Monday, August 14, 2006

Atrios has been all over the story of the Jim Webb campaign worker (born in Virginia of Indian descent) who was called "macaca" by Republican incumbent George Allen at a campaign appearance (start here and work back; also see this Washington Post story). Atrios notes that "macaca"

is actually an established racial/slur, specifically directed at North Africans.

As it turns out, Allen's mother is from North Africa -- Tunisia, to be specific.

Does this let him off the hook? Hardly. To the contrary, it tells me that he's a rare American who knows that slur and knows that it is a slur.

Go here for more on Allen and race.

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