Fight Your Mind

The other day I was having dinner at the W Hotel in midtown (don't eat there -- way over priced and not very good food). I had to go up to the second floor to use the bathroom, and as I came out of the elevator, I encountered two middle Eastern men on the payphone.

My first thought, as it should have been for any good teleconomist, was: who uses payphones at the W any more. I'd guess than 99% of all adults who stay at the W own a cell phone.

My second thought, and this is what the post is about, was: two Middle Eastern men using a payphone -- that can't be good.

That thought is wrongheaded. Granted, I can't not think a thought that my brain thinks, if you know what I mean. But all us non-Arabs have to fight against these racist-ass thoughts. Stereotypes make people miss out on so much good stuff, and they create barriers of communication and barriers of upward mobility for individuals, and they keep us from learning new things from people with a different perspective than one's own.

Any rational, open-minded person accepts that judging any random black dude as more likely to commit a crime is a close-minded ignorant way of thinking. I often rail against people who use any racial slur -- I like to call them out. Sometimes, they'll be like, "What does it matter?"

Let's say you're in a position of power. Looking to hire someone. A black guy comes in the door, and because you've allowed negative racial sentiments -- however minor -- to fester in your mind he doesn't get quite a fair shake. You've allowed a bias towards white people to build up -- and the reason why is because you still allow those age-old ignorant-ass desires to categorize things (people, shows, superstitions, whatever) dominate your fundamental thinking.

Get over it. The world and the events and objects in it don't fit into those comfortable categories you wish they did. Individuals are individuals -- by definition, you know? And just because you happened to notice that the last three times you used a roll-on deodorant that the market went up or the last two times you wore some shirt that you got laid -- doesn't make it cause and effect, bubba.

But back to the Middle Eastern racism thing. Let's all quit trying to rationalize the new accepted racism against Arabs. If I hear another no-sense-making idiot say, "What can I do? If I get on an airplane and there's some young Arab men sitting next to me, I'm going to look them over and think twice."

Here's what you can do. You can accept that your mind wants to project the horrible deeds that some dudes who looked like those guys sitting next to onto those guys sitting next to you. And then you can step back and think that thought through. And realize it's silly. And wrong. That's what I did all in the span of about 15 seconds the other night when I got off the elevator at the W.

But seriously, and this is suspicious -- who the fuck stays at the W and has to use a payphone?