How Many Slaves Does It Take?

A mind is a terrible thing to waste.

Geez. Yet another case of common sense being missing in action:

Two Manhattan teachers are in hot water over an offensive homework lesson that used killing and whipping slaves to teach subtraction and multiplication.
Public School 59 teacher Jane Youn, 32, sent the boneheaded questions home with her fourth-graders in January.
One question focused on a ship loaded with 3,799 slaves. “One day, the slaves took over the ship. 1,897 are dead. How many slaves are alive?” the question read.
Another word problem used the example of a slave who “got whipped five times a day,” then asked students to calculate the number of whippings he received in a month.

Really?

Wow.

From what I read, the teachers may have meant well, as they were trying to get the students to combine what they were learning in their history class with their math lessons. But, uh, a little more thought here and they could have seen the inappropriateness of those questions.

Here is the full story.

Racist Soccer Fans Target Muslim Player On Their Own Team

I really do wonder why world soccer fans are so darn rabid and often racist. I get being sports crazy and proud of your country. But the number of reports of soccer fans being racist to players is outrageous. And before you say they are that way to anybody playing against their teams, not just players of different ethnicities, stop right there. Because there have been many instances when these fans have targeted players from their OWN teams. Like in this case:

Hundreds of rabid supporters of popular Israeli soccer club Beitar Jerusalem walked out of a soccer stadium this weekend to protest the team’s new Muslim player.

A group of Beitar Jerusalem fans known as ”La Familia” staged the walk out Sunday after Beitar striker Zaur Sadayev scoredhis first goal of the season against opposing team Maccabi Netanya early in the second half. The game ended in a 1-1 tie.

Sadayev, a 23-year-old Chechen Muslim, was hired along with Muslim teammate Gabriel Kadiev at the end of January. The move greatly displeased a core group of Beitar Jerusalem fans who are known for being nationalistic and anti-Muslim, according to The New York Times.

The Jewish Journal reports that fans have been thrown out of recent Beitar Jerusalem games for chanting anti-Arab and racist slogans.

The soccer club’s controversial hiring decision prompted a retaliatory arson attack against Beitar Jerusalem’s management offices in early February, according to the Jerusalem Post, and both Sadayev and Kadiev have been greeted with abuse by the fans.

I just don’t get it.

Brooklyn Assemblyman First Justifies, Then Apologizes For Wearing Blackface

Good Lord. What’s wrong with people? You would think common sense would prevent people from doing things like this:

But apparently not. Just shaking my head.

So What’s Wrong With A White Model Portraying An “African Queen” If We Darken Her Skin?

Oh yeah, I believe she is an African Queen.

You really wish you could be a fly on the wall to hear how decisions like this one get made:

Numéro Magazine has found itself in the middle of a racially-charged firestorm after using a highly bronzed white model in one of its fashion editorials entitled “African Queen.”

In the spread, Ondria Hardin, a 16-year-old, blond-haired, blue-eyed model is seen with darkened skin, striking a pose for the glossy.

What the ____?

A photo spread called “African Queen” and they thought it a good idea to use a white model and darken her skin with makeup? It is so incredulous to think about, I don’t even know what to say. Maybe all the models of African descent, or actual dark skinned models were not available that day.

I know. That doesn’t make sense. Just trying to wrap my brain around this decision.

You can read the full story here and read their explanation and defense.

So Now When Is White History Month?

I can’t remember which of my favorite blogs tipped me off to this video. My apologies for not giving you/them credit.

But this video, though late for Black History Month, is still very apropos. And it is SO right on.

Oberlin College Takes Stand Against Bigotry Once Again

Oberlin has been on the right side of issues for a long time.

Something very strange is going on at Oberlin College. Why someone is targeting Oberlin, of all places, since it is one of the most progressive colleges in America, is hard to figure out. According to a Yahoo News story:

Oberlin College canceled classes on Monday after a person wearing what appeared to be a KKK outfit was spotted on campus, sparking a police investigation at the Ohio school.

“Early this morning, there was a report of a person wearing a hood and robe resembling a KKK outfit between South and the Edmonia Lewis Center and in the vicinity of African Heritage House,” Oberlin President Marvin Krislov wrote in an email to the school’s 2,800 students, faculty and staff. “This event, in addition to the series of other hate-related incidents on campus, has precipitated our decision to suspend formal classes and all non-essential activities for today, Monday, March 4, 2013, and gather for a series of discussions of the challenging issues that have faced our community in recent weeks.”

According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, nearly 500 students, staff and community members gathered at the center of campus Monday afternoon for a planned unity rally. Other events, including a “solidarity dinner” at the African Heritage House, were scheduled throughout the day.

The Oberlin Student Senate issued its own email, which read in part:

This has been another event in a string of several reflecting a terrible pattern of racism, prejudice, queerphobia, anti-semitism and other bias attacks that are happening on Oberlin’s campus. At this time, advocacy, support and solidarity are necessary emotionally, physically and spiritually.

According to the Oberlin Review, the latest string of hate-related incidents began in February:

Feb. 9: Vandalism in the Science Center included the replacement of “Black” with “Nigger” on Black History Month posters, drawings of swastikas, damage to the “Year of the Queer” posters and reported destruction of the Chinese calendar.

Feb. 12: LGBTQ Community Coordinator Lorena Espinoza found a note in the Multicultural Resource Center that read “Nigger + Faggot Center.”

Feb. 16: Students found a number of offensive notes written around Burton Hall. “Whites Only” was written above a water fountain, “Nigger Oven” was written inside the elevator and “No Niggers” was written on a bathroom door.

Feb. 17: The Office of Safety and Security released a Special Alert of a strong-arm robbery of a student near West College Street and Cedar Street. The student reported that he was approached by an individual who made a derogatory remark about his perceived ethnicity and then physically knocked him to the ground.

Feb. 26: Posters were defaced in King including those advertising “Year of the Queer” and the Affirmative Action panel, at least one of which had a swastika drawn on it.

Feb. 27: A swastika drawn onto the outside window of West Lecture Hall in the Science Center was seen being removed by custodial staff.

The liberal arts college, founded in 1833, was the first in America to educate women alongside men,according to its Website. The New York Times notes it was “one of the first to admit black students,” and that “before the Civil War, it was an abolitionist hotbed and an important stop on the underground railroad.”

Kudos to Oberlin for taking a stand immediately. I doubt this is a large group of people causing this trouble, but rather one or two individuals who are in the wrong place for this sort of thing.

No Place For Bigotry On Left Either

Mitch McConnell and his wife, Elaine Chao.

As I have said before,we must not make the mistake in believing that liberals cannot be racist.

Progress Kentucky, a Democratic super PAC with its sights on toppling Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), has drawn backlash for a persistent effort to suggest that the senator’s wife’s Chinese roots have led him to embrace anti-American policies.

In a Feb. 14 tweet, the group made a particularly blunt jab suggesting that Elaine Chao, former labor secretary under President George W. Bush and McConnell’s second wife, was encouraging him to support outsourcing jobs to China.

As the full article notes, Progress Kentucky has since apologized for the tweet. But that can’t erase that the thought was in the mind of whomever wrote it. Bigotry and stereotyping is unacceptable whether it is from the Left or the Right.

Students Dress As KKK and No One Has Sense Enough To Say “Bad Idea”

Was there no one with any sense around?

Seriously?!

This week, a group of hockey fans in North Dakota raised eyebrows after they showed up at a game apparently dressed like members of the Ku Klux Klan, according to several media reports.

The three fans, who were photographed in the stands at the state high school semi-final game between Grand Forks Red River High School and Fargo Davies on Friday, were seemingly dressed in typical Klansman regalia — white robes and pointed hats covering their bodies and faces.

What were these kids thinking? And why did no one, any adult, or fellow student for that matter, point out to them while it was happening that this was in no way cool or funny.

Geez.

Read more on story here.

Mississippi Finally Bans Slavery – Officially

Is this state trying to keep its old reputation?

Wow, Mississippi, welcome to the 2013!

A middle-aged recent immigrant from India recently set into motion a series of events that eventually led to Mississippi finally ratifying the Constitutional amendment banning slavery. The rousing finale of the movie Lincoln served as inspiration. It sounds like a joke, but it’s true. And even though it’s been nearly 150 years since that fateful day in the Capitol in 1864, Mississippi’s becoming the final state to officially ratify the Thirteenth Amendment serves as the final punctuation mark on a dark chapter in American history.

According to this story, this whole non-ratification thing was a mistake. I hope so. But I have to tell you, something tells me back in the day somebody knew what they were doing and purposely objected to the amendment by uh, not filing the proper paperwork. And since then everyone assumed it was done.

Whatever happened, once again, Mississippi doesn’t come out looking too good on the matter of slavery. Wow. Somebody better check some other key laws in that state.

How Dare A Black Cosplayer Take On A “White” Character?

The characters are not real people.

Read this over at Racialicious. What a very interesting and thought-provoking piece. It is something I can relate to because my kids are somewhat into cosplay. Here is an excerpt:

Once upon a time, I inadvertently started a cosplay race war on Tumblr. Whoops.

So, here’s the deal: I’m a cosplayer. If you don’t already know one of us in person, (and you probably do–we’reeverywhere) you’ve probably seen people like me on the news–all dolled up in a rainbow of face paint and eye-popping wigs, 50 shades of spandex, and skyscraper shoes, for the sake of expressing love for and bringing our favorite characters to life at sci-fi, comic book, video game, and anime conventions.

Since I started cosplaying in 2008, I’ve traveled the country, hitting up as many cons as financially possible, all the while making incredible friends, unforgettable memories, and lugging hard-to-get-through-airport-security props along the way. (Have you ever tried to fly with a dress made out of plastic bubbles? Fun fact: you can’t. But you can ship it to your hotel!)

Here’s the second deal: I’m also black. Which is fine by most everyone…until I have the audacity to cosplay a character who isn’t.

After my pictures started making the rounds on deviantArt, Tumblr, and 4chan, it became pretty clear that my cosplay brings all the racists to the yard, and they’re, like, white cosplay is better than yours…

What kills me is that, in person, nobody has the balls to say a word about whether or not they think darker-skinned people should cosplay lighter skinned characters–but online is a completely different animal. Online, I was “Nigger Venus,” and “Sailor Venus Williams” because I am black.

My nose was too wide, lips were too big; I had a “face like a gorilla” and wasn’t suited for such a cute character….because I am black. My wig was too blonde, my wig wasn’t blonde enough, or, my wig was “ghetto” because I was making it “ghetto,” by being black and having it on my head.

And furthermore, if I was going to insist on “ruining characters,” I could have at least picked one with black hair so it looked more “natural.” I should have worn blue contacts–but if I had, it would have looked “ghetto.” Because I am black.

The depths that the insults sink to are enough to scare many interested cosplayers away from even trying. I had an Indian friend who refused to cosplay anything other than Indian characters after watching the way people tore into my costumes online…

Wow. But trust me as someone who goes to Comic Con, the big daddy of all cos-play events, every year with my kids, who participate in the role playing themselves, this stuff is a BIG deal. It is also when you most wish there were more comic book characters of other colors for kids of color to choose from. But even if there were, people should be allowed to play Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman or whomever, regardless of how much they look like the character.Kudos to the young woman in the article for being so strong.

Here is the full article. It is really worth the read.