Parody Mocks Immigrants and Others of Color
Hyattsville City Council member Chris Currie didn’t like whatcritics had to say about a proposal to allow inspections of homes of peoplebelieved to be renting out bedrooms or basements.
So he wrote a parody of a Washington Post article — or in hiswords, the “Washington ComPost” — in which politicians”decriminalize citizen robbery in certain inner-Beltway communities”as a response to complaints from residents “that street crime enforcementunfairly burdened certain protected classes of suburban youth gangs.”
Some critics say the article, posted by Currie recently on anInternet message list for Hyattsville residents, had overtones of racism andclassism and have demanded an apology. In an interview this week, Currie calledthe article a “lame attempt at humor, a little parody” and said hedidn’t “see why this is an issue or why The Washington Post is interestedin a parody on a local listserv.”
The posting has stirred controversy at a time when the council isdebating the rental housing proposal, which some residents fear could be usedto discriminate against immigrants. Currie is a supporter of the measure andargues that it is designed to protect immigrants who are living in substandardhousing.
Kimberly Propeack of CASA of Maryland, an immigrant advocacygroup, said: “We sent our concerns to the council about the housing law,and for Mr. Currie to impugn those concerns in an article that is full ofstereotypes about Latinos and African Americans is unbelievable. It is totallyunbecoming of an elected official, and the community at large deserves anapology.”
In his posting, Currie, who is white, parodied crusadingdo-gooders who hurt the very people they claim to protect. “In recentweeks opposition to enforcing anti-mugging laws has mounted in anoverwhelmingly white, middle-class neighborhood in Hyattsville Hills oftenreferred to as the ‘Circle of Niceness.’ . . . In a recent public meeting onthe street crime issue, one resident of a block that has never had a recordedmugging said: ‘Hyattsville has a unique character in that our neighborhoodshave a lot of cars up on blocks, home-based auto shops, people living instorage sheds, and good, old-fashioned street crime. If people don’t like it,then they should leave!?’ “
Del. Victor R. Ramirez (D-Prince George’s) was not amused, callingCurrie’s comments “a slap in the face to the diversity in this county andthe changes in our neighborhoods. . . . It’s disrespectful coming from a CityCouncil member. It’s just pretty low.”
After one writer on the listserv told Currie that she thought hisarticle might be viewed by some as “mean-spirited,” he responded:”My parody was a simple reduction ad absurdum, trying to show that anordinance that protects immigrant populations (and others) from exploitation isnot anti-immigrant.”
At least one councilmember, who supports the city’s rental inspection proposal, worried thatCurrie’s actions could complicate efforts to promote the measure. “My initial reaction is, ‘Oh boy,Chris,’ ” Scott Wythe said. “It won’t help, but I’m not sure it willhurt so much. Sometimes I just wish he would run things by hiscolleagues.”
Source: Washington Post, Mar. 9, 2006
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