South Carolina is not Bigot Heaven

To the editors:

Austria's electoral support of the Freedom Party and South Carolina's flying of the Confederate flag have led both to be vilified. This vilification has been successful, as Jorgen Haider has resigned and the rebel flag will soon be furled in Columbia.

Yet, is South Carolina really a "symbol of intolerance and bigotry" as Christine S. N. Lewis argues in her column "Not Gone with the Wind"? (Column, April 19) The answer is no. In my time in Charleston, I have encountered far less racism than I have anywhere else.

One need only look at the murders of innocent men committed by the NYPD to see that racism is hardly just a Southern problem. And where is the protest over Al Sharpton, whose anti-Semitism and xenophobia match Haider's? It seems to me that we're concentrating on the wrong things. Instead of actually trying to fight racism in America, we fall into the same trap that people who whistle "Dixie" do: We become trapped in the past.

If we dismiss racism as nothing more than a Southern phenomenon and a lasting vestige of the Confederacy, we will never heal our national wounds. Indeed, she seems to have far less racial problems than most northern cities where racial tension often erupts into violence. We have had no police shootings in Charleston over the Confederate flag issue, no racial warfare--merely dialogue and compromise. Instead of vilifying South Carolina, perhaps we should take work out our problems through words and not bullets and hate.

Austin Gilkeson Williamsburg, Va.

April 19, 2000

Celts for Chu

To the editors:

I have noticed the debate over the comic strip "The Misanthropic Mister Chu." Permit me to propose the renaming of the comic strip to "The Misanthropic Mister Celt."

Please inform the author that he may use as many colorful Celtic stereotypes as he can find. He may therefore depict Celts as hard-drinking, red-haired, freckle-faced, hot-tempered, trouble-making, bar-fighting, blue-face-painted, war-crying, shillelagh-wielding, whiskey-swilling, barbaric, primitive, illiterate, sheep-loving, green-hatted, bagpipe-playing, potato-eating, Guinness-guzzling leprechauns. Permit me also to suggest the use of such classic Celtic phrases as "top o' the mornin' to ye!", and "they're always stealin' me lucky charms!"

It is my sincere hope that this proposal may be of some small aid to you.

Andy Krueger '01

Feb. 11, 2000

The writer is the President of the Harvard Celtic Society.

Clarifying Quote on Gomes

To the editors:

I am writing in response to the recent FM article about evangelical Christians, "Lift High the Cross" (FM, April 13). The article refers to me only once, and I am quoted as saying that Mr. Gomes, "twists the Bible to fit his sick lifestyle."

First of all, I did not intend to attack Gomes personally in a public forum such as The Crimson. My quote was obtained from a casual conversation, and I was not aware that they would be published. The quote, as stated, does not accurately represent my viewpoint on this issue.

I apologize for the harsh way my views were portrayed. However, in the correct context, my quote does reflect my views. While I uphold the Biblical view that homosexuality is sinful, I do not see it as being in any way different from the sin that is evident in my own life. All sin is sick. The quote, as presented, wrongly implies that homosexuality is somehow different from all other sins.

Even though the Bible convicts me of sin in my own life, I cannot be inconsistent in my interpretation of Scripture. The sickness that my quote refers to concerns the denial of the Truth. God commands Christians not to condone or participate in anything that is mentioned in the Bible as a sin. It says in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, "Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."

The Bible does not differentiate between these or any other sins. The price of any of these sins is death, and everyone stands guilty before God, myself included. But because of God's grace in sacrificing His only son, Jesus Christ, we can be given eternal life despite our faults. In order to receive God's grace, a person must confess and repent of the sin in his or her life, and trust in the saving power and immense love of Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:8-9 states, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins, and purify us from all unrighteousness."

My statement was not meant in malice, despite the overwhelmingly negative connotation its words may entail. I love Jesus and His Word, the Bible. I only wish my beliefs could have been stated with the love and compassion that God shows to His people.

M. Patrick O'Donnell '03

April 15, 2000