At a recent McCain rally in Minnesota an elderly lady exclaimed, "I've read about him and he's an Arab!" I think at this point in the game anyone who's been paying even mild attention to the Presidential race knows that Barack Obama is not of Arabic decent. But so what if he was an Arab? What's the big deal? That's like saying "Oh my God, he's black!" News flash, we know Obama's not your typical candidate, and honestly that's one of the many powerful forces driving his supporters.

We've seen what the "average Joe" candidates do with the presidency once they get elected based mostly on the fact that they're the guy Americans would "most like to drink a beer with." So let's get back to this Arab ordeal. Kudos to McCain for at least denouncing the ignorant remark, but what he said in response was far from perfect; in fact it's barely acceptable. "No, ma'am, he's a decent family man; a citizen who I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues," said McCain.

What's wrong with that you may ask, but think about it seriously for a minute. Well what if the woman had inserted black in the place of Arab? She would be labeled racist instead of scared, and this country would be outraged if McCain had issued the same response to the remark. Wake up Americans, you should be outraged!

All of a sudden if you're Arab you can't be a respectable citizen and a family man? Remarks like these used to be made openly about other minorities, and I'm sure they still are in some parts of the country, but at least now they've become taboo.

It's no secret that September 11, 2001 didn't exactly help the public opinion of Arabs, and ever since we have seen racial profiling and hatred spiraling out of control. Sadly this isn't too surprising coming from the legions of ignorant Americans, but coming from a presidential candidate, now that's troubling. I know McCain wasn't trying to demean Arabs, but that doesn't change the fact that we, as a society, have become so desensitized to racism that comes in any form other than the traditional shapes we've been taught to recognize.

We're all guilty of prejudice. I'd like to think that nowadays we've moved beyond judging people before we get to know them, but let's face it that's simply not the case. There are people right here on this campus who walk by classmates from "different" backgrounds and silently, and sometimes openly, make racist judgments based on their fears and misconceptions.

I'm not expecting to convince everyone to overcome their prejudices, but I am hoping that people who consider themselves to be tolerant and accepting will take note of the fact that Arabs are people too. It's not acceptable for McCain or any American to harbor racism towards minorities. The fact that it's not intentional doesn't serve as justification. So just to make things clear, Obama is not an Arab. But so what if he was? Would that make you less likely to vote for him? If the answer is yes, then I suggest you use at least of your time here at BSC to get informed and hopefully as a result you'll have learned the errors of your ways.

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