…with apologies to John Steinbeck. 8)
( Taken from Rob Rogers @ the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette )
In March, a Marietta, Georgia bar owner sold jerseys that tried to associate Obama with the cartoon character, Curious George.
There were protests against the shirt… people were upset at the racism inherent with calling someone of African descent a chimpanzee.
Yet, all of them sold out.
Now, another company is selling monkey-related, Obama-associated items.
Ready to see Obama portrayed as a monkey in a suit?
Then check out the The SockObama doll.
All of them are sold out, too.
Some have said… isn’t Obama a political figure, like George W. Bush?
And don’t we have lots of caricatures of Bush as a chimp? How then is this Obama-monkey thing, racist?
Well, has anyone ever associated people of Bush’s race with monkeys, apes or other simians?
No. That seems to be reserved for people of African descent apparently…
Historically, blacks have historically always been “branded” ape like. European culture back in the day considered Africans to be savages and like monkeys. Its one of the reasons Africans were enslaved in the first place. We weren’t considered human at all.
Now, I’m not trying to incite hate here. I’m just pointing something out…
The company that’s selling the dolls seems upset that people are calling their doll “racist”!
( Taken from Shakesville )
Myth? Fable? Fairy tales? Folklore?
A charming association with a toy we had when we were little?
Huh?
Its almost as if… its so ingrained… they don’t see how racist that doll actually is.
Anyway, let’s see what Dave Chappelle had to say…
Hmmm. Tell me something…
…Is Obama not a man and a brother?
If anyone could think that of a Harvard educated lawyer, State and United State Senator and Presidential Candidate…
What could they be thinking about me?
I found out about all this on June 11th 2008.
Lets take a look back in History to another June 11th… this time in 1963.
(image taken from CBS)
On that day, Alabama Gov. George Wallace stood at the door of Foster Auditorium at the University of Alabama in a symbolic attempt to block two black students, Vivian Malone and James Hood, from enrolling at the school.
Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose?
We still have a long way to go.
Obama won the Alabama Democratic Primary, though. There’s still hope!
References used/Related items:
- http://www.post-gazette.com/robrogers/Default.asp?m=6&d=6&y=2008
- http://www.plunderbund.com/2008/06/11/racist-obama-doll/
- http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/06/the_makers_of_a_racist_obama_t.html
- http://shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2008/06/creators-of-thesockobama-of-course-we.html
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/abolition/black_imagery_gallery.shtml
- http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part2/2h67.html
- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1294680
- http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/06/11/national/main558016.shtml
Peace and Much Love.
The Bobolee Chronicles 