Ethnically Speaking by Larry Meeks

Dear Larry: I just had to write to ask for your opinion of what I think is the dumbest thing yet to come from a California legislator. It is not yet a law, but knowing the nuts who exist in this state, I am sure the lousy actor governor will sign it into law.

A bill is being proposed to make it against the law to have a hanging rope, commonly called a noose. If the law passed, someone who used a noose or a picture of a noose to intimidate another person could be put in jail for a year plus fined $5,000. The bill is defining having a noose as a hate crime.

The lawmaker wants to call this a hate crime because blacks were lynched in times past, and supposedly, white supremacists display the knotted rope as a symbol for intimidation.

Larry, I can't believe reasonable people can't see this is a dumb idea. When blacks were slaves, they were whipped. Does that mean we will make it illegal to show pictures of whips?

What about guns? Far more blacks were killed with guns than anything else. Does that mean it should be illegal to show guns, thus making it a hate crime?

What about a picture of a white robe, Confederate flag, Confederate money, a rebel hat, or an ax handle because they were displayed against blacks during the bus boycotts?

Sheriff Bull Connor used dogs to attack civil rights protestors. Does that mean that displaying any sign with a picture of a snarling guard dog should be made into a hate crime because someone may feel bad we were attacked?

Yes, I said we.

I am an African-American, and I can see this is an idea that is going too far.

Larry, when will we stop being so sensitive? Blacks are free. If anyone stands in our way, we can call the police. If the police violate the law, there are laws and ways we can find justice.

Don't people know we finally have arrived? We now have a black president. He is the leader of America. What more do some people want?

I would appreciate your comments. — R.S.

Dear R.S.: I believe most people who have been hurt by the stain of discrimination never will let it go. They even see discrimination when none is intended.

This is like the cases of some people who have experienced bad marriages. After they have divorced and are dating others, they are still very sensitive. They "wear their emotions on their sleeves." Even little things that remind them of their old relationships cause them to overreact and become irrational.

People who were subjected to the old days of discrimination are not the best judges of what laws are now appropriate. They "wear their emotions on their sleeves."

I believe the lawmaker who is proposing this law should update her thinking. As you correctly said, this is a new day.

To find out more about Larry G. Meeks and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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