The Blog

“I am Sikh. Sikhs are not part of the Muslim and Hindu (sic),” reads a flyer taped over a Newport cigarettes poster, taped to a Montclair, NJ gas station attendant’s hut.

It continues, “My Turban is not a hat, not a mere piece of cloth. I will die, but not cut my hairs…”

My roommate and I stopped for gas about a week ago and spotted the flyer. Naturally, I wanted to know why he’d decided to post the flyer. And as a journalist, I needed to ask him about it. Instead, I snuck a picture of it.

That week, the media had been reporting ad nauseum on the protests against the downtown Islamic center in New York City. I can only assume it was somehow related to that, given NYC is only 20 minutes away.

The questions I’d ask him now:

- Is this a coordinated effort within the Sikh community, to distinguish or distance itself from the Muslim faith and community?

- Did something happen recently to make posting this flyer necessary?

- Do you feel persecuted or disrespected by people who patronize your gas station(s) and assume that you are Muslim?

- Has the sign helped at all?

“It’s his way of saying, don’t bother me. I’m not the threat that you think I am,” as my roommate Jonathan put it. “He’s discriminating in his own way by (implying), ‘They’re dangerous, and I’m not.’ ”

I’m not sure I agree with Jonathan completely on that. I don’t think the flyer is meant to disparage Muslims or anyone else.

Whatever the case, it’s a sad state of affairs if my assumptions are right. And there’s a possibility that I’m really late on this and that Sikhs have ben posting signs like this for years.

Click here to see a larger image of the flyer.

Having ranted about the treatment of Helen Thomas this week, I’d be remiss in not saluting two respected African American reporters who had long careers doing what I aspire to do. Both passed away recently.

Bob Ellison, 67, was a radio reporter who was the first African American journalist to serve as president of the White House Correspondents’ Association. He spent 14 years as the White House correspondent for the Sheridan Broadcasting Network (a.k.a. American Urban Radio Networks). He covered the Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Clinton administrations. Read more here.

Evelyn Cunningham, a civil-rights-era journalist and later an aide to Gov. Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York. She worked more than 20 years for The Pittsburgh Courier, a black weekly newspaper. Read more here.

Apparently, now even old people aren’t allowed their golden gaffe-pass.

Last week, social media and TV broadcasters weighed in after 89-year-old White House Press Room icon Helen Thomas’ admittedly insensitive and historically ignorant comments about Israeli-Palenstinian relations in the Middle East.

I get that voicing any unflattering opinions about Israel or the Jewish people invites a firestorm of criticism, calls for your firing or voluntary resignation from a job and, perhaps, obnoxious campaigns to tarnish any legacy you might have had prior to said gaffe. Fair or not, it’s always been like that. And the same can be said for comments made about Blacks, gays, Hispanics…must I list it all?

But come on! Helen Thomas? Eighty-nine-year-old Helen Thomas? The wrinkly old lady asking Press Secretary Robert Gibbs questions about troop withdrawal timelines in the middle of a briefing about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? You want to pick a fight with the woman who was caught speaking off the cuff by a RabbiLive.com videographer and only gave her opinion because she was asked? The same woman who was a reporter covering U.S. presidents when the parents of the inventors of YouTube were just kids?

Surely else someone has to see the irony in this. In your 80′s you are supposed to be able to say pretty much whatever you want. My late grandmother did. And we just laughed it off. Hell, recently I interviewed a woman in her 80′s who inferred that I was gay and not corporate material because I have a pierced ear — “hardware” as she put it. I shrugged it off.

Am I saying that Helen Thomas should be exempt from exhibiting a certain degree of professionalism because of her age? Absolutely not. As a (now former) member of the press, she should not have made those comments if she knew they were going to end up on the web. But she should not have to think that she isn’t entitled to an opinion because said opinion might be unpopular, unflattering or ignorant of history. What messages are the reactions to her comments really sending?

“No, Grandma Helen, Jewish people should not go back to Germany or Poland. When we get back to the retirement home I’ll read you a history book while you enjoy your apple sauce.”

Enjoy your retirement, Ms. Thomas.

Yes, I know I’ve negelected my blog. Here’s an update:

I’ve moved from New York City to Trenton, New Jersey for a four month assignment with the Associated Press. I’m already having an excellent time. And it’s only going to get better and more hectic from here on.

Keep me in your prayers. And I promise to post as often as I can.

Meanwhile, check out the story I contributed to today. National news, it was. I got the scoop on the guy’s good friend in high school. It made it very high up in the story. Score!

My sister Stephanie and I have never failed to wake up in the morning, either in the same house or separately, and watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV. Unless I’m experiencing amnesia, I can not remember one year that I have not watched it since I’ve been able to operate a TV remote on my own.

When I was asked to cover a California high school marching band in the parade, I accepted the assignment with glee (corny wording, I know). Not only was I going to get to see the parade this year, I was going to have press access to the parade route. Police didn’t stop me at road blocks, which made me feel superhuman for a few hours.

Me and Papa Smurf.

Buzz Lightyear

Keke Palmer

The Roots and ?uestlove.

Herald Square.

Things I noticed or learned about the parade:

- The floats look much bigger on TV and so do the city streets that the balloons go through.
- The balloons are really as big as they look on TV.
- The microphones that the “performing” celebrities hold are just props. They sing to a backing track. (I needed confirmation of that? LOL)
- High school and college marching bands work the hardest during the parade.

Hopefully, I’ll attend again in a couple of years simply as a spectator.

Of all the photographs they took of the 2009 AP intern class, this is the only one they could choose? I’m the only one looking away, like a goofball! The photographer took several shots! There had to be another shot with everyone looking and smiling for the camera!

Way to class it up, Aaron! Of all the bad pictures to have…

Sigh.

I gained two pounds last week. (And yes, I checked when I went back to the gym.)

Diane, one of the AP intern program coordinators, took very good care of us. Leading up to the trip I hadn’t eaten much of anything. And I’m a foodie. Sheesh! Difficult times. (I’ve mapped where we (I) ate. Check it out at the bottom of this post.)

More importantly, the intern’s week was a great experience and at times a little bittersweet. Going in, it was clear to most of the recent graduates in the intern class that jobs with the oldest news gathering service in the world were not plentiful. The week was almost like a dangling carrot.

Please don’t mistake my characterization for sarcasm or bitterness. I think I can speak for most every editorial intern to say we’d all chop off our baby toes for a gig with the AP. Pound for pound, it’s still…THE AP! And we 20-somethings are still not yet jaded by long years working in this profession.

Living this life is tough — the “I-just-graduated-from-college-with-a-journalism-degree-and-I-could-be-homeless-in-a-month” life. While I look for something to pay the bills, I won’t get too comfortable. I guess I’m waiting for someone (anyone) to tell me there’s a job in ‘Houlton, Maine‘ and that it’s Maine or … (*crickets)

That’s what you do when you love this profession, right? I mean, when you spend the last five years of your life studying and pursuing it …

What I’ve learn: Don’t put down any roots. Be okay with changing your mailing address at least three times in the next four years. Measure your decisions about long-term romantic relationships. No more Thanksgiving and Christmas with the family. Pick one.

I know I sound like I’m whining. I’m not, really. Just facing a reality — one that I admit is the least appealing part of this trade. Traveling is great. But feeling like a vagabond, not so much. I know many people would tell me I’m wrong, naive and unadventurous. And those traits are unappealing in this industry. So I’m training my brain to stop processing the following feelings: loneliness, nostalgia and a desire for real contentment. This way being in a place I didn’t choose will be easier to deal with.

I think my biggest fears are the lost connections or strained relationships: with family, with a significant other, or even with myself.

But, ‘tough it out’ is my new motto.

There’s a silver-lining somewhere. There always is, isn’t there? You show people you can withstand a little geographical hazing and they’ll appreciate you for it someday. And then you get opportunities in places where you’d like to be, right?

Thanks for reading. I rambled, I know. Had to get it out.

Here’s some pictures from the week:

The newsroom was really big. Not very many people at desks. But still a sight to see.

We ate at the Peking Duck House. The duck was pretty good. So was all the other food.

A talented group of people, the editorial interns were. This is just a few of us.

Map of where I ate all week:

View AP Intern’s Week Cuisine in a larger map

During my internship, my trainer (@akellap) has made it a point to expose me to as much of the industry and the company as possible. Baltimore is so close to AP Washington offices, that it was almost inevitable that I’d go there a few times.

On my first trip I met Jesse Holland, the AP’s supreme court correspondent. Yes, that’s right. He was covering the Sonia Sotomayor confirmation hearings. I met him at a luncheon, a few days before the hearings began. When the luncheon was over I thought we’d just walk over to part of the office and talk about careers.

Instead, he gave me an ‘insider’ tour of the Congress, which I had never done before. And let me clearify, he took my to areas the general public is not allowed. I don’t think I ever imagined visiting the press rooms in the US Capitol at such a young age (see picture below).

And to top that off, he gave me a tour of the supreme court building and its press room.

So, needless to say I’d seen much more in a couple hours than I thought I’d see in a lifetime. My goals in a journalism career certainly don’t include being at the highest echelons of political reporting. I think this tour may have changed my mind about that.

So thank you, Jesse. That day is something I will never forget.

By the way, Holland’s got a book out and is working on another. Check it out.