"Macaca" is an ethnic slur, Senator

[Rose Siding]

"This fellow here over here with the yellow shirt, Macaca, or whatever his name is......Lets give a welcome to Macaca, here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia"

-Sen. George Allen (R), in reference to a young man of Indian descent.

Main Entry: ma·caque
Pronunciation: m&-'kak, -'käk
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Portuguese macaco, from kaku mangabey, plural makaku, in one or more Bantu languages of Gabon and Congo
: any of a genus (Macaca) of chiefly Asian monkeys typically having a sturdy build and including some short-tailed or tailless forms ; especially : RHESUS MONKEY

http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/Macaque

and this, via Atrios-

Macaque
(Belgium & France) a Negro (originally) or a person of North-African origin (more recently); derived from macaque monkeys

http://listofethnicslurs.quickseek.com/#M

[Cooley Hurd]

1. K&R - And this pig is a SENATOR???

After that crack, he should do the right thing and RESIGN from the US Senate!!!:mad:

[Rose Siding]

5. Yep. Here's the LBN piece-

Mr Sidarth is a volunteer for Jim Webb, so Allen was mocking his presence anyway.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2456366

[madokie]

23. the pukes were entertaining the idea of him running for pres. in '08

[wicket]

26. He's a racist piece of shit!

He used to keep a NOOSE hanging in his office!!! :grr: :grr:

[MrModerate]

2. Allen hurt himself with reasonable people with this one . . .

And cemented his relationship with the sheet-in-a-closet types. Will that win him reelection in Virgina? Probably. Will it help his presidential bid? I don't think so.

On the whole, this is a good sign -- shows concerned Dems that he's none too bright, and without an army of enablers like Georgie, isn't likely to go too much further.

[HeeBGBz]

3. What an idiot

Either stupid or a racist or both.

[partylessinOhio]

4. Was he grinning when he said it?

[Rose Siding]

12. As a matter of fact, he was

:grr:

(see video down thread)

[AspenRose]

6. Isn't this the ass who had a noose hanging in his office....

....and the stars and bars on his car when he was in high school?

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

9. The very same.

Here's the asshat at Pat Robertson's university, Regent.

[deminks]

7. Wonkette has the video.

http://www.wonkette.com/politics/george-allen/breaking-news-hakuna-macaca-or-george-allen-puts-foot-in-mouth-and-sucks-hard-194138.php

[never_get_over_it]

8. Sam Sedar is talking about this now

and man am I sorry I'm not in VA anymore to vote against this freak - well I voted against him the first time. I am calling EVERY SINGLE PERSON I KNOW IN VA and telling them about this and to spread the word.

This freaking racist pig has a noose in his office - and now is using the N word - or maybe he was calling this guy a monkey either way he is a racist PIG. Allen wants to continue to be a Senator and then run for President in 08

Jesus just when you think these freaks can't be any more disgusting......and there they go

Oh and by the way the gentleman he welcomed to America was BORN IN VIRGINIA

excuse me I'm going to go vomit - I HATE THESE PEOPLE

[CottonBear]

43. Al Franken is talking about this right now on AAR:

http://www.airamerica.com/listen/

Is Sam Seder on the show today? I just tuned in.

[Canuckistanian]

10. To be fair, here

I don't think George Allen would have any clue about foreign racial slurs, let alone monkeys in general.

Still, his cluelessnes about either taking the time to pronounce the man's name properly or to recognize that the man's "world" is probably more "real" than his own is stunning.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

13. George Allen's mother...

Is of Lebanese descent.

[flpoljunkie]

48. Josh Marshall says she's French Tunisian and macacque is a French slur.

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/009422.php

(August 15, 2006 -- 12:13 PM EDT)

Ahhh, George Allen's America. Where the borders are secure and dark-complected Americans are derided as monkeys.

What did Allen mean? We now know that not only is 'macaque' a French language slur used to describe North Africans but Allen has a dizzyingly direct way of being familiar with the word. His mother is French Tunisian. Given that it would be amongst the French colonial population in North Africa that the word would have the greatest currency (even if only by familiarity rather than use), it seems close to impossible to believe that Allen didn't become familiar with the word growing up.

[Canuckistanian]

50. Yup, I realized this in a later post

This news needs to get out.

[guinivere]

14. Yeah, you may be right there.

Unfortunately I don't think that Allen knew what he was talking about. It doesn't excuse it, though.

[Rose Siding]

16. To be fair, "makaka" doesn't sound anything LIKE Sidarth or "mohawk"

He picked it up somewhere. At BEST, he's an idiot for not finding out what it meant before he used it.

[Canuckistanian]

20. See #18 below

He knew exactly what he was saying.

[Rose Siding]

21. Yikes

thanks. That's sad and disgusting.

[never_get_over_it]

17. Oh I absolutely think he would know this

of all the words in the world he could have used he uses this one and it just happens to be a racist slur - I don't believe in coincidences -

[Canuckistanian]

19. Mea culpa - see my post below

This man deserves no defenders.

[LittleClarkie]

11. So, Virginians, what's the reaction on the street?

Anything in the papers, tv or heard anything from people you encountered today?

[eachsmallcandle]

33. former Virginian; current Marylander

it's in the Washington Post.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/14/AR2006081400589.html

[YOY]

37. In the Metro Newspaper this morning

A free handout to all riders.

No real outrage, but then again most of out Metro rides are rather silent.

[AspenRose]

40. I'll have to check that out.

We're in the DC area for the summer and I didn't realize just how different the attitudes are between VA and MD....so close and yet so far.

If we do another stint in DC, I'm gonna request we live in MD next time instead of NoVA.

[YOY]

41. I rather like NoVA. The cities of Arlington and Alexandria are diverse

and the area tends to be open minded and favor the dems...

but once you leave the city it turns into redneck land.

[Virginia Dare]

46. Not sure, but just a guess...

the kool-aid drinkers won't see what the big deal is. He's playing with fire here IMO as Jerry Kilgore took the strategy of playing to the base, even appearing with the Chimp at the eleventh hour, and ended up losing the race for Governor. Mostly, I just think he's an idiot.

Webb is currently running behind but I think it is largely because he's being outspent by little Felix and has little name recognition among the ignoramus FOX News Channel watchers.

[never_get_over_it]

15. OK so I didn't go vomit

but lets think about this - George Allen JR's father was coach of the Red Skins - how many black football players do you think he coached and how do you think the Allen family talked about these players in their home behind closed doors - you have to learn to be racist - you're not born that way - I'm just imagining this and holy crap it makes me mad.

[Rose Siding]

24. I never considered that.

It makes this sound even more ominous-

snip>
...When he served as Governor of Virginia, Allen called the NAACP an “extremist organization,” proclaimed the month of April Confederate History and Heritage Month and kept a confederate flag in his living room. When asked why he flew a confederate flag in his home he replied, "It was never flying. It was nailed to a wall."

http://www.blackcommentator.com/142/142_freedom_rider_lynching.html

[Canuckistanian]

18. Whoops, I owe an apology

Goerge Allen DID know the particular racist slur, after all:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2456366&mesg_id=2456555

[never_get_over_it]

22. It never ceases to amaze me that these people

can still shock me - oh man I need to go to a deserted island without an internets connection - one of these days these freak repunks will actually succeed in making my head pop off.....

[Canuckistanian]

25. I find it amazing

That these people are not in a comfortable straightjacket in a nice padded room - instead of running the damned government.

[spooky3]

27. Want to help his opponent, Jim Webb, get this disgrace

out of office?

Go to:

http://www.webbforsenate.com/home.php

[SaveElmer]

28. Unfortunately...in parts of my state...

That will make him more popular!!! Like the noose and confederate flag in his office!

Hopefully up here in Northern Virginia he will get slammed big time

[Virginia Dare]

44. Yes, he is running behind in NOVA...

the only place in the state where he is at this point, but that should worry him alot, as NOVA nearly carried Kerry to victory in VA in 2004, and largely helped Tim Kaine beat Kilgore for Governor.

[burythehatchet]

29. I'm of Indian origin

and if I was in the young man's shoes I would be in a Virginia jail right now.

[GeorgeGist]

30. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia

sadly true of Mr. Allen's vision.

[NoodleyAppendage]

31. What do you expect from a guy who collected Dixie flags & had a noose...

Allen is a taller version of Bush...but without the speech impediment.

J

[eachsmallcandle]

32. he's just playing to his base.

condescending asshole? yes. racist? i doubt it (with a tinge of "maybe" in there). in my opinion, Allen's just trying to score points with his base (made up of white, xenophobic, terr'ist-hating, Jesus-loving, hypogonadal, socially backward hypocrites -- in other words, Republicans), as evidenced by the stinted guffaws and one-handed applause (hey Scooter, is we done supposed to laugh now?). luckily for Allen, he's not going to lose any votes over this gaffe.

as an American of Indian descent (i.e. Indian-American, i.e. American, i.e. Indian -- heck, it's so hard to know what to call yourself these days), i just chuckled to myself when he called out the yellow-shirted dude (who might as well have had a giant target on his back). the word "macaca" means nothing to me, other than that Allen picked it so as to sound foreign and humiliating. the "welcome to America" was a nice touch.

IMO, Allen was actually a pretty good governor, but that might have had more to do with who was president at the time of his tenure. :)

[fujiyama]

35. You doubt his racism?

He has a history stretching back to his youth...

I think this incident along with several others that are documented proves that this man is undoubtadly a racist piece of shit.

But I also agree that he's playing to his redneck base. Let's hope Indian-Americans in NoVa will hear about this and support Webb.

Welcome to DU.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

42. i suppose in some areas racist means something else.

like in Virginia for example, to be a racist perhaps you have to go out and burn crosses or something.

[Virginia Dare]

45. Nope, he is a genuine racist...

there is a DUer who sometimes posts here on him. He attended high school with the asswipe and he will personally attest to his racism.

[Virginian]

34. What do you expect from a racist? n/t

[YOY]

36. So what was the guy's real name?

Just out of curiousity. Was it anywhere near 'Macaca'?

[Rose Siding]

38. His name is Sidarth

[YOY]

39. Pretty far from Macaca

And not even very difficult to remember.

Yep...he's a racist assclown.

[jackstraw45]

47. AMAZING last paragraph in the AP article

Just remember, this is a FREAKING US SENATOR in the year 2005:

"Allen has been accused of racial insensitivity before. He wore a Confederate flag pin in his high school yearbook photo, used to keep a Confederate flag in his living room, a noose in his law office and a picture of Confederate troops in his governor's office, but has said he has grown since then."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060815/ap_on_re_us/allen_campaign_volunteer

[karlrschneider]

49. Oh, he explained it...see this

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=1915046&mesg_id=1915046