A Wise Man, Khalidi

by on October 30, 2008 4

This is Rashid Khalidi's automated email message: "I am on sabbatical for 2008-2009, and at times will be abroad and unable to respond to email." Rashid, please get in touch. I want to vouch for you–and ask, Has there ever been a good Palestinian in American discourse? Did guys like John Sununu and Ralph Nader basically go sotto-voce on their Middle Eastern roots out of fear of the prejudice? A great shame.

About Philip Weiss

Philip Weiss is Founder and Co-Editor of Mondoweiss.net.
Posted in Israel/Palestine, US Policy in the Middle East, US Politics

{ 4 comments... read them below or add one }

  1. Kaveh says:
    October 30, 2008 at 10:35 am

    I have cousins who are born in U.S. who call them call them seleves American any time a person ask's them were they from and they have no attachment to Iran what so ever. And that's Nader and sununu fell as will ( i'm gussing hear i don't know them) , and not because they fear prejudice.

  2. Keyvan says:
    October 30, 2008 at 11:19 am

    Kaveh, you're wrong about both Nader and Sununu (and Sununu's opponent, Shaheen): all three have identified at times with their Arab-American heritage, and they do speak of an attachment (usually to Lebanon, rather than to Arab issues broadly). But as Phil says they are far too low-key in embracing their heritage, this is true.

    We Iranians on the other hand have a bit of a pathological self-hatred – your cousins probably were raised by parents who taught them to be ashamed of their heritage and to pretend to be white. But when they open the camps for Muslims, Iranians will be the first ones to go.

  3. kaveh says:
    October 30, 2008 at 12:44 pm

    who said any thing about camps don't
    be paranoid, also they call themselves american not becuse their parents told them hate themsevels but because they have never been to iran .

  4. kaveh says:
    October 30, 2008 at 12:44 pm

    who said any thing about camps don't
    be paranoid, also they call themselves american not becuse their parents told them hate themsevels but because they have never been to iran .

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