nytimes.com — Every era of racial progress engenders a reversion to type. The author presents a compelling case about the history of racism in the United States, most recently singling out Vogue magazine and the Obama campaign.
Feb 28, 2009 View in Crawl 4
michaelpintoFeb 28, 2009
Side note: It should also be noted that quite a bit of the anti-Irish political cartoons of the 1800s also featured apes to dehumanize an ethnic/religious group. Any professional political cartoonist would know about that negative history and the associated racist connotations (and sadly Thomas Nast is a good example): <a class="user" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TheUsualIrishWayofDoingThings.jpg">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TheUsualIrishWay ...</a>
poizonfrogFeb 28, 2009
Some of your submissions are slanted by opining or encouraging extremist views. You know from prior comments I've made, that I don't always agree with Obama. That said, our country faces unparalleled peril and our current president deserves his chance at success or failure without the distraction of dissent bordering on treason from the right.Anything I've posted is no more far flung than the constant barrage of craziness coming from conservatives.
cosmicsurferFeb 28, 2009
Dehumanization is NOT a natural part of human existence. IT IS a part of manipulation for power. The ONLY way to get people to kill each other is to dehumanize the enemy...ergo Viet Cong were called slopes, gooks; Japanese were Japs, slants; Germans -krauts; Iraqis - ragheads, camel jocks, towelheads.Increase the fear of "other" to encourage false patriotism and encourage a false community. That is also the reason for so much PTSD. We tell the military foot soldier to hate and kill, dehumanizing everyone outside of uniform...but when they get home they have to put that all away.Our aversion to kill ourselves is strong but once twisted and perverted, it turns in to hate and bigotry...Taught from birth - Hate anyone different and love only what is the same...Fear everything not like me and destroy it since it is a threat to our existence.That is neurotic behavior and or psychotic, not a normal, actualized, healthy ego
Closed AccountMar 1, 2009
This part is a gross exaggeration:"In last year’s presidential campaign, for example, likenesses of the black presidential candidate Barack Obama portrayed as a monkey became distressingly common.Monkey T-shirts were sold through the mail. Monkey dolls showed up at Republican political rallies. The most instructive image, which was spread over the Internet, depicted the presidential plane, Air Force One, renamed “Watermelon One.” It carried the smiling face of a monkey holding, what else, a slice of watermelon."I have seen far more images of George Bush portrayed as a chimp than I ever have of BO. Surely the NYT writer knows he is distorting the truth.
Closed AccountMar 1, 2009
KFC used to call their chicken "finger lickin' good" a few years ago. I'm almost certain none of their ads showed people eating chicken with a fork and knife either. I don't see what the point of being hypersensitive to sleights to minorities is.
Closed AccountMar 1, 2009
Hear hear!