The heated race for South Carolina’s governership turned racist when State Senator Jake Knotts referred to Representative Nikki Haley as an “[expletive] raghead.” He later attempted to rectify his slur by saying he didn’t mean the expletive. As for “raghead?” Senator Knotts defended the word by arguing, “We need a good Christian to be our governer. […] We’re at war over there.”

Rep. Haley identifies as Christian, but was raised by Sikh immigrants from India. I’m not making any accusations or presumptions about Haley’s faith, but I think it’s a fair assumption that, in a number of religious bastions, ascribing to a non-Christian (even the wrong denomination of Christian) faith is the kiss of death for a political career. Despite this, the accusation that one is a false Christian is used sparingly for white politicians, even those who embody less-than-Christian ideals. The charges levied at Haley, however, mirror similar accusations aimed at Bobby Jindal, another Indian American political star, and, of course, President Obama. The ugly truth is that, while white politicians have skied to political heights under a bevy of religious banners -- Mormon, Catholic, Jewish -- brown folk get two choices: Christian or enemy.

Of course, this isn’t really a story about religious discrimination. Again, Haley identifies as Christian, despite Knotts’s attempts to smear her faith. His blanket assertion that the United States is at war “over there” -- implying, presumably, any region where the people don’t look like himself -- demonstrates that this is, at its heart, a racist slur implying that all individuals of brown skin are Islamic fundamentalists. And that is a dangerous assumption, one that has implications reaching far beyond even the highest office of a state.

You can voice your displeasure at Sen. Knott's statements by sending his office a message here.