I need to talk with you.

joshc@webbforsenate.com

Thanks,

josh

Is Josh the Webb staffer in charge of "Monkeys and Bananas for Webb?"

Can gorillas join?

Of course, you will have fierce competition from "Ethnics for Allen."

You are welcome to come as a gorilla, though, personally, I think my monkey-self to be more charming.  Josh-who-ever-he-is is not "in charge"...we, in the world of "monkeys-against-racism" are non-hierarchical. But we did laugh heartily at our furry friends in the film Josh posted!

Anyone with a friendly chimp smile and positive heart is welcome to join us for this event.

We are not endorsed by, nor supported by, nor organized by, nor known by any political candidate or campaign.

Please come!

Mac

What a great idea for a protest.  But what a stupid title for a rally.  Only Republicans would hold an "ethnic rally".  I expect to see people there who belong to one ethnic group, all dressed in ethnic clothing, speaking the same ethnic language with the same ethnic hairdo.  Who are the GOP consultants?  Couldn't they come up with a better name to describe us?  Do they know the real Virginia?  Dios mio!

We were also intrigued with the rally's name.  Actually, it left us stuttering...It seems so transparent:

Allen calls Sidarth a "macaca" and the cover of our local paper shows him hugging one of the very few African Americans at his Harley-Davidson event in Staunton - she is actually the babysitter for State Delegate Chris Saxman, a staunch supporter of Allen.

Allen had a noose in his office, twice voted against a holiday recognizing Martin Luther King, Jr., flew Confederate flags, supported and affiliated with the white supremacist group, the CCC (Council of Conservative Citizens) and now he is speaking at an 'Ethnic Rally'...

Next we'll see him speaking at some "ETHICS Rally" and we'll have to really show up en masse for that one!

We hope you and your friends will be able to join us.  Please let us know if you would like us to reserve a friendly-looking monkey mask for you!

Mac and Anna

I thought it was a typo and the rally's title had to be "ethics" (family values, etc). But when I saw the "typo" repeated several times, I had to take it as the true name. Since it's not likely to be a joke either - Repubs don't seem to have much sense of humor unless someone slips on a banana peel (aand in this particular case, perhaps not even then ) -- I'm left speechlesss (in both Polish and Yddish)...

Here are a few ethnicities it might include:

*White
*Caucasian
*Anglo
*Saxon
*Celtic
*French (including French Tunisian pieds noirs?)
*English
*German
*Irish
*Scots-Irish

Did I miss any?  Ha.

smart, and should be an example of how to shut up Republicans that brag about who they are and what they have done.

Nothing like getting in their faces with their own words. Bravo to the author of the movie.

Just to go on record here, I think this is a bad idea. I thought it was cute in Staunton when I read the macandanna story, but context is everything and this crosses a line for me personally. I would also like to see the campaign come out against this.

This is an example, and I'm not trying to equate the two, but going to an ethnic fair to protest this in this manner reminds me of going to a military town and carrying flag draped coffins in a protest to protest the war- the context makes the protest horribly wrong in its message (the right context would be on the steps of the Capitol).

I hate to infight, but I felt this one was wrongheaded enough that I needed to state my feelings.

and not the editors on RK, or campaign workers, etc. And I do know there has been a coordinated kerfluffle over this, which is what it is and I'm not defending that.

They are private citizens who can do whatever they want within their first Amendment right to free speech.  For some people, dressing up as a monkey and a banana is in bad taste.  For others, it's hilarious.  "De gustibus non est disputandum" - “There’s no disputing about taste.â€Â�  But the mock, apparently well-coordinated outrage among right-wing bloggers is simply a joke.  These people are just trying to change the subject from George Bush Allen's miserable record of failure the past 6 years, since they have nothing positive to say about their candidate.  Pitiful.

Dear Mr. Webb:

As you may know, this Saturday, September 9th, the Fairfax County GOP is holding an Ethnic Rally at Edison High School in Alexandria . We are greatly looking forward to the opportunity to celebrate our diverse cultures at this family event.

Unfortunately, it has come to our attention that paid members of your campaign are openly mocking our rally and advocating its disruption on the Raising Kaine website, run by two of your staffers, Lowell Feld and Josh Chernila. One of the posts this morning on Raising Kaine reads, “I expect to see people there who belong to one ethnic group, all dressed in ethnic clothing, speaking the same ethnic language with the same ethnic hairdo.� To date, this offensive post has only received positive feedback on the website.

In addition, Lowell Feld of your campaign suggests on Raising Kaine that those in attendance at the event Saturday will be White, Caucasian, Anglo, Saxon, Celtic, French, English, German, Irish, Scots-Irish. We resent this statement and its implication that only Caucasians would attend a Republican rally. While all these groups will be present and welcome Saturday, our rally will also include Afghan Americans, African Americans, Bolivian Americans, Chinese Americans, Colombian Americans, Cuban Americans, Filipino Americans, Indian Americans, Iranian Americans, Korean Americans, Pakistani Americans, Peruvian Americans, Puerto Rican Americans, Salvadoran Americans, Taiwanese Americans, Vietnamese Americans and more.

We are hardworking Americans, devoting part of our weekend to celebrate our diversity and shared principles and support our candidate for the U.S. Senate, George Allen. For paid members of your staff to denigrate our gathering and attempt to disrupt and demean our rally is wrong. We ask that you condemn the mean-spirited actions of your campaign staff and ensure that they do not continue this inappropriate behavior. This is no way to conduct a Senate campaign.

Sincerely,

Puneet Ahluwaliah
Indian American community

Harold Pyon
Korean American community

Dr. Rene Alvir
Filipino American community

Raul Danny Vargas
Hispanic American community

Have you guys no shame?

As an Asian-Afro-Cuban myself, why do the organizers call their event an "Ethnic Rally"?  Where does that leave me?  I am offended.  They should apologize.  Have they ever heard of the word "multi" as in "multi-cultural"? 

The far-right has a long, deep, dark history regarding the term "ethnic". The Council of Conservative Citizens, the White Councils, the eugenics movement, and the Ku Klux Klan all obsess on Ethnicity and it's definition by geneology.  That purity of the blood thing. They can't scrap it off their shoe.

I agree that it would be inappropriate for the Webb campaign to be involved in this event or a counter-protest.  Mr. Allen's remarks though did hit a nerve with many people as evidenced by the events in Staunton a couple weeks ago.

In reference to the third paragraph, I suspect the implication is that "only Caucasians would be at a George Allen" rally, not a "Republican rally".  George Allen--Trent Lott, and Bob Barr--are in a special category when it comes to matters of race and ethnicity within the GOP. 

Hopefully George Allen's ethnic rally this weekend will correct biases that Democrats and independents may have about George Allen's base of support.  I suspect the local news media may be covering the event.