NEWSPAPER columnists in Virginia could make quite a decent living by only writing columns exposing the latent racism and blatant ignorance of local politicians. Whenever a slow news cycle threatens my weekly deadline, senators and congressmen seem to sense the lack of interesting stories and, as if sensing my writer's block, they write a letter like the one penned recently by Rep. Virgil Goode (R-Va.). Trust me, the columns almost write themselves.
Last October, it was George Allen (R-Va.) who, in a moment of unbelievable stupidity harassed the only minority member of an all-white, all-conservative audience. As I'm sure you remember, the young man recorded Allen grinning stupidly and welcoming young "Macaca" to America. One could almost hear the aneurism burst inside his press secretary's forehead. Following Allen's recent defeat -- just when you thought Virginia would be at a loss for embarrassing and, dare I say it, bigoted politicians -- our very own Goode steps forward to fill the void.
Not to be outdone by his colleague's career-ending gaffe, Goode wrote a letter that warned voters of the following catastrophic events: Minnesota voters elected Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), a Muslim congressman, who planned to take his oath of office with his hand on a copy of the Quran. Just when you thought Virginia had lost its sense of humor by evicting its resident dunce, George Allen, we have the reelection of (yet another wahoo) Virgil Goode.
The letter, which reads like the ravings of a neo-fascist adolescent, came apparently after Goode's office received hundreds of letters decrying Ellison's choice to swear his oath with a Koran, much in the same way Goode and other congressmen swear theirs on the Bible. To his disgruntled constituents, Goode wrote, "I fear that in the next century we will have many more Muslims in the United States if we do not adopt the strict immigration policies that I believe are necessary to preserve the values and beliefs traditional to the United States of America and to prevent our resources from being swamped." Aside from his apparent fear of punctuation, notice he didn't simply observe an increase in of Muslim immigrants. He fears them -- all of them, it seems -- as threats to the ideas of America.
Goode then suggests that the mere presence of Muslims in the United States threatens "traditional" values. Remind you of anyone? The idea that one ethnic or religious group threatens another, simply by existing: One can't get much more bigoted than that. I know that sounds a bit alarmist, maybe worthy of a pro-diversity poster or chalking on Grounds, but readers ought to reread Goode's remarks and try to parse out any hint of tolerance or, frankly, a basic knowledge of constitutional law.
I'll save you the time, Goode exhibits a vast ignorance of both. Obviously, Ellison is well within his rights to swear his oath on the Quran, or a Harry Potter novel, or a copy of MAD magazine if he so chooses. More importantly, the congressional oath of office enjoins members of Congress to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America," which includes Article VI, Section 3 specifying, "No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States." Congressman Goode must have missed that part. Or perhaps he was distracted by his incessant scheming to score cheap political points by alienating anyone who isn't Christian.
To be fair, Goode may well be right when he wrote that Ellison and his ideas might unsettle "traditional" values. Certainly as a Muslim and an African-American Ellison brings a unique perspective to a Congress populated overwhelmingly by white, Christian men. But diversity, be it religious, intellectual, or ideological ought to be treasured, not denigrated.Either Goode resents the idea that a diverse Congress furthers public discourse, or he doesn't, and then it seems entirely reasonable to assume that this letter is a dishonest political stunt intended to rile up his constituency. I'm not sure which is worse.
As it happens, Ellison demonstrated his political cleverness by using a Koran once owned by the author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, Thomas Jefferson. Who, by the way, was a resident of Albemarle County -- Goode's district. Nothing like a little irony for sorting things out.
And just when I thought the matter couldn't get any worse, I checked back and, sure enough, last October The Cavalier Daily endorsed Goode for reelection. Perhaps next time we should ask the candidate what he or she thinks about diversity, religious freedom and pluralism, minority rights and whatnot. Perhaps in 2008 we won't be so tolerant of Goode's intolerance.
Dan Keyserling is a Cavalier Daily associate editor. He can be reached at dkeyserling@cavalierdaily.com.
Read More
PATEL: Personal development courses support students beyond the gradebook
By Heer Patel | 4 days agoThe University must rethink its approach to education beyond traditional major-specific requirements and mandate personal development courses.
EDITORIAL: Commercialization threatens U.Va.’s educational mission
By Editorial Board | 5 days agoAfter all, measuring the University’s worth in terms of accrued capital, operational efficiency and numerical rankings molds this space into just another cookie-cutter institution.
YOUNIS: Why every U.Va. student should say yes to English
By Ayat Younis | January 9, 2025Every student at the University, regardless of their primary field of study, can professionally and academically benefit from engaging with the English department.
