said "911 World Tour" and listed places with bombings. New York. Madrid. Tokyo. Bali.

I started crying. In five years, I doubt we'll recognize our country. Maybe we don't even recognize it now.

Comments

[kalmn.livejournal.com]

and y'know, my first instinct was, why didn't the guy who was being yelled at call the police?

if a person takes comforting hugs from midwesterners they've never met, a person could have one.

[stresskitten.livejournal.com]

how vile. thank you for being brave and speaking up.

[lilchiva.livejournal.com]

Your right. I am sorry but you are.

You were definitely in the right.

[magicwoman.livejournal.com]

And what an uncomfortable situation to be in.

I positively do not like the shirt that has the 911 World Tour on it. Does that promote peace in any way?

Susan

[feyandstrange.livejournal.com]

damnit, I can't cry right now.

I'm so sorry.

Already I don't recognize my country - it's distorted with fear and hate and ignorance. But I am living in an area inclined towards liberality and tolerance, and I rarely leave the house -- I've seen that distortion from the top down only, not on the faces of my neighbors.

I don't know right now what's harder than having to watch - and stand up to - people you were raised to respect because of shared ideals. I'm so ashamed that our flag and our once-true ideals are now represented to the world as horrible prison abuses and mindless hate.

Thank you for making the brave stand you did. I like to hope this hate and ignorance is temporary; as a nation, we've largely overcome the anti-German and Japanese hate of WWII, and have done a good job of healing the scars of segregation.

If New Yorkers still stand up to this shit, then I have hope.

[labellerose.livejournal.com]

Thanks for taking a stand

[manycolored.livejournal.com]

Gods, I want to leave. I want to find a country with real representative government and civility and tolerance and peace and justice and some priority other than ever-growing profit margins for the shareholders. I doubt I'll ever find it.

Worse, I feel that if I leave this country, I'll be abandoning it, like leaving a sick dog to someone who'll starve it and kick it in the garage. I have to stay and give what I've got where I can reach. It feels so hopeless, but what's the hope if I don't do anything?

[00goddess.livejournal.com]

I am proud o fyou. I know it was scary but it was right and you rock.

[heron61.livejournal.com]

Thank you for doing what was very much the right thing to do. This nation horrifies me and I continue to be shocked and saddened by the changes I see. Living in an exceedingly liberal West Coast city and doing my best to ignore politics, I do not see as much as many people - largely because what I do see makes me feel helpless and angry. I continue to think about moving to Canada - at this point I do not want to move from Portland, but if things get much worse in the US, I am not certain that I can continue deal with living in this nation. I'd not seen that shirt before, it is as sick and wrong as so much else is now. For me, the fear of what the people of the US are becoming so overwhelms any fear of terrorism that I do not worry in the least about any future attacks.

Hmmm.

[ex-rumspring720.livejournal.com]

There are two paths that would make me feel better.

1. Trash talkin'
From what little I know, a "sanitation officer" isn't exactly your NYPD sort, but of the lowest eschelon of government claims to white-collar. He's essentially "a garbage guy".

2. Filing a complaint against the officer himself, or citing the incident to the appropriate authorities.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/ccrb/html/contact.html
If you write a complaint to the sanitation dept., I'd also CC the mayor's office.
From what little I know, interacting with judges and other elected officials, they're required to take citizen complaints and letters seriously - often retaining them for years.

I'm a bigger fan of the latter than former, but you do what makes you feel better about this. :-)

[nnp.livejournal.com]

that is horrid.

good for you for speaking up.

i don't recognize the country we live in currently... it changes day to day in scary manners...

fuck every racist, narrowminded asshole in this country in the ear... bastards.

:(
kate

[argiope.livejournal.com]

Ouch.
That made me sad :( - good job at standing up.
Things will get better, they just take time.
Getting bush out of office might be the first step though.
oo oo did I let a little of my left slip? :)