Oh the things you find in trackbacks.
Dan writes about “the battle of the Jills,” linking to my little throw-down with anti-choice blogger Jill Stanek. He links to this post about the urban legend racist myth that Chinese people eat babies, which eventually leads back to a post by Jill Stanek titled, and I shit you not, “Sweet and Sour Fetus: Chinese Cannibalism.” (Warning: Video that, though I didn’t watch it, I assume is graphic).
Yes, Jill Stanek has learned that the Chinese eat babies. And this is the fault of the pro-choice movement, because “if one is “pro-choice” and denies that preborn humans are human, there is nothing wrong with this whatsoever. It can’t even be considered cannibalism.”
Interestingly, Stanek has argued that the pro-life movement is not racist. I’m sure she’d take issue with any accusation of racism here. But I’m going to do it anyway: This is a racist myth. Jill, you are perpetuating it. I’m hoping that you’re perpetuating it because of your fantastic combination of ignorance and zealotry, but I don’t have that kind of faith in you. Unless you’re a complete moron — which you may actually be — I have a hard time believing that you don’t know the history of these kinds of myths. I have a hard time believing that you’re gullible enough to believe this.
Chinese people do not eat babies. Your Chinese neighbor is not going to steal your cat and eat it, either (or was the scare about dogs?). The Chinese are not going to partner with those scary Muslims to take us over, and no, you are not Noah; you’re more like the guy in the diaper and the cowboy hat standing in Times Square with a “The End Is Near!” sign.
Last time I wrote about Stanek, there were some questions about whether we should be giving her attention at all. If she were just some random crazy, I would say no. But she happens to be a relatively widely-read crazy, and she was on the front lines trying to shut down the Aurora Planned Parenthood. She has ties to some of the ugliest (but most influential) anti-choicers out there. She attends anti-choice bill signings at the invite of the President. She has a widely-read column and a fairly popular blog. She has testified before a House committee. She has been named one of the most influential anti-choicers in the country. So this isn’t small beans; this isn’t cherry-picking one marginalized nutbag. This is a woman who is at the heart of the anti-choice movement. And these are the racist lies that she chooses to perpetuate in the name of “life.”
Jill, I do hope that you’ll retract the story in big, huge letters at the top of your post. But I won’t hold my breath.