"Tacitus"
anecdote for the evening.
A friend of mine -- an amiable left-winger -- has a husband who teaches math at a local community college. This week, an Armenian student of his took it upon herself to speak with him. In her stilted English, she began: "The women of the veil -- you know they do not take your class because they fear you are a Jew." He was baffled: "Women of the veil?" "The Muslim students," responded the Armenian, "My friends the Muslim women. They see your name -- they think you are a Jew. They do not take your class because they know you will hate them and fail them." My friend's husband responded that he was not Jewish: his parentage was, in fact, Russian Orthodox, which is not traditionally associated with Jew-friendly activities. The Armenian was shocked. "Not a Jew?" Eyebrows raised skeptically: "Not a Jew?" The professor wasn't sure what to say: er, no, not a Jew. His interlocutor considered this and walked away.
In relating the incident, my friend said that her husband was not sure how to react when it happened. "Don't worry -- tell the ladies I'm not Jewish in the slightest!" Well, that would be wrong. He could have taken the "I'm Spartacus" line and lied for righteousness' sake: "I am, in fact, a Jew, yes." But dramatics aren't his style. He just went with the surprise, realizing later that the truly right thing to do would have been very simple: "Women of the veil or not, me being Jewish or not -- I don't want those sorry bigots in my math class."
But we always think of the best retorts long after the fact.
Did I mention that local custom will trump law and rightness? Sometimes, it seems, you bring the custom with you.
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