The controversy over the Danish cartoons, while it has muted somewhat over the past few weeks, has been a subject of continuing discussion at various blogs and websites. If you're not familiar with Random Platitudes, a relatively new blog, I recommend that you visit. RP is a Danish historian and lecturer who has been doing a series of posts over the history of the cartoon affair. While I don't agree with everything he's written, some of his posts provide valuable insight into Danish psychology and how the history of Denmark has shaped their thinking toward xenophobia.
Next, I originally found the following quotation on one of the diaries at Daily Kos. Guess which newspaper originally published it?
"You have to admit Germany its clear right to rid itself of its Jews. But one must insist that it happens in a decent manner."
That's right, Jyllands-Posten. This is from an editorial in reaction to Nazi Germany's Kristallnacht (the "Night of Broken Glass," in which the Germans rampaged against the Jews, their businesses, synagogues, and other properties). (See also Denmark, Where Are You? A Story About Longing for another essay that refers to this quotation.)
Yes, it seems that the more things change, the more they remain the same. Most organizations indoctrinate their employees to follow the company's customs and ways of thinking (e.g., "the HP way," "the Microsoft way," and so on), and it would surprise me not in the least that the editorial staff of Jyllands-Posten today would have the same basic conservative, xenophobic bent that their predecessors had back in November 1938.
Finally, I came across the following brief essay, published on February 8 at Sojourners. The essay shows that many Europeans suffer from a racist superiority complex over anyone who pretty much isn't a white Western European. (The racist taunts that European soccer fans make, referred to in the essay, are a frequent occurence, and happened as recently as this weekend, when fans of Spanish League Zaragoza taunted Barcelona's Eto'o, a fantastic striker from Cameroon. Eto'o almost walked off the field in disgust.)
Cartoons a Symptom of Deeper Prejudices in Western Europe
by Tomek Krzyzostaniak
Twelve cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed, printed last September in the Danish daily Jyllands-Posten and republished in January by major newspapers in Norway, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands, have sparked outrage throughout the Muslim world. Protests intensified last weekend in several Middle Eastern countries, and included outbreaks of violence and the burning of Danish and Swedish Missions. Many Muslims object to the cartoons because Islam forbids the creation of any image of the prophet, and the cartoons portray Mohammed as a terrorist. Along with anger there are feelings of confusion from those who imagined Europe as a tolerant and welcoming place.
The fictional haven was clearly shaken by the riots in France last year. If Europe is so culturally tolerant, how could so many minorities be so upset? Europeans from Slavic nations have understood the Western European superiority complex better than others. My uncle Andrzej Lewandowski, like many other Polish businessmen, faces derogatory comments and ill treatment from his French and German counterparts on a consistent basis when traveling. Even though Poland is a full member of the European Union, the Western nations have consistently placed limitations on the ability of Poles to work and study in their countries. French President Jacques Chirac called Poland and other Eastern European nations "irresponsible" and "infantile" for their positions on Iraq, hardly words one uses to address equals and allies.
The treatment of Slavs in Western Europe is quite polite when compared to behavior toward non-Christians and non-whites. Evidence of this is most notable in soccer stadiums. In Britain, renowned for its politeness, a black player was taunted by fans making monkey noises, reported international news sources. This would have shocked some except that this kind of incident had already occurred countless times in Italy, Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands.
Though many fans are able to tolerate players as long as they perform well on the soccer field, they show their true colors when voting. In Austria, the Freedom Party, a far-right populist party that opposes immigration and "multicultural experiments," is part of the governing coalition. In France an extremist candidate won 18% of the popular vote in the 2002 presidential elections. Both Denmark and Norway, where the cartoon fiasco originated, have significant anti-immigration party participation in their parliaments (12% and 15% respectively). In Germany the neo-Nazi National Democratic Party quadrupuled its 2002 national election results and gained 1.6% of the vote. Though the numbers are still small the rise in popularity of far-right parties is alarming, and they have fared even better in local elections. In 2004 the NDP captured 9.2% of the vote in state elections and sent 12 delegates to the state parliament of Saxony.
There are countless examples of racism and intolerance in Western Europe, from governments banning headscarves to firebombings of synagogues in Brussels and Antwerp. These expressions of discrimination in areas of perceived acceptance unfortunately remind me of my hometown of Madison, Wisconsin. Looked upon by the rest of the country as a bastion of liberalism, Madison is also no haven. Last month when Middleton High School (predominately white and wealthy) faced off against Madison East (predominately people of color and poor), the Middleton fans began to chant "food stamps" and "Oscar Meyer" in reference to the economic standing of their opponents. The students issued a halfhearted apology and were not disciplined by school administrators. While this is a far cry from firebombs and beatings, it does expose a sad truth about a tolerant society.
As long as minorities - racial, ethnic, economic, or otherwise - represent a small number, it is comfortable for white citizens to speak boldly about acceptance and equality, but the moment more than one or two of "them" show up, true feelings emerge. These cartoons, stupid though they may be, are just one example of a much larger problem.
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