Follow Up To Florida Girl Wearing The Anti-Islam Shirt

Think Progress added this update to the story about the Florida teenager who was sent home from her high school for wearing a hateful shirt that read: “ISLAM IS OF THE DEVIL.”

15-year old Emily Sapp, one of the high school students sent home for wearing the shirt, was asked whether she knows any Muslim children. “I’ve met Muslim children, but I don’t actually have any contact with them at the moment,” she said. “I don’t know why that is – I guess we’ve just never become friends.” Watch the video here.

Maybe the shirt and the attitude behind it are among reasons why.

Florida Student Sent Home For Hateful And Racist Message

Just in case you didn’t think anti-Muslim racism and anti-Islam hatred continues in the United States of American then you have been asleep at the wheel. A Florida high school student came in with a hateful T-shirt and was sent home by the school. This is a highly disturbing story I initially spotted on the Web site Think Progress where it initially caught my attention. The hateful, bigoted message on the shirt (as you can see in the photo) reads “ISLAM IS OF THE DEVIL.”

“Students have a right of free speech, and we have allowed students to come to school wearing clothes with messages,” Wittmer said. “But this message is a divisive message that is likely to offend students.” [...]

He said there also has to be equal treatment of different faiths.

“The next kid might show up with a shirt saying ‘Christianity is of the Devil,’” Wittmer said.

This kind of speech is hateful, bigoted and the school district was proper in its decision to send these individuals home to hopefully think about the ridiculous nature of their actions and their clothing choices. This is a dangerous time in our society where hate, bigotry and racism can spark unspeakable acts of violence. In the years since 9/11, the anti-Islam and anti-Muslim hate has only grown stronger in this nation. The good people of this country have to decide that they are going to stand up against this kind of hatred that creates a hostile environment for people.

Here is a passage with a quote from the young lady in question:

Wayne Sapp’s daughter, Emily Sapp, 15, was the student sent home from Gainesville High on Tuesday. Both Faith and Emily Sapp said it was their decision, not that of their parents, to wear the shirts to school in order to promote their Christian beliefs. Emily Sapp said the “Islam is of the Devil” statement was aimed at the religion’s beliefs, not its members.

“The people are fine,” she said. “The people are people. They can be saved like anyone else.”

Sadly, Emily simply doesn’t get it.

While trying to excuse herself from the disguised racism that is virtually unmistakable, she is trying to say it’s just about religion. However, condemning an entire religion (which is up for interpretation since some would say the same things about Christianity. That too is wrong) is no less hateful, stupid or wrong than condemning an entire race.

Think Progress:
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/08/26/islam-devil-shirt/

The Gainesville Sun:
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20090825/ARTICLES/908259940/1002/NEWS01?Title=More-students-wear-Islam-of-the-Devil-shirts-to-school

Low-Class Fox News Provides Platform To Weight Bigot Who Bashes Surgeon General Nominee

Fox News host Neil Cavuto provided a platform to a man named Michael Karolchyk who was wearing a T-shirt that read “NO CHUBBIES” across the chest. The shirt and the segment were part of a discussion hosted by Cavuto about whether or not President Obama’s nominee for surgeon general, Dr. Regina Benjamin, is too fat to serve as the surgeon general. I wonder how many male surgeon general nominees or surgeon generals ever have had their weight question as a qualifying factor? What kind of a low-class guy comes onto a national television broadcast and wears a shirt like that (in this context)? Imagine if Karolchyk was put on the air to discuss race relations wearing a shirt that read “NO DARKIES” across the chest.

This guy is a moron and Fox News should be ashamed of itself for hosting this clown (especially with that shirt on)? I say that in spite of the fact Cavuto did somewhat challenge the guy for some of his stupid comments.

To open the segment, as documented by Huffington Post:

Brilliant, dedicated, experienced and, oh yeah, fat. The President’s pick for Surgeon General is fat. Not a lot fat, but enough fat for my next guest to say fat chance for Dr. Regina Benjamin to even be considered. (emphasis mine)

Here is what the sweetheart of a guy, Karolchyk said:

Dr. Benjamin is 50 pounds overweight. She is obese. She’s a size 20. [...]

Ok, let’s then turn the tables. Would you then want the head of the Fed Reserve to be a guy in a cardboard box who lives underneath the highway because because he understands the plight of poor people and he understands how to make money work? [...] Would you want Michael Jackson’s doctors to be in charge of drug control at the DEA? The bottom line is it’s a symbolic position and obesity is the number one issue facing our country in terms of the health and wellness and she has shown not that she was born this way, not that she woke up one day and was obese, she has show through being lazy, and making poor food choices, that she’s obese.

This is so dumb, ignorant and bigoted it’s almost incomprehensible.

Talking Points Memo is reporting other media outlets are calling into question Dr. Benjamin’s appropriateness as surgeon general due to her weight (which apparently is more offensive than previous male surgeon generals.

Karolchyk’s logic is flawed on so many levels it’s sad. For Fox News to provide a forum for this man to spew his bigotry and attack a person with what seems to be impeccable credentials is pitiful.