Monkeys and Mullets
Much of the speculation today about Sen. George Allen's bizarre comments about a Webb campaign tracker named S.R. Sidarth revolves around defining exactly what he meant by calling the young man "Macaca." Ezra Klein suggests the word may be derived from a French insult often aimed at North Africans; Garance Franke-Ruta says it may have a Spanish-language origin. Both theories stipulate that the word connotes some kind of monkey, and is typically aimed at immigrants. Allen says he has no idea what he meant, which is really comforting in a man who wants to be president.
But less attention is being paid to the indisputable part of Allen's remarks: his "welcome to America, and to the real world of Virginia" bit, which obviously assumes that any dark-skinned person with an Indian surname is a recent immigrant (as it happens, Sidarth, unlike George Allen, was born in Virginia).
It's hardly a news flash that Republicans in Virginia and elsewhere have a weakness for immigrant-bashing, particularly racially-tinged immigrant-bashing. But on a day when the Washington Post reports a new study showing that more than one million immigrants now live in the Washington, DC, metro area--with probably half of them, roughly, living in Virginia--Allen's casual immigrant-baiting can be viewed as either politically stupid, or as reflecting a calculation that anti-immigrant sentiment in the Old Dominion is sufficiently powerful to run the risk of alienating a growing voter bloc.
In any event, you don't have to have any particular prejudice against George Allen to be skeptical of his claim that he pulled the word "macaca" out of thin air. There's a long and disreputable European-American tradition of associating immigrants with "monkeys," and it's not limited to people of color. Anyone familiar with the work of Thomas Nast, the godfather of American political cartoonists, knows that he routinely caricatured Irish-Americans as having distinctly simian features. It's a classic dehumanizing tactic.
The funniest aspect of this incident is the argument by some of Allen's flacks that their man was trying to say "mohawk," which is what the campaign called Sidarth because of his hair style. Sidarth replied that his hairstyle was actually a mullet.
Well, I suppose "macaca" and "mohawk" are similar words, sorta like "baboon" and "bouffant" are similar. But Lord 'amighty, how can anyone confuse a mohawk hairstyle with a mullet? And moreover, how can anyone look at a man with a mullet and think of him as anything other than uniquely American? I guarantee you there are a lot more people in rural Virginia sporting mullets than those who share George Allen' upbringing in Southern California in a Frenchified chateau, where monkeys and immigrants alike may well have been known as "macaques."
Maybe the really damaging fallout from this incident will be that more Republicans find out that Allen speaks French!
DC Drinking Liberally
August 15, 2006 1:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ronald Reagan started his 1980 campaign in Philadelphia, Mississippi. Trent Lott wished Strom Thurmond had been elected. George Allen uses macaca and used to like the Confederate flag.
Do we sense a subliminal (or "subliminable" as W would say) message - or a direct message - being sent to racists?
August 15, 2006 1:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
George Allen is in a pretty tough fight for an incumbent. Nobody can call his opponent James Webb your typical Liberal. He is going to appeal to a whole lot of the moderate Republicans who feel disenfranchised by the current Republican click, and even some traditional flag waiving conservative Republicans. Allen is going to need every vote he can find. Just what in the name of goodness was he thinking?
Ron Byers
August 15, 2006 1:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
One time one cannot make any accusations. But when a person has a history of being insensitive and offensive, a serial bigot like Mel Gibson, then one is entitled to brand him. Allen is using racism, deliberately and repeatedly to appeal to white voters.
August 15, 2006 1:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
He's a silver-spoon phony who dresses up like Twinkie the Kid.
August 15, 2006 2:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes. I think this is most evident by the use of the term macaca. Accdg to the search that was done, most of the hits for the term came from skinhead and white supremacists sites. I was totally unfamiliar with the term, which means it is more than likely a 'code word' known to a select extremist demographic group.
Also let's not forget that Allen also wears a confederate flag lapel pin when he wants to be identified as one of the 'gang' he is appealing to. I do not think that pin is any different from a Nazi insignia, which would signal to folks that he was indeed a member of the Reich.
People who display and admire the Confederate flag are the individuals that Trent Lotts remarks about Strum Thurmond being elected would have given a standing ovation.
August 15, 2006 2:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Gee, could it be the reason Democrats lost the south was not because of "McGovernites" at all?
August 15, 2006 4:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Allen had no idea what he meant when he uttered the word? What, he just made it up off the top of his pointy little head? 2 year old children do that, not grown men and women. Is any non-insane adult really going to believe he just made up a word, which had no meaning, and used it for no other reason then to enjoy the sound of it coming out of his mouth?
Beam me up Scotty...
August 15, 2006 6:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
His dad was a great legendary football coach, but a political knucklehead who supported Nixon.
Tom
August 16, 2006 8:02 AM | Reply | Permalink
George Allen responds, "I don't know what the heck Macaca means. It's just something that all my friends say whenever they see one of you darkies. I mean, jeez. I thought that was how you people wanted to be referred to. Can't you just go back to Africa."
Jesus, George Allen guy is a weed! How is it that Webb can't get any money and/or publicity running against this turd? Where is the DSCC on this one? Mr Lamont has shown us that incumbants can be beat this year.
This is a state wide election and the Dems have a military man that doesn't run around dropping N-bombs. He should appeal to the north and the south.
August 16, 2006 8:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
For the record, he did not appeal to this white voter.
August 16, 2006 8:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
on mullets being uniquely american, that's not remotely true. while i understand the impulse to associate it with americans, here in germany the very same haircut, associated with the very same social group, is called the Vokuhila (pronounced FOH-KOO-HEE-LAH), which is an acronym for 'Vorne Kurz Hinten Lang', best translated 'short in front, long in back'. it's really popular in the former east, you'll see whole families walking around with Vokuhilas.
August 16, 2006 9:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
LOL...yep. And evidently the "nut" didn't fall far from the tree. His dad was kinda nuts too...
August 16, 2006 10:13 AM | Reply | Permalink
How retrograde must Virginia be that this sort of stuff isn't bringing Allen down? The gap between North and South, liberal and conservative, urban and rural never seemed so wide.
August 16, 2006 10:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
Well, let me tell you something: If this item gets any traction:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2006/08/16/gop-senator-george-allen_n_27382.html
George Allen will be in trouble with any thinking person. Seems his sister wrote a book about the fact that George is a sadistic bastard and a bully. He once even said he wanted to become a dentist - why? According to his sister, he mused, "Imagine getting paid for making people suffer!"
The book is full of his misanthropic tendencies and (other than the fact that he just sounds more and more like the current prez) I can't imagine anyone believing his sister's words and also casting a vote for him. Here in Virginia he pretty much runs on the platform of being his famous coach-father's son.
---Oh, he did also run on another issue. When a law was proposed to prevent children from riding in the open cargo area of pick-up trucks --- he was against it.
Jan Knaus
August 16, 2006 2:03 PM | Reply | Permalink