Why Did Dunkin' Donuts Buckle to Anti-Arab Fear Mongering?
By Eric L. Hinton
May 29, 2008
Every man, woman or child who wears
a keffiyeh, a traditional Arab scarf
often worn by Arab men, is apparently a terrorist.
At least, that's what conservative
pundit Michelle Malkin would have you believe. That Malkin espouses this inane
view is hardly surprising. Cut from the same cloth as her self-professed idol Ann
Coulter, Malkin has defended the practice of racial profiling, has railed
against undocumented immigrants and wrote a book defending the forced internment
of Japanese Americans during World War II.
What is surprising--and troubling to
many--is that she's gotten supposedly family-friendly Dunkin' Donuts to agree
with her.
Dunkin' Donuts pulled an ad
featuring Food Network star Rachael Ray because Ray was wearing what some
perceived to be a keffiyeh. The ad incensed Malkin, who ranted on her web site, "The keffiyeh
for the clueless, is the traditional scarf of Arab men that has come to
symbolize murderous Palestinian jihad. Popularized by Yasser Arafat and a
regular adornment of Muslim terrorists appearing in beheading and hostage-taking
videos, the apparel has been mainstreamed
by both ignorant (and not-so-ignorant) fashion designers,
celebrities, and left-wing icons."
That Malkin and other conservative
pundits of her ilk--such as Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs who
accused the chain of " Mainstreaming Terrorism to Sell Donuts"--sought to
make this an issue is no surprise. But by capitulating and yanking the ad,
Dunkin' Donuts gave the outlandish assertion the appearance of credibility, all
the while insisting the scarf wasn't a keffiyeh at all.
"In a recent
online ad, Rachael Ray is wearing a black-and-white silk scarf with a paisley
design," Dunkin' Donuts said in a statement published on Boston.com. "It was selected by her stylist for the
advertising shoot. Absolutely no symbolism was intended. However, given the
possibility of misperception, we are no longer using the commercial."
On
her web site, Malkin, the daughter of Filipino immigrants, quickly trumpeted
Dunkin' Donuts' ad pull as a victory. She went on to liken the Muslim attire
with that of clothing worn by the Ku Klux Klan. "It's
refreshing to see an American company show sensitivity to the concerns of
Americans opposed to Islamic jihad and its apologists," she wrote. "Too many of
them bend over backwards in the direction of anti-American political
correctness…It's just a scarf, the clueless keffiyeh-wearers scoff. Would they
say the same of fashion designers who marketed modified Klan-style hoods in
Burberry plaid as the next big thing?"
Arsalan Iftikhar, a contributor to both Islamica magazine and DiversityInc, said
Malkin's claims are outlandish: "Of course the suggestion is ridiculous. There
is absolutely nothing synonymous between the attire Ray is seen wearing and
terrorism. Dunkin' Donuts is largely at fault for turning this into a
bigger story by pulling the ad. I've actually debated Malkin before on
other issues, and her views always leave me shaking my
head."
Many, including MSNBC commentator
Keith Olbermann, have mocked both Malkin and Dunkin' Donuts for their actions.
Olbermann added Malkin to his "Worst People of the Day" countdown earlier this
week, saying, "Now Dunkin' Donuts is sending secret pro-Arabic messages? Poor
Michelle doesn't understand a spokesperson like Rachael Ray does not pick her
own wardrobe for an advertisement. But here's the big point …So what if it's
Middle Eastern?"
To see Olbermann's complete video, click
here.
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