H&M clothing chain latest target of racial hysteria

a reply to: Edumakated

I've seen those yes.

The second one is used specifically for violent flash mob behavior.

originally posted by: burdman30ott6
I miss the days when social media wasn't around to make a mountain out of every tone deaf molehill.

I have not been participating in ATS for a while and I obviously picked the wrong day to drop in. Much of what caused me to back off is still running strong.

I just want to speak to your post. You are right that social media can make a molehill into a mountain, and that may not be so bad if that is all it did. I fear that social media has become weaponized and that is the most dangerous part for all of us.

Back to occasionally lurking.

a reply to: DupontDeux

We both used the word " error " that said, it will "trigger " a negative reaction among Black folks.



Now let's say they didn't mean to take a piss at blk folks, and for the most part I believed them, they had noo one on the advertising board that said.. You know what?? Maybe we should rethink that shot, it's not like they could be unaware that Europeans throw banana peels at black soccer players while making monkey noises

If the above doesn't cause you to cringe you are most likely not a black person,hence don't tell blk folks how to react.

One more thing someone made a thread a while back, about a White kid with a noose either next to or around his head ..and ATS members freakin lost it..regardless of the artist intent and lame assed explanation.

a reply to: Spider879

Reminds me of a late 1800s catalog my mom had. There were some wooden dolls advertised...a 'Darkie in a Watermelon' and a 'Cracker in a Peanut.' They were little baby dolls inside wooden watermelons and peanut shells.

I was probably 10 years old (about 1981) when I saw that. It was pretty shocking to me.

...and, yet, we still have this white guy gracing a Cracker Jack box:



I've been called a 'cracker-assed b*' just for looking beyond a black woman, in a grocery store, at donuts behind her while she was obviously in sh*t mood. My six year old daughter was with me. I've been called a cracker many, many times besides that, too.

My husband has been called a cracker just mowing the lawn (we live downtown) and once when he passed a guy being arrested in the mall because he looked at him. Those are just some incidents that I recall especially for their unwarranted cruelty. And these are just incidents dealing solely with the slur 'cracker.'

I put up with it and refuse to wallow in how disgusted it makes me.

If dumb people want to giggle at this ad, let them. It's a nothing, really.

***

ETA: BTW, I *think* the date on that last ad you posted says 1899. Is that correct???? Are you really fretting that something racist from 1899 is still relevant and important? It's not.

I can show you examples of misogyny from 2017 that I laugh off and don't let hold me back, at all (plenty in black culture, btw). And I was actually kidnapped, raped, and nearly murdered as a teen.

***

ETA2: And I don't mean to sound unsympathetic... I know it sucks when you feel like the world still doesn't get it or doesn't care.

a reply to: MotherMayEye

ETA2: And I don't mean to sound unsympathetic... I know it sucks when you feel like the world still doesn't get it or doesn't care.

OK thanks for getting it, a lot of folks are clueless or act like they are clueless.
I don't know the story behind the Cracker Jack ad, but iam gonna guess it was not made by blk folks to make white folks feel less than and was more than likely benign.
My reasons for the old ads was to drive home the point of how long and deep such images run in our culture.

As a black person, shut up.

I dont you telling me what to be outraged about.

originally posted by: Tempter
Jesus....


mobile.twitter.com...


It's a hoodie FFS!

Ironic how they all went ape# over that.

A few assholes among us use a term in a racist manner that the rest of us use on our own children.

Context. We need context. Not knee jerk.

a reply to: trollz

if the kid didnt mind wearing where is the issue? (didnt his parents have an issue with it ?)
nope only bored as # liberal PC daft idiots with nothing better to do with themselves than write complaint posts and blog posts about how unfair , racist the world is

its childrens wear and we all refer to children as little monkeys ! id bet youd be hard pressed to find a parent white or black who has never referred their kids as monkies

how the # is monkey a racial term considering we are all supposedly descended from them ?

originally posted by: Spider879
a reply to: MotherMayEye

ETA2: And I don't mean to sound unsympathetic... I know it sucks when you feel like the world still doesn't get it or doesn't care.

OK thanks for getting it, a lot of folks are clueless or act like they are clueless.
I don't know the story behind the Cracker Jack ad, but iam gonna guess it was not made by blk folks to make white folks feel less than and was more than likely benign.
My reasons for the old ads was to drive home the point of how long and deep such images run in our culture.

It runs deep for women, too...and since the beginning of time.

I really do sympathize and I regret how harshly worded my last comment was.

Sometimes I feel like I need for others to remind me that I take 'words' too seriously. But I have also not appreciated that kind of advice either.

***

ETA: I just saw this article on women and advertising, the other day....‘Successful marriages start in the kitchen!’ Outrageous retro advertising slogans reveal the sexist marketing ploys once used to sell everything from lingerie to washing machines

Some of it's pretty awful stuff. The feminine hygiene ads, in particular, are humiliating and demeaning.

But then I realize how far we've come!

***

ETA2: Also, my point about the Cracker Jack box is that no one is trying to do away with it or change it because the word 'cracker' is a racial slur that many find highly offensive.

a reply to: MotherMayEye

Try being a young white women teaching in an inner city school. Talk about racial slurs directed your way!

a reply to: MotherMayEye

I recall a soccer team out in Colorado I think. They selected the mascot Mighty Whitey to try to make some kind of point about mascots and racial stuff. It sort of backfired on them, but they did it on purpose. I remember their coach being interviewed by the local rock station radio DJ who them gave away some team merchandise which is what I mean about it backfiring.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: MotherMayEye

Try being a young white women teaching in an inner city school. Talk about racial slurs directed your way!

I can imagine. My oldest attended an inner city middle school and came home daily with stories. She was assaulted for what amounted to being a white girl -- twice. After the second time, I filed a criminal complaint.

I'm glad to say she isn't jaded though. Her circle of friends has always been almost exclusively black and she shares a house with a black couple.

But there is no denying that black on white racial hatred is pervasive and cruel.

a reply to: MotherMayEye

yeh it seems racial hatred in general is pervasive and cruel

racism in society , its one of those ones which is really hard to call , do you outlaw the usage of words HELL NO
do you use the words so much they become background noise. Do yo flip it on the head call a cracker a 'n-word' a 'n-word' a cracker , according to Paul mooney we are all nigga's , Dave Chappelle he uses racial slurs to draw attention to the differences of race etc , I find that approach better , than say Donald glovers approach to racism.


The world is a #ed up place but if people can just be honest with each other about their opinions and feelings then we wouldnt be in this mess.

Whenever I hear a racist or see one in person , if I can ask them "why" , there is never an answer which comes from their own mind, its always someone elses theory or idea that they just so happen to assign to because they cant actually figure out a reason as to why they are racist.

Living In glasgow I have friends from lots of different racial backgrounds and Ive never experienced racism since coming to Glasgow, whats more #ed up is that I was racially abused by a few people growing up , I have white parents, but was born with a mongolain spot, and so I Have dark skin, I remember as a child and in highschool many people throwing racial slurs at me like "paki" , "black bastard" , etc , and I am not that dark , but just because I dont have white skin per say
Im automatically different to every other kid.
I mean there were indian and pakistani kids in my primary and secondary school , so I have no idea why those kids could se the difference between me and them was vast , yet just because I have tanned skin i fall into that category.
I remember running home as a child crying I think i was 5 years old , and me and my friend were playing at the senotaph at the park and some old man said "get off that wall ya wee paki bastard" , I was more shocked at the old man shouting at me than the racial slur, as at that age I didnt know what he meant, and after crying , snotty nosed to my dad he explained it.

Just to add as well alot of the racial abuse I received completely ill founded as I am not pakistani , indian or anywhere near close to the africas or the carribean etc. Alot of the abuse I received was from kids in highschool was from "rangers fans" who are already bigoted in nature by the religious sectarianism drilled into them by their parents. Coincidence ?


What is it with racists, they are actually just really #ing stupid people , because science proves we are one species with skin pigment mutations and so there is literally no difference between us in any way accept some of us can survive better under extreme UV .

I never understood why people were being mean or calling me names, until I got older in highschool then I realised because people are racist assholes, and where did they learn that behaviour from, their elders!
The only thing I could take away from it all as a teenager was some sort of understanding no matter how small it was, that if it was traumatic for me how traumatic it must be for someone of a different racial background receiving racial abuse.

so , its entirely on us all to ensure this # doesnt go onto to infect our children, or anyone else for that matter, and racist idiots should be called out for their bull# and lack of understanding in basic scientific facts.

a reply to: sapien82

Incorrect. Broad brush just doesn't work on something as complex as the human mind.

Some folks learn racism from family, or the environment they are raised in. Some learn it because humans learn from experience, and they may have had some bad experiences.

The long and the short of it is that no one is responsible for their worldviews except them. BLaming their parents is ridiculous, and seems to be a lazy approach to actually assessing the drivers behind the behaviors.

a reply to: bigfatfurrytexan

Yeh you are totally right, I learned about racism from direct experience, where as others have learned from their parents, see the rangers fan kids! Others learn from environment.

What I dont get is people who become racist because they have been on the end of racism

I know what you mean I cant help but paint it from that perspective , but at the same time you parents do have a lot to answer for in how they have shaped your world view so yeh they do shoulder some blame as does the person themselves.

It is not ridiculous to blame your parents , if they have had a direct hand in making you a racist by indoctrinating you into a life of racist bigotry ?

at the same time Ive witnessed kids who are not racist , jump on the band wagon jsut because it would improve their social standing on whatever is popular at the time , or who they are trying to impress within that social circle.

I remember one time a boy in my year Gary , he was a right #in racist #, tried to start a fight with a boy called Shijaz , he was a big lad too of pakistani heritage. Then all of a sudden all these kids who id never heard utter a racist term in my life , started chanting "paki bastard" and all this #
then the fight broke out, and i was so pleased because Shijaz absolutely leathered gary and broke his nose.
I felt so pleased at seeing the blood come out of his face, maybe a little too much as he had been the source of my own racial abuse.
Needless to say he never amounted to much so jokes on him!
Where as Shijaz is a good business man and owns a number of convenience stores and DIY shops

originally posted by: Spider879
a reply to: DupontDeux

We both used the word " error " that said, it will "trigger " a negative reaction among Black folks.

Now let's say they didn't mean to take a piss at blk folks, and for the most part I believed them, they had noo one on the advertising board that said.. You know what?? Maybe we should rethink that shot, it's not like they could be unaware that Europeans throw banana peels at black soccer players while making monkey noises

If the above doesn't cause you to cringe you are most likely not a black person,hence don't tell blk folks how to react.

One more thing someone made a thread a while back, about a White kid with a noose either next to or around his head ..and ATS members freakin lost it..regardless of the artist intent and lame assed explanation.

For me... the above images are the problem but not like you think. Were people in the past more racist than today? Probably. I don't know, I didn't live then.

That being said, my point is exactly that. I didn't live then, so unless you brought that junk to my attention, I would have never become aware of it.

Do you see what I'm getting at? Read deeply into that point. Had it stopped getting shoved in my face, had you never made me aware of it... I would have been none the wiser. The word "monkey" would be associated with children and animals. ...and people who sling poo

My children and children's children would have associated it with only that because they wouldn't know that it's considered a racial slang because no one would be using it at such because it's a "dead by gone language". Unless, of course, I teach it to my kids. Right now, people who toss this junk around are the only ones who are making the newer generations aware of it.

Like Morgan Freeman said... You want to stop racism? Then stop talking about it!

I 1000% agree. The more someone shoves something in my face that I myself have never done... the more you piss me off and the more prejudice you make me.

a reply to: StallionDuck

That being said, my point is exactly that. I didn't live then, so unless you brought that junk to my attention, I would have never become aware of it.

And this is why you aren't comprehending why some people take offense.

In the black community, those types of advertisements are known which is why we take offense as we view it from a different perspective. My parents and grandparents lived through it, so even though I didn't directly, I still am sensitive to it.

My wife and I were talking about this last night. She commented that she had gotten a onesie for our son as a gift and it was a monkey theme and she never put it on because of some of the still latent feelings/knowledge we have about how monkeys was used as a slur to denigrate us. It didn't matter if the onsie was cute.

originally posted by: Edumakated
a reply to: StallionDuck

That being said, my point is exactly that. I didn't live then, so unless you brought that junk to my attention, I would have never become aware of it.

And this is why you aren't comprehending why some people take offense.

In the black community, those types of advertisements are known which is why we take offense as we view it from a different perspective. My parents and grandparents lived through it, so even though I didn't directly, I still am sensitive to it.

My wife and I were talking about this last night. She commented that she had gotten a onesie for our son as a gift and it was a monkey theme and she never put it on because of some of the still latent feelings/knowledge we have about how monkeys was used as a slur to denigrate us. It didn't matter if the onsie was cute.

I shouldn't have to comprehend. You know how many people call me a "coonass" that aren't cajun? To cajuns, that's a racial slur coming from anyone who isn't cajun. Sound familiar?

Now... The younger generation carries the name with pride. It separates us from the rest of the world and so we have our own 'thing', kind of like a flag for our culture.

For anyone that doesn't know... A "coonass" was someone who was "lower than a coon". So by definition and by the purpose of the slur, we were lower than "blacks", since "coon" was a racial slur against black people. This is history and one understood by all elder cajuns. Anyone 40 and under has a pretty good chance of not knowing where "coonass" came from. Most everyone that don't simply thinks that this was a name we gave ourselves because we're proud of our culture. They have no clue.

THIS is why I believe what I believe. To you, I'm just another white guy because simply, you can't tell me apart from any other white guy. To me, I'm Cajun. I'm not "white". When someone comes to me and throws a slur my way like "Cracker" or "White Bread" or "You don't understand what we went through"!

THAT pisses me off but I don't lash out at you. I just think "They don't know... it's not their fault". I damn sure dont act out against you for not knowing.

As a black person, you likely don't know that Cajuns were persecuted. You likely don't know that Cajun's were not allowed in town. We were not allowed to trade with anyone. We were shunned, beaten, KILLED all because we were Cajuns even though we looked like everyone else. This was a common thing for 'my people' until some 50+ years ago. !!50!! years!!! We weren't allowed to talk French. If you were caught speaking French in school some 50 years ago, you would get the switch.

Hey, I get that you may have issues handed down to you from your family but that's YOUR choice just like it's MY choice to react against words that people use against my culture and heritage. You don't know how many times people tell me upon learning that I'm Cajun...

In Texas... our neighbors where Cajuns are not really that uncommon...

Them: So where're you from?

Me: Louisiana

Them: So you one of them Cajuns?

Me: yeah

Them: (Starts trying to talk like "Troy Landry" from swamp people)

Them: (usually followed by "the Waterboy" jokes from Adam Sandler, especially the guy you couldn't understand)

Me: haha

Them: Can you talk like waterboy or that old cajun guy in the movie?

Me: We don't talk like that

Them: What about that guy on swamp people?

Me: yeah, we talk like dat to each other, sometimes in french.

Them: What's roadkill taste like?

Me: What?

Them: You know... Stuff that people run over. Ya'll scoop it up and take it home and make a gumbo out of it and eat it!

Me: We're not scavengers. We don't do that. That's a tiresome rumor. I hear it all the time but we're not like that.

Them: but ya'll eat everything.

Me: I am in Texas, right? (my jab back at their ignorance after I'm tired of the conversation)


----------------------

All in all, like I said... It's not up to your parents. It's up to you to make the change about what you are worried about and what is important to you.

I have a licence plate on my wall that says "Registered Coonass - State of Louisiana". Most younger Cajuns do. Stickers, shirts, etc. We know that people don't know and we don't lash out because of history. We simply accept that most people are oblivious to our history and that's ok.... That's the way it should be. We don't use it as a crutch or an excuse. We got over it, just like everyone else should.

a reply to: StallionDuck

After a conversation with another mod, i started digging a bit into my family history. Found out that me being "Hungarian" (which we were, nationally) was less accurate than my great grandfather being a gypsy, who married a gypsy, and recognized that being a gypsy in the US was not any better than a gypsy in Europe.

SO we abandoned the gypsy ways, apparently, and hid it like an ugly truth. I figured it out, then asked some of my grandpa's brothers...and it seems I am an ethnic minority and never even knew.