... but names will never hurt me.

Remember that little ditty from childhood?

Seems to me if everyone adopted that attitude, there would no longer even be any such thing as a racial or ethnic slur.

I was born and raised in New York (mostly in Lindenhurst, on the south shore of Long Island). My friends and acquaintances included many Catholics (mostly Irish & Italian), many Protestants (mostly German & Dutch), many Jews, and a smattering of Puerto Ricans, Greeks, Cubans and others.

We often called each other ethnic names -- and as often referred to ourselves by the same names. We Irish were called "Micks" or "Dumb Micks", "Shanty Irish" and "Potato Heads". And we often referred to ourselves with the same terms.

I don't recall ever being in or even seeing anyone fight over such a name (though a derogatory comment about someone's mother invariably resulted in fisticuffs! )

I did a little online research tonight and stumbled across two articles of interest. In one, it was reported that a Vermont woman who wanted a personalized license plate reading IRISH was turned down because, as the judge who upheld the denial said, the word "Irish" could be considered "offensive or confusing to the public". What nonsense.

The other article is from the Daily Mississippian, a student publication of the University of Mississippi. It was written by a sophomore staff writer named Blake Aued, who appears to be wise beyond his years. It is such a good article, I am reproducing it below verbatim.

----- jim o\-S

US society takes too much offense

The year is 1999. It has been over 40 years since the Civil Rights Movement gave American society a big shove in the direction of true freedom and equality. We aren't there yet, and sometimes it seems like we're slowing down. Did our parents fight those hard battles so that the various races could bicker and snipe at each other over petty differences? In my more cynical moments, I am tempted to say "yes."

In just the past few weeks, several events have occured that show just how pervasive political correctness has become and just how hard some people try to find something to be offended by. In Washington, D.C., for example, black mayor Anthony Williams forced to resign a white aide named David Watson who used the word "niggardly" (it means "miserly" and has nothing to do with a certain ethnic slur) in the presence of a black colleague. After a large public outcry, Watson was later reinstated.

Prejudice and racism are wrong. But should people lose their jobs because of one slip of the tongue, especially if that slip was only percieved and not real? I think the obvious answer is "no," but I've read or heard several black scholars say that Williams made the right decision in ousting Watson. They've said it shows that Williams is tough on racism. So now racism not only includes ethnic slurs, but anything that sounds like an ethnic slur? I guess we can kiss the words "kite," "chink," and "spit" goodbye.

Once my father (who is Lebanese by ancestry), was accosted by an angry customer at the car dealership where he works. The man was unhappy because he felt that his car wasn't being fixed fast enough, and he told my father, "You aren't fixing my car because I'm an Arab!" Imagine his suprise when my father responded in Arabic.

This story illustrates my point: that too often people jump to conclusions regarding race and prejudice, and some people keep their eyes peeled for anything that might offend them. I or members of my Lebanese and Irish family have been called "sand nig.ger," "white nig.ger," ...

jtr note: I had to add the "." in each of those phrases to get past the ChipBoard "naughty word" filter!]

... or "mick" before. I've been insulted for being a Roman Catholic in a region of Protestants. You know what I do? I laugh. A word can't hurt me unless I let it hurt me.

I think if people laughed off racial slurs, or insults of any kind, it would actually help in the fight against racism more than righteous anger. When you laugh in the face of an intended insult, you are saying to the insulter, "That doesn't hurt me. I don't care what you think." The attacker has failed in his intended purpose of angering you, and the insult gradually loses its power to insult or anger and becomes meaningless.

[jtr note: Read that paragraph again. And think what a different world this would be if everyone followed his advice instead of reacting with anger, hostility, responsive insults and/or violence.]

This is what happened to the various Irish, Italian, Polish or other ethnic slurs that used to incite violence, but have now been relegated to the status of "cruel joke." I realize that the wounds of blacks are newer and deeper than those of European immigrants, but the principle is the same. The best way to combat a racial slur is to not let it affect you.

In today's society, it seems like everyone talks at the same time, and no one listens except to make sure no one says anything offensive. It's almost like some peoplewant to get angry; theywant to make a big show of their righteous wrath. Political correctness is supposed to be about tolerance (a good thing), but too often it's only tolerant toward things that are, in fact, politically correct. There is no room for unorthodox opinions.

Because of this pettiness, the larger issues are ignored, like the disparity in level of education, income, and life expectancy between blacks and whites that persists to this day. Instead of keeping our ears open for potential insults, we need to keep them open for potential solutions to today's real problems.

Blake Aued is a sophomore English and journalism major from Birmingham.