Mark Steyn: Multiculturalists are the real racists

National Post ^ | Aughst 20, 2002 | Mark Steyn

[Clive]

Last Thursday, in Sydney, the pack leader of a group of Lebanese Muslim gang- rapists was sentenced to 55 years in jail. I suppose I ought to say "Lebanese-Australian" Muslim gang-rapists, since the accused were Australian citizens. But, identity-wise, the rambunctious young lads considered themselves heavy on the Lebanese, light on the Australian. During their gang rapes, the lucky lady would be told she was about to be "f- --ed Leb style" and that she deserved it because she was an "Australian pig."

But, inevitably, it's the heavy sentence that's "controversial." After September 11th, Americans were advised to ask themselves, "Why do they hate us?" Now Australians need to ask themselves, "Why do they rape us?" As Monroe Reimers put it on the letters page of The Sydney Morning Herald:

"As terrible as the crime was, we must not confuse justice with revenge. We need answers. Where has this hatred come from? How have we contributed to it? Perhaps it's time to take a good hard look at the racism by exclusion practised with such a vengeance by our community and cultural institutions."

Indeed. Many's the time, labouring under the burden of some or other ghastly Ottawa policy, I've thought of pinning some gal down and sodomizing her while 14 of my pals look on and await their turn. But I fear in my case the Monroe Reimers of the world would be rather less eager to search for "root causes." Gang rape as a legitimate expression of the campaign for social justice is a privilege reserved only unto a few.

Mr. Reimers, though, will be happy to know his view is echoed across the hemispheres. Five days before 9/11, the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet reported that 65% of the country's rapes were committed by "non-Western" immigrants -- a category which, in Norway, is almost wholly Muslim. A professor at the University of Oslo explained that one reason for the disproportionate Muslim share of the rape market was that in their native lands "rape is scarcely punished" because it is generally believed that "it is women who are responsible for rape."

So Muslim immigrants to Norway should be made aware that things are a little different in Scandinavia? Not at all! Rather, the professor insisted, "Norwegian women must take their share of responsibility for these rapes" because their manner of dress would be regarded by Muslim men as inappropriate. "Norwegian women must realize that we live in a multicultural society and adapt themselves to it." Or to modify Queen Victoria's wedding-night advice to her daughter: Lie back and think of Yemen.

France? Well, I can't bring you any ethnic rape statistics from the Fifth Republic because the authorities go to great lengths not to keep any. But, even though the phenomenon of immigrant gang rape does not exist, there's already a word for it: the "tournante" -- or "take your turn." Last year, 11 Muslim men were arrested for enjoying a grand old tournante with a 14-year old girl in a cellar.

Denmark? "Three quarters of rapes are carried out by non-Danes," says Peter Skaarup, chairman of the People's Party, a member of the governing coalition.

Well, you get the idea. Whether or not Muslim cultures are more prone to rape is a question we shall explore another day. What's interesting is how easily even this most extreme manifestation of multiculturalism is subsumed within the usual pieties. Norwegian women must learn to be, in a very real sense, less "exclusionary." Lebanese male immigrants, fleeing a war-torn wasteland and finding refuge in a land of peace, freedom and opportunity, are inevitably transformed into gang rapists by Australian racism.

After September 11th, a friend in London said to me she couldn't stand all the America-needs-to-ask-itself stuff because she used to work at a rape crisis centre and she'd heard this blame-the-victim routine a thousand times before. America was asking for it: like those Norwegian women, it was being "provocative." My friend thought the multiculti apologists were treating America as a metaphorical rape victim. But, even so, it comes as a surprise to realize they do exactly the same to actual rape victims. After the O.J. verdict, it was noted by some feminists that "race trumped gender." What we've seen since September 11th is that multiculturalism trumps everything. Its grip on the imagination of the Western elites is unshakeable. Even President Bush, in the month after September 11th, felt obliged to line up a series of photo-ops so he could declare that "Islam is peace" while surrounded by representatives of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, an organization which objected, on the grounds of "ethnic and religious stereotyping," to the prosecution of two men in Chicago for the "honour killing" of their female cousin.

On this "Islam is peace" business, Bassam Tibi, a Muslim professor at Goettingen University in Germany, gave a helpful speech a few months back: "Both sides should acknowledge candidly that although they might use identical terms these mean different things to each of them," he said. "The word 'peace,' for example, implies to a Muslim the extension of the Dar al- Islam -- or 'House of Islam' -- to the entire world. This is completely different from the Enlightenment concept of eternal peace that dominates Western thought." Only when the entire world is a Dar al-Islam will it be a Dar a-Salam, or "House of Peace."

On the face of it, that sounds ridiculous. The "Muslim world" -- the arc stretching from North Africa through South Asia -- is economically, militarily, scientifically and artistically irrelevant. But, looked at through the prism of Norwegian rape or French crime, the idea of a Dar al-Islam doesn't sound so ridiculous. The "code of silence" that surrounds rape in tightly knit Muslim families is, so to speak, amplified by the broader "code of silence" surrounding multicultural issues in the West. If all cultures are of equal value, how do you point out any defects?

As I understand it, the benefits of multiculturalism are that the sterile white- bread cultures of Australia, Canada and Britain get some great ethnic restaurants and a Commonwealth Games opening ceremony that lasts until two in the morning. But, in the case of those Muslim ghettoes in Sydney, in Oslo, in Paris, in Copenhagen and in Manchester, multiculturalism means that the worst attributes of Muslim culture -- the subjugation of women -- combine with the worst attributes of Western culture -- licence and self-gratification. Tattoed, pierced Pakistani skinhead gangs swaggering down the streets of Northern England are as much a product of multiculturalism as the turban- wearing Sikh Mountie in the vice-regal escort at Rideau Hall. Yet even in the face of the crudest assaults on its most cherished causes -- women's rights, gay rights -- the political class turns squeamishly away.

Once upon a time we knew what to do. A British district officer, coming upon a scene of suttee, was told by the locals that in Hindu culture it was the custom to cremate a widow on her husband's funeral pyre. He replied that in British culture it was the custom to hang chaps who did that sort of thing. There are many great things about India -- curry, pyjamas, sitars, software engineers -- but suttee was not one of them. What a pity we're no longer capable of being "judgmental" and "discriminating." We're told the old-school imperialists were racists, that they thought of the wogs as inferior. But, if so, they at least considered them capable of improvement. The multiculturalists are just as racist. The only difference is that they think the wogs can never reform: Good heavens, you can't expect a Muslim in Norway not to go about raping the womenfolk! Much better just to get used to it.

As one is always obliged to explain when tiptoeing around this territory, I'm not a racist, only a culturist. I believe Western culture -- rule of law, universal suffrage, etc. -- is preferable to Arab culture: that's why there are millions of Muslims in Scandinavia, and four Scandinavians in Syria. Follow the traffic. I support immigration, but with assimilation. Without it, like a Hindu widow, we're slowly climbing on the funeral pyre of our lost empires. You see it in European foreign policy already: they're scared of their mysterious, swelling, unstoppable Muslim populations.

Islam For All reported the other day that, at present demographic rates, in 20 years' time the majority of Holland's children (the population under 18) will be Muslim. It will be the first Islamic country in western Europe since the loss of Spain. Europe is the colony now.

Or as Charles Johnson, whose excellent "Little Green Footballs" Web site turns up dozens of fascinating Islamic tidbits every day, suggested: "Maybe we should start a betting pool: Which European country will be the first to institute shari'a?"

[Pokey78]

Nope, feeling fine. Just couldn't get going this morning.

[texasbluebell]

Here's the link to that site, one I've never seen before, so will have to check it out myself.

Little Green Footballs

[snefling]

Anyone know if Steyn is married and how old he is? On a purely intellectual basis, he's perfect for Ann Coulter. Can anyone else see that?

Remember, opposites attract. Steyn and Coulter both have liberal friends - you can tell from their references. As long as the opposition isn't too strident, they're fun to be around to debate and discuss issues.

[texasbluebell]

Or as Charles Johnson, whose excellent "Little Green Footballs" Web site turns up dozens of fascinating Islamic tidbits every day, suggested: "Maybe we should start a betting pool: Which European country will be the first to institute shari'a?"

And I've often wondered this myself. Which one will fall first? Will it be France? Quite possibly. Or the Netherlands? Either one could be my pick. Then again there's England, will we soon see an Islamic Republic of Britain?

Knighthawk, what do you think?

[citizen]

BTTT

[spodefly]

Thanks for the Ping. Steyn always gets it right.

My biggest concern is the apparent difficulty that everyone else has in seeing what Steyn points out so clearly.

When 'western' men start telling 'western' women that they have to tolerate gang-rapes as a component of multiculturalism, or acquiesce in their manner and dress to 'not provoke' the rapists, we have completely lost our culture, a culture which would never (in the past, at least) tolerate such barbaric behavior from anyone, for any reason.

I no longer care what I am called when I express my disdain for Islam and Muslim culture. Everywhere thier religion spreads, violence and barbarity follow. Their goals are clear. If you cannot see it, then you are just as dangerous to me (and the one's that I love) as they are. I will not acquiesce, I will not appease, and I will not tolerate.

Islam is a barbaric death cult. So called 'moderate' Muslims are the Trojan horse for the fanaticism that lies at the core of that cult.

[wardaddy]

I hate to say it but it's obvious. We (collectively) are our own worst enemies. Without these quite willy nilly citizens amongst us, we would be a much less appealing target to our enemies.

[archy]

It might have been the one with the kitten dressed as a suicide bomber. There were some great comments on LGF that got copied here.

Allah AkPurrrr!

Palestinian bomb cat picture shocks civilised world

Meow!Grrrr!

-archy-/-

[Pearls Before Swine]

And Louie said: "This is a greatest country on Earth and the greatest country in the history of the world, but if she is not careful, she will go the way of Rome."

Sadly, he's right, but not for the reasons he thinks. Rome fell for many reasons, not the least of which included distraction and "wussification" of the population, factionalism, awful leadership, and loss of identity to the immigration policies of empire. This latter issue came about because of slave labor and mercenary armies. There is, alas, an analogy to today's poor absorpion of minimally acculturated wage slaves.

Listening to Louie--following his suggested policies--would increase the certainty of the fall occuring and its rapidity. He would plunder the productive for the temporary gains of his chosen group, as is current practice in much of the post-colonial world.

[FreedomFriend]

Europe should not be admitting any non-western immigrants. They have no right to be there. This includes Middle Easterners, Africans and Asians. Is Europe to commit a genocide on its own people, or are they to destroy their own way of life. Unfortunately, it appears that both are the case.

[EdReform]

Bump

[untenured]

Yet even in the face of the crudest assaults on its most cherished causes -- women's rights, gay rights -- the political class turns squeamishly away.

Working in a university as I do, I am simply flabbergasted by the extent to which the multicultural imperative has snuffed out critical thought. If the jihadists want to crush gays under brick walls and reverse all the gains women have made in the last century, it is our fault for pointing it out.

Several tenets, especially in the humanities departments, have become revealed truth, not to be challenged:

1. No one from group X is fit to criticize any action taken by a member of group Y, but only if group Y is a certified minority group.

2. The West is always at fault. Any datum offered to rebut this claim is evidence of racism or other hostility toward other groups. Any behavior that cuts against the Western grain is not a sign of a defect that must be overcome, but of something to which the West must accomodate itself.

3. Groups must always be defined exclusively around race, religion and sexual orientation - not occupation, not parental status, not political beliefs, only the tribal identities.

Lest we think this is something that only applies to academic flakes, let me assure you that day in and day out I see students who are thoroughly under the spell of the multiculturalist ethos, completely incapable of making cross-cultural comparisons if it means they must actually come to a critical conclusion. They are deeply inculcated in this by the time they get here, and it gets worse while they're here. Things are bad.

[Squantos]

I was looking at the current issue of Popular Science last evening. Ya want to scare yourself silly then read that rags stories on goobermints future homeland security plans/ideas.

We are NOT going to win anything with ideas presented in the story content. It only revolves around airports which I like to think of as lab rat sources for these security fiascos for now , soon to spread to your local highways and rural roads. Islamakazis will just avoid Airports now that all the money and time are being thrown at the "flying" public....

Note the pics in those stories of nail clippers and small swiss army knives and scissors ect ect on full pages.......Thought provoking IMHO.

The dog is chasing it's own tail with regards to Homeland Security Efforts and will never "get it"............

Stay Safe !

[CatoRenasci]

Indeed. The decline in the quality of critical thought in the universities since I was a graduate student some 30 years ago is amazing. I am currently going through the college admissions process with my eldest daughter and it is illuminating. Having been an academic, I can read between the lines in a faculty biography or a course catalog, and I am seeing huge variations in departments of interest among the better liberal arts colleges. In some cases, and we're talking about institutions of roughly equal prestige here (say the top 50-60 liberal arts colleges and some smaller prestigious but not top 20 univesrities), the course offerings are recognizable to me as comparable to what I did and what I taught. In other cases, the faculty are all interested in the new politically correct aspects of their disciplines and the course catalog is filled with the latest fads. We've been making it a point to meet with the heads, or senior faculty, in the departments my daughter is interested in to discuss the opportunities in the fields in each school and get a sense for how they're taught. Equally important in what was my field, I ask a few questions that elicit telling responses about the faculty's views. In some schools I've been pleasantly surprised, in others, sadly disappointed. Once it's over, perhaps I'll post something of my specific impressions, but for now, I don't think I'll increase the applicant pools at the places we liked.

[headsonpikes]

"Things are bad."

Luckily for the biosphere, vultures and worms don't discriminate against anyone, no matter how extraordinarily irrational their belief systems are.

The young are starting to squirm under the suffocating pillow of PC highminded insanity. I retain hope.

[Grampa Dave]

Tommy Da$$hole and his wife who is a big time lobbyist for the airlines, immediately took over air port security and turned it into a full time joke with Da$$hole's special little riders in the so called air port security.

As a result there was a typical rat focus on nail clippers and blue eyed passengers, blondes and my semi dangerous 3 year old semi blond grand daughter who some how triggered a search a week ago in the Philly Airport coming back to SFO.

They didn't want to search her 18 month old really blond blue eyed brother, nick named Bam Bam, nor her mother who in the summer could appear to be Middle East. Bam Bam had grabbed one security it with his vice grip hand and was Bam Baming her with his other hand. My dil let Bam Bam terrorize the security it during the following great Da$$hole job:

My 3 year old 28 pound grand daughter had to take her shoes off. She refused until the security guy said please. Then, she took off her shoes and threw them at them and ran back and forth through the metal detector gate until they told my terrorist family to move on. She picked up her shoes and said thank you.

So the Da$$hole/Rat PC airport circus has reached the point that GW wants the right to fire the clowns working for Da$$hole's phoney security. Of course, Da$$hole won't allow that as long as he is in charge of the Senate.

Whenever the Rats are involved just follow the money.

[300winmag]

What's wrong with revenge?
They bring a knife, you bring a gun
They put one of yours in the hospital, you put one of theirs in the morgue!
That's the Chicago way!

They bring a gun, you bring a gunship. That's the American way!

[Gritty]

Very sad, scary first-person commentary you give there!

[A.J.Armitage]

But, inevitably, it's the heavy sentence that's "controversial."

55 years for rape is not a heavy sentence.

The right penalty is lethal injection. Why lethal injection? Because they're animals, and should be put down like animals.

[elisabeth]

This comes from a link on the NEA web page about lesson plans for 9/11. The specific link is: http://www.pbs.org/americaresponds/tolerance.html

This is scary stuff, and sadly this is very typical of the brainwashing and biased political instruction that goes on in public schools every day!

Excerpts from the lesson plan:

During coverage of the terrorist attacks, many news organizations showed video footage of Palestinians celebrating the terrorist attacks. Sentiment against the Palestinians--and Arab people more generally--increased as a result of this reporting, though at the time it was unclear who was responsible for the attacks [WHAT?!?!?], or how widespread such celebrations were in the Middle East.

Ask students to brainstorm a list of descriptors that come to mind when they hear the word "terrorist." Ask students to share their ideas (verbally, or anonymously by collecting papers and reading aloud). Note how many times "Arab," "Middle East," or "Muslim" get mentioned. Ask students if they think this characterization is fair. [Well, gee...considering this is a lesson about 9/11 and ALL of the terrorists involved in 9/11 were ARABS and MUSLIMS I would say that characterization is fair and accurate!] How does it compare to the characterization of Japanese-Americans and German-Americans during World War II?

Examine how the media portrays people of Arab descent, through an analysis of movies like The Seige, True Lies, and the upcoming Tom Clancy thriller, The Sum of All Fears [uh...wasn't this about russians or nazis or something?]. Students may be interested in the following article: The Seige: Hollywood Now Plays Cowboys and Arabs http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/arbholl.htm [Silence of the Lambs is ok because it was about a WHITE MALE, though. Have your kids watch that instead, it is much more PC.]

Share this article posted online from MSNBC: "Arab-Americans feel a backlash" http://www.msnbc.com/news/628515.asp This article details hate crimes against Arab-Americans in the wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Is there any connection between media portrayals of Arabs in movies and other popular entertainment, and the crimes committed against Arab-American citizens? Ask students to discuss this.

Ask students to brainstorm a list of ways that citizens can eradicate ethnic stereotypes in their communities (possibilities include exhibits, ethnic festivals, film series, social events at places of worship, etc.). What things can be done locally? At the national level? Choose one or more of these ideas to implement as a class or in partnership with a community organization.