Letters

Letters

Primary problem

Editor:

Nick Golding began his letter to the editor about my candidacy
for state Assembly ("Party crashing," Feb. 22) with the phrase, "I
read with interest … " I found several of his statements
interesting, too, and would appreciate if The Bruin gave me equal
space to refute his ridiculous and patently biased claims.

Golding seems quite familiar with the resumé and
legislative record of my opponent, the honorable Louis Caldera. He
mentioned that Caldera (like any other member of the Assembly)
serves on a few committees, most notably the Higher Education
Committee . Golding, who claims to be a Democrat, should also know,
then, that Louis Caldera voted yes on what many call a Proposition
187-style bill which mandates that Department of Motor Vehicles
employees check for proof of citizenship before allowing a
"suspected illegal" alien to obtain a driver’s license.

Also, the Higher Education Committee that Caldera sits on let
itself be cowed by Pete Wilson, without so much as a whimper, in a
year where student issues (fee increases, affirmative action) truly
took a beating. I find it interesting that these facts were not
mentioned.

The final aspect of Golding’s letter, which I found interesting,
is his apparent ignorance and/or distaste for the American
political system. Is Golding so preoccupied that he has not noticed
the Dole-Buchanan-Alexander (all Republican) battle which recently
took place in Iowa, Louisiana and New Hampshire?

Battles like this one are an integral part of our
decision-making process (and include the type of election I am
currently in). They are called PRIMARIES, and are defined by a
single party’s voters democratically picking who they wish to
represent them against the other party’s candidate come November. I
suggest Golding take some political science classes before he
graduates.

Now I have a few questions for Golding: Does he live in the
neighborhood Caldera and I are vying to represent? I sincerely
doubt it. If he did, he would understand why I wish to change
things. Does he really think political ass-kissing is the way to go
instead of taking a stand for something you believe in and is your
right, as a citizen, to do (run for public office)?

Finally, does Golding seriously propose changing the current
election system that has served this country for 200-plus years? He
calls himself a Democrat, but what he advocates is not called
democracy; it’s called fascism.

Michael Anthony Gatto

Fourth-year

History

Israeli racism real

Editor:

"Provocative, ignorant rhetoric …" were some of the words
Kelly Baxter used in Viewpoint last Thursday ("Ignorance
contributes to legacy of persecution," Feb. 22) in response to
Maryam Abdallah’s earlier viewpoint promoting a rally against
oppression ("Oppression is alive and well at home, afar," Feb. 16).
Ironically, Baxter’s own article was riddled with provocative,
ignorant and unsubstantiated statements in reference to why
Ethiopian Jews in Israel were protesting over Israeli racism.

"There was no rejection (dumping) of ‘black blood’ based on
racial prejudice," says Baxter. Baxter goes on to suggest that
"research" showed "Ethiopians were 43 times more likely to carry
the HIV virus than the rest of the Israeli population;" therefore
justifying the policy of covert blood-dumping.

Not only is Baxter’s data unsubstantiated, her argument itself
is infuriating. According to a recent Newsweek article ("A New Kind
of Blood Libel," Feb. 12), "(Israeli) officials say that Ethiopian
immigrants are 50 times more likely to carry the AIDS virus than
are other Israelis, but have failed to produce studies to back up
the claim."

The blood issue aside, a poll taken in Israel has shown that 79
percent of Israelis believe Ethiopian Jews face discrimination.
Other Israelis, however, were even less sympathetic. What Ethiopian
Jews found upon arriving in Israel was a far cry from the Holy Land
they envisioned.

The list of grievances by Ethiopian Jews, many of whom came to
Israel in two dramatic airlifts in 1984 and 1991, is a long one.
They complain of weak education, poor housing, a disturbing number
of suicides in the army (mandatory military service has Ethiopians
caught up in the middle of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict), and
discrimination by the Orthodox rabbinate that makes them feel like
second-class Jews. They also resent being referred to as Kushi – a
local epithet that translates, roughly, to "darky."

Thousands of Ethiopians still live in dismal mobile home sites
like Beerotayim, which at 30 miles north of Tel Aviv is far from
job centers and schools. Some Israelis protested when the
government tried to move Ethiopians Jews into their neighborhoods,
claiming their presence would lower property values. There are also
reports of Ethiopians barred from public swimming pools and of a
disproportionately high number of young Ethiopian Jews shunted into
special education classes.

So you see, Baxter, you put a lot of issues together and
sometimes it just takes one more thing to make the situation
explode. Ethiopians, by culture, have a quiet demeanor. The riot by
Ethiopian Jews startled not just Israelis, but was also a shock for
the Ethiopian community worldwide. "You have to be violent in order
to be heard here," says one Ethiopian Jew, a former Israeli army
officer. "It’s too bad, but they don’t understand any other
language."

Theodore Bitew Demissie

Spokesperson for Habeshas

Fourth-year

PsychobiologyComments to [email protected]