Paper omits race of gangs attacking Latinos

by gmony714 | August 27, 2007 at 05:41 pm

1368 views | 10 Recommendations | 1 comment

In an amazing display of political correctness the News Journal of Delaware reports that gangs are roaming the streets targeting Latinos. In the article they mention that the victims are Latinos 7 times but you would think that if the scum that was terrorizing the latino community was Black that would be instrumental in catching these thugs. Not once do they mention the perps are black which they are. The second link below is original article.

[q
url="http://newsbusters.org/blogs/d-s-hube/2007/08/27/gannett-newspaper-says-editorial-policy-not-politically-correct"]A
few days ago I e-mailed the Wilmington (Delaware) News Journal -- a
Gannett newspaper -- asking why this article failed to mentioned the
race of the assailants who have been victimizing Hispanics recently.
(The assailants are black). After all, police reports noted it, as well
as local radio stations. The paper responded and included their
editorial policy regarding such matters, apparently established by an
assistant managing editor. The paper says it's "not about being
politically correct;" you be the judge:

Our policy is not about being politically correct, it's about being
accurate. Race is such an unreliable descriptor. What race is Halle
Berry or Tiger Woods or Jennifer Lopez? They are extreme examples, but
project them onto everyday people and you see the problem.

Or what real information is conveyed in a description that says:
She is a 5-foot-6-inch white woman with brown hair? How many women fit
that description? Who is that of use to? By the way, that description
is of me -- and I haven't committed any crimes.

I offer you these excerpts from Keith M. Woods, a noted journalism
scholar, in an essay called "The Language of Race": "What, for example,
does a Hispanic man look like? Is his skin dark brown? Reddish brown?
Pale? Is his hair straight? Curly? Course? Fine? Does he have a flat,
curved nose or is it narrow and straight? Telling the public that he’s
5-foot-8, 180 pounds, with a blue shirt and blue jeans says something
about the person’s appearance. But what do you add to that picture when
you say Latino?

"And what is black? It’s the color of pitch. Yet, the word is used
to describe people whose skin tones can cover just about every racial
and ethnic group in the world, including white people. What does the
word "black" add to the mental picture the public draws? How do you
draw the lips? The eyes? The nose? What sort of hair does a black
person have? What color skin does a black person have? The combinations
are infinite.

"All racial and ethnic groups do share some common physical
characteristics. Still, we don’t see the phrase "Irish-looking man" in
the newspaper, though red hair and pale skin are common Irish
characteristics. Would a picture come to mind if a TV anchor said, "The
suspect appeared to be Italian"? Couldn’t many of us conjure an image
if the police said they were looking for a middle-aged man described as
"Jewish-looking."

"There are good reasons those descriptions never see the light of
day. They generalize. They stereotype. And they require that everyone
who hears the description has the same idea of what those folks look
like. All Irish-Americans don’t look alike. Why, then, accept a
description that says a suspect was African-American?

When police have a surveillance photo of a suspect or a sketch --
by far the best way to help citizens identify someone sought by the
police -- we are happy to run that.

Personally, I am struck by the absolute arrogance of this. Remember,
the police report and local radio all included the race of the
attackers in their reports of the incidents against local Hispanics.
(Note, too, the irony that "Hispanic" was used in the News Journal to
describe the victims) Consider:

* She is a 5-foot-6-inch white woman with brown hair? How many women fit that description? Who is that of use to?

If there was a killer out there, wouldn't you want this information
-- to narrow down the number of potential suspects just a little?

* Telling the public that he’s 5-foot-8, 180 pounds, with a blue
shirt and blue jeans says something about the person’s appearance. But
what do you add to that picture when you say Latino?

Quite a lot, actually. You've now excluded a TON of potential
suspects. And doesn't the editor realize that this 5-foot-8, 180 lb.
man can actually change his "blue shirt" and "blue jeans" -- but not
his race?

* Still, we don’t see the phrase "Irish-looking man" in the
newspaper, though red hair and pale skin are common Irish
characteristics. Would a picture come to mind if a TV anchor said, "The
suspect appeared to be Italian"? Couldn’t many of us conjure an image
if the police said they were looking for a middle-aged man described as
"Jewish-looking."

That's right, we don't see the phrase "Irish-looking man." We do see
-- and should see -- the phrase "white man with pale complexion and red
hair." "Irish" is not a race, after all. Nor is "Jewish."

* "There are good reasons those descriptions never see the light of
day. They generalize. They stereotype. And they require that everyone
who hears the description has the same idea of what those folks look
like. All Irish-Americans don’t look alike. Why, then, accept a
description that says a suspect was African-American?

See response above. "Irish" is not a race much like "Nigerian" is
not. But "white" is a race as is "black." In the US, "black" is
synonymous with "African-American" (due to, I might add, the insistence
of [some] black leaders). This is why the public would be best informed
if the race of police suspects was revealed along with other
information. But here you have it -- to the News Journal, valuable
information for the public isn't as paramount as being fearful of
"stereotyping" a group of people. Despite what the NJ says to the
contrary, this is the epitomy of political correctness.[/q]

Three more robbery attacks by a gang of assailants near the Canby Park Shopping Center in Christiana Hundred have Delaware State Police alerting the Hispanic community that residents are being victimized in these recent strong-arm robberies.

Though police said all but one of the victims were Hispanic and the robberies were reportedly committed by assailants who are not of Hispanic descent, the incidents are not being classified legally as hate crimes.

The latest incident occurred about 2:30 p.m. Thursday when a Hispanic man walking through the shopping center's parking lot was jumped by five or six men, who beat the victim until he was unconscious, then stole his property.

"He was seriously assaulted, punched kicked and beaten on the ground," state police Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said. "One of the suspects was described as wearing an oversized white T-shirt with a dollar sign on the front."

On Wednesday, two Hispanic men, ages 44 and 27, were confronted by about six men in their late teens or early 20s. At about 5 p.m., as they were walking through the shopping center at 1952 S. Maryland Ave., the two victims were robbed, Whitmarsh said. The suspects were last seen running toward the nearby Alban Park development.

"We understand that members of the community are reluctant to come forward, which has prompted us to establish an ongoing working relationship with the Latin American Community Center to assist us with outreach," Whitmarsh said.

Thursday's incident is the fifth such attack in the same general area since Aug. 4, Whitmarsh said.

Police believe there may be more unreported incidents of robbery.

The first reported incident occurred Aug. 4 about 11:05 p.m. at the Sunoco A-Plus mini-mart at 1951 S. Maryland Ave., where a Hispanic man was accosted and robbed as he pumped gas.

The thieves made off with the victim's car keys and cell phone and took the vehicle, Whitmarsh said.

Last week, two strong-arm robberies were reported a day apart at the shopping center, where a group of assailants punched the victims to the ground before kicking them and stealing their property.

All the victims targeted have been males, and with the exception of one man, five of the six victims have all been of Hispanic descent, Whitmarsh said.

Police presence also has been beefed up in the area and police are urging residents to call 911 and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.

"It is imperative that the community and police partner together to put an end to these senseless incidents," Whitmarsh said.