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The most unfortunate use of an obscure name of a genus of monkeys

The most unfortunate use of an obscure name of a genus of monkeys

The senator from Virginia and the 'macaca' heard 'round the world

ule No. 1 in today's wired political world: Don't call the guy holding the camera "macaca." If you do, it will end up on youtube.com (and wonkette.com, and dailykos.com and 10,000 other Web sites).

In August, Sen. George Allen deployed the term -- twice -- while addressing a rally of mostly white Virginians in rural Breaks. His target was S.R. Sidarth, a 20-year-old student of Indian descent who was filming the senator's speech on behalf of Jim Webb, Sen. Allen's Democratic opponent.

"This fellow over here with the yellow shirt, macaca or whatever his name is, he's with my opponent," Mr. Allen said as he pointed directly into Mr. Sidarth's camera. "Let's give a welcome to macaca here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia." (As it happens, Mr. Sidarth was born and raised in Fairfax County, Va., and is a senior majoring in American government at the University of Virginia.)

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Mr. Allen later claimed that he didn't know the meaning of the word, which is considered an insult in some parts of the world. He apologized repeatedly for the slip.

But the "macaca moment" soon led to accusations that the senator frequently used other ugly words as a young man to describe minorities, something he denies. It also inspired a local television reporter to ask about his mother's hidden Jewish heritage. Mr. Allen reacted defensively, and then he later bragged about how he "still ate a ham sandwich" for lunch and was fond of his mother's pork chops. Google now lists 14,100 references for "Senator Macacawitz."

The result has been a tightening of the race for Virginia's Senate seat, even though Mr. Webb, a former Navy secretary under President Reagan, has faced his own questions about insensitivity. In a 1979 article, he referred to a Naval Academy dormitory as a "horny woman's dream."

First Published: November 5, 2006, 5:00 a.m.

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