Watch this. And this. And no, this is not some old guy who is expressing his own sad and sick point of view. There are many others around him who are laughing and encouraging him.
I'd like to say that I am shocked, but sad to say, I'm not.
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3 comments:
While I understand the racist implications that the media was pointing out, I do understand the man with the t-shirts. If it was not his intention to be racist, just to say what he saw, then why should he be chastised? Free speech being what it is these days, he's allowed to do it, whether we share that opinion or not.
This man is a racist, and I do not for a minute believe his alleged "ignorance" of the fact that comparing an African American male to a monkey is a racist act. This to me is not an issue of free speech, but rather more along the lines of hate speech.
For centuries, Blacks were treated as subhuman, closer to apes along the evolutionary time scale, and this justified the horrific, inhumane acts of violence that were committed against them. This youtube video makes clear to me that this type of dehumanization of Blacks clearly has not left the popular consciousness. A study recently done by Stanford, reinforces this idea, showing that the these racist ideas are still in circulation. Check out this article: http://news-service.stanford.edu/pr/2008/pr-eber-021308.html.
Not convinced? Check out this definition in the Urban Dictionary. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=porch%20monkey.
Clearly, likening a black man to a monkey is participating in racist rhetoric. This man is guilty of perpetuating hate and bigotry. I, for one, am appalled.
To address Bach's comment:
The man's intentions may or may not have been derived from a racist ideology, but I don't believe for a second that he doesn't understand the implications between likening a black man to a monkey. He must know the historical and cultural connotations behind this comparison, and regardless of his intentions or beliefs, he had to know that it is one that is charged with centuries of bigotry and hate. The issue of whether he is allowed to think or speak a certain way, I think, is completely irrelevant; it does not make him any less wrong or ignorant. Certainly, you can understand that this kind of behavior has to be chastised - what kind of progress can we ever make if we can't teach children that this is wrong, that they cannot tolerate hatred simply because the constitution says we're allowed to be hateful? I know that is a dangerous conversation to have in and of itself, but I have to agree with Bloggy here - I am truly appalled, and am too passionate about racism to try and excuse such an ignorant person.
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