The United Nations World Conference Against Racism could turn out to be a conference engendering racism - if the Bush administration is unsuccessful in shielding the agenda from items inspired by hopes of vengeance. Some conference planners, for instance, think it a matter of moment to address American slavery and to exact a penalty from the perpetrators to compensate the victims. The slave owners are long dead, as are the slaves. Taking money from one group and giving it to another group on the basis of skin color would be wrong. Some African nations like the idea, thinking they, too, should receive big piles of money in the name of setting things right, and not just from former slaveholding nations, but also from former colonialist nations.
Arab nations have a different target, namely Israel.
Yes, they do, and so does this conference, which is slated to take place in Durban, South Africa, for eight days starting Aug. 31. The Bush administration says the United States won t participate if the agenda ends up as vicious as some have in mind. The administration is right. Many of the organizers have good intentions, but the administration should be careful about lending the nation s prestige to what could become an exercise in vindictiveness. Please read them.