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Jan. 31st, 2007 01:08 pmWell, i never imagined that a proclamation of women's rights would squick me, but the town of Herouxville, Quebec, managed to do just that:
Well... i'm glad to hear that the town frowns on stoning women to death, burning them alive, or throwing acid on them. Everyone everywhere should frown on these sorts of things.
But the proclamations and signage are worded so as to single out immigrants, in such a way that it underscores and perpetuates certain racial stereotypes. It has to be read in the larger global context.
I'm especially thoughtful on this lately because i'm currently reading Color of Violence and the first piece therein is a blockbuster dealing with racist stereotype scripts and the way they color bias in the enforcement and creation of laws, particularly in the matter of justice for women.
In this set of "norms for immigrants to follow" is the implication that we are normal, moral people who treat women well whereas you are unschooled and barbaric and have to be told the proper way to treat women.
What is the proper way for westerners, who are concerned about cases they hear of stoning women to death in other countries, or burning them alive, or throwing acid on them, to voice their concerns about these things? The proper way is to tie misogyny and racism in another culture with misogyny and racism in your own culture and understand them both as reflections of a global pattern of oppression. The proper way is to let voices of dissent from the other culture speak for themselves rather than paternalistically speaking for them. A "we are good, you are bad; listen to us, we'll tell you the right way" stance which presumes cultural superiority (in the global context of Euro-American colonization of the rest of the world, no less!) is not the proper way to voice these concerns.
A sign at the entrance of this rural Quebec town says: Herouxville welcomes you. Unless, that is, you plan on stoning a woman to death, sending your kids to school with a kirpan or covering your face other than on Halloween.
The town council of Herouxville, a sleepy town dominated by a towering Roman Catholic church, has adopted a declaration of "norms" that it says would-be immigrants should be aware of before they settle in this town. Among them, it is forbidden to stone women or burn them with acid.
from Quebec town outlines societal 'norms' for would-be immigrants
Salam Elmenyawi, president of the Muslim Council of Montreal, said the declaration had "set the clock back for decades" as far as race relations were concerned. "I was shocked and insulted to see these kinds of false stereotypes and ignorance about Islam and our religion ... in a public document written by people in authority who discriminate openly," he told Reuters.
from Town to immigrants: you can't kill women
Well... i'm glad to hear that the town frowns on stoning women to death, burning them alive, or throwing acid on them. Everyone everywhere should frown on these sorts of things.
But the proclamations and signage are worded so as to single out immigrants, in such a way that it underscores and perpetuates certain racial stereotypes. It has to be read in the larger global context.
I'm especially thoughtful on this lately because i'm currently reading Color of Violence and the first piece therein is a blockbuster dealing with racist stereotype scripts and the way they color bias in the enforcement and creation of laws, particularly in the matter of justice for women.
In this set of "norms for immigrants to follow" is the implication that we are normal, moral people who treat women well whereas you are unschooled and barbaric and have to be told the proper way to treat women.
What is the proper way for westerners, who are concerned about cases they hear of stoning women to death in other countries, or burning them alive, or throwing acid on them, to voice their concerns about these things? The proper way is to tie misogyny and racism in another culture with misogyny and racism in your own culture and understand them both as reflections of a global pattern of oppression. The proper way is to let voices of dissent from the other culture speak for themselves rather than paternalistically speaking for them. A "we are good, you are bad; listen to us, we'll tell you the right way" stance which presumes cultural superiority (in the global context of Euro-American colonization of the rest of the world, no less!) is not the proper way to voice these concerns.
