Prejudice

WASHINGTON — Who’s discriminated against in America? More people say Hispanics than blacks or women — and it’s far from just Hispanics who feel that way. In an Associated Press-Univision Poll, 61 percent of people overall said Hispanics face significant discrimination, compared with 52 percent who said blacks do and 50 percent who said women. The survey also underscored how perceptions of prejudice can vary by ethnicity. While 81 percent of Latinos said Hispanics confront a lot or some discrimination, a smaller but still substantial 59 percent of non-Hispanics said so. It...

PARIS - European laws on what girls and women wear on their heads are encouraging discrimination against Muslims and against a religion that has been part of Europe's fabric for centuries, Amnesty International says in a new report. Extremist political movements targeting Muslim practices for criticism have made gains in several European countries, as witnessed by French far right leader Marine Le Pen's surprisingly strong showing in presidential elections this week. In that climate, the Amnesty report released Tuesday lists a raft of examples of discrimination...

IN HIS Jan. 29 op-ed "In godless we don't trust," Gareth Cook rails against prejudice toward atheists in our country. As a Christian, I find that prejudice works the other way. Political correctness, robed in separation-of-church- and-state legalisms, has pushed religion out of the public space. Municipal officials and school leaders are so nervous about allowing religious organizations to have any access to public spaces - from renting space for meetings to erecting Christmas trees - that they outlaw all uses.

Crimes provoked by the victim's gender identity would be considered hate crimes under legislation scheduled for a vote in Rhode Island's General Assembly. The House is set to take up the bill Wednesday. Similar legislation was introduced last year but did not pass. Current state law defines hate crimes as any crime motivated by prejudice involving race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, homelessness or disability. The bill would add gender identity and gender expression to the list.

In two years, fans of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" will celebrate the book's 200th anniversary. But the Gordon College theater department is beginning the festivities now with its fall production of Joanna Norland's new play, "Lizzie, Darcy and Jane," which opened Friday. It is the United States premiere of the play. "With so many great women's roles and such rich language, we decided this would be a great opportunity for our students and our community to be the first to tell this story on an American stage," said Jeffrey S. Miller, a professor of theater arts at Gordon...

In two years, fans of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" will celebrate the book's 200th anniversary. But the Gordon College theater department is beginning the festivities now with its fall production of Joanna Norland's new play, "Lizzie, Darcy and Jane," opening Friday. It is the United States premiere of the play. "With so many great women's roles and such rich language, we decided this would be a great opportunity for our students and our community to be the first to tell this story on an American stage," said Jeffrey S. Miller,...

Crimes provoked by the victim's gender identity would be considered hate crimes under legislation scheduled for a vote in Rhode Island's General Assembly. The House is set to take up the bill Wednesday. Similar legislation was introduced last year but did not pass. Current state law defines hate crimes as any crime motivated by prejudice involving race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, homelessness or disability. The bill would add gender identity and gender expression to the list.

I AGREE with Gareth Cook (Op-ed, Jan. 29) that we should harbor no prejudice against atheists. On the contrary, we should admire their courage. What if they're wrong? Neil Savage

RE "IN godless we don't trust: A sense of distrust fuels prejudice against atheists" (Op-ed, Jan. 29): Thanks to Gareth Cook for getting this piece in the paper. It's a breath of fresh air, as the subject of atheism is still pretty taboo - especially in the current electoral atmosphere in which candidates are falling over each other to say how religious they are. I long for a time when reason will win out over belief in some sort of supernatural being, where each faction is absolutely sure its way is the true one. If we humans are to have a chance to save ourselves...

THIS CAMPAIGN season, much has been made of Mitt Romney's faith and whether his Mormonism represents an insurmountable barrier in his quest for the presidency. But there is a far more potent religious prejudice in our country than suspicion of Mormonism at work. And to appreciate it, one need only conduct a simple thought experiment. Picture a truly impressive, highly-qualified candidate. Imagine that this candidate has just given a rousing speech, officially announcing a campaign for the presidency.

IN HIS Jan. 29 op-ed "In godless we don't trust," Gareth Cook rails against prejudice toward atheists in our country. As a Christian, I find that prejudice works the other way. Political correctness, robed in separation-of-church- and-state legalisms, has pushed religion out of the public space. Municipal officials and school leaders are so nervous about allowing religious organizations to have any access to public spaces - from renting space for meetings to erecting Christmas trees - that they outlaw all uses.

RE "IN godless we don't trust: A sense of distrust fuels prejudice against atheists" (Op-ed, Jan. 29): Thanks to Gareth Cook for getting this piece in the paper. It's a breath of fresh air, as the subject of atheism is still pretty taboo - especially in the current electoral atmosphere in which candidates are falling over each other to say how religious they are. I long for a time when reason will win out over belief in some sort of supernatural being, where each faction is absolutely sure its way is the true one. If we humans are to have a chance to save ourselves...

I AGREE with Gareth Cook (Op-ed, Jan. 29) that we should harbor no prejudice against atheists. On the contrary, we should admire their courage. What if they're wrong? Neil Savage

THIS CAMPAIGN season, much has been made of Mitt Romney's faith and whether his Mormonism represents an insurmountable barrier in his quest for the presidency. But there is a far more potent religious prejudice in our country than suspicion of Mormonism at work. And to appreciate it, one need only conduct a simple thought experiment. Picture a truly impressive, highly-qualified candidate. Imagine that this candidate has just given a rousing speech, officially announcing a campaign for the presidency.

In two years, fans of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" will celebrate the book's 200th anniversary. But the Gordon College theater department is beginning the festivities now with its fall production of Joanna Norland's new play, "Lizzie, Darcy and Jane," which opened Friday. It is the United States premiere of the play. "With so many great women's roles and such rich language, we decided this would be a great opportunity for our students and our community to be the first to tell this story on an American stage," said Jeffrey S. Miller, a professor of theater...

In two years, fans of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" will celebrate the book's 200th anniversary. But the Gordon College theater department is beginning the festivities now with its fall production of Joanna Norland's new play, "Lizzie, Darcy and Jane," opening Friday. It is the United States premiere of the play. "With so many great women's roles and such rich language, we decided this would be a great opportunity for our students and our community to be the first to tell this story on an American stage," said Jeffrey S. Miller,...

I THOUGHT I would throw up if I had to keep hearing more about 9/11. I didn't always feel that way. I wept and was one with all Americans. But my feelings of that moment have been used to manipulate me. The patriotism that rose in all of our hearts has since been used to boldly justify the worst kind of prejudice and callousness. The terror that we felt has been used to undermine our freedom, to justify targeted assassinations, torture, and endless war. Eve Chayes Lyman Cambridge

Arthur Crew Inman poured 17 million words into his 155-volume diary. In "The Inman Diaries," premiered on Friday by Intermezzo Opera, composer Thomas Oboe Lee and librettist Jesse Martin seek to portray the man, but never quite square his logorrhea with opera's penchant for reading between the lines. With that many words, is there any room left for music to say what they can't? The diary's abridged publication in 1985 confirmed Inman as one of literature's great obsessive eccentrics.

I THOUGHT I would throw up if I had to keep hearing more about 9/11. I didn't always feel that way. I wept and was one with all Americans. But my feelings of that moment have been used to manipulate me. The patriotism that rose in all of our hearts has since been used to boldly justify the worst kind of prejudice and callousness. The terror that we felt has been used to undermine our freedom, to justify targeted assassinations, torture, and endless war. Eve Chayes Lyman Cambridge

My pick of October’s crop of crime novels is Tom Franklin’s stunner “Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter.” It takes its name from the way that Southern children are taught to spell Mississippi: “M, I, crooked letter, crooked letter, I, crooked letter, crooked letter, I, humpback, humpback, I.” Set in the crumbling rural backwater of Chabot, Miss., “population give or take five hundred’’ and so desolate that it doesn’t even have...