Racist costumes being banned

There is a bigger issue here Thack. Starting a discussion about which costumes are offensive is important because it is part of a larger discussion that we need to have about racist stereotypes that are still part of our society.

The Muslims are terrorist meme is a good example of a hateful stereotype that is important right now. It is not just about costumes. It is about people in several states trying to stop mosques from being built. It is about kids coming home from schools because they are being bullied. And it is even about acts of violence.

You might say a costume is just a costume, but in our current society where all of these other instances of the "Muslims are terrorist" messages are taking place, this costume is part of something bigger and more sinister.

I feel it is very important to stand up against this type of racism whether it is being upset when a Muslim-American mother is kicked off a plane for saying "I have to go" on a cell phone, or objecting to costumes portraying Muslims as terrorists.

The movies you are talking about are not supporting damaging stereotypes. White men can't jump was challenging racial stereotypes and was quite a positive message. White Chicks is too stupid to be positive, but I don't think it was supporting any type of hateful stereotypes (I didn't watch this movie too carefully).

This isn't really about the costumes. It is about standing up against racism and racial stereotypes that still cause real problems in our society.

I think we agree about free speech. Everyone has it including the kids in the original article who were expressing their opposition to hateful costumes and seeking to spark a discussion without seeking to ban anything.

I hope you don't insist that one person's assessment of something or someone as being racist, necessarily makes it so.

What you're describing could easily be perceived as obnoxious. I hope you're prepared for "Bite Me" replies. Hopefully no one will want to pope you in the nose.

Race is important to Americans, and stereotypes are built upon truth.....are you suggesting that racial stereotypes can be rubbed out? If so why do you think you have the power to control what others think and feel? Why do you think that you have the right to attempt to impose your version of righteous thinking and feeling? The road to hell is paved with good intentions, your trying to do good is a violation of others, it is a form of violence.

I would be more impressed if you were spending your energy getting worked up about one of the much more serious problems in America, for instance greed, inequity, injustice, falling standard of living, blah blah blah blah

Of course racial stereotypes can be rubbed out and they have been.

The biggest recent example (although not a race) is the change of the perception of homosexuals from creepy child-rapists and predators to married couples. This has been a huge change. It happened because brave people from Harvey Milk to Dan Savage stood up and spoke out against these stereotypes.

Of course African Americans are viewed quite a bit differently now then they were 100 years ago thanks to hard work to change society.

Anti-semitism was common and reasonably accepted 100 years ago. Asians were considered dirty and lazy. Italians were hated as anarchists and the Irish as drunks.

It took a lot of work stereotypes. Jewish Americans founded the Anti-Defamation league which has done stellar work in making our society a more just and fair place. Bigotry against homosexuals has become unpopular because people stood up strongly against prejudice and hatred. Irish and Italian Americans worked hard to get into public and political life.

I fail to see how fighting bigotry equates to violence. It has been done effectively and peacefully many times in our history.

If stereotypes ever were to be rubbed out then we would stop thinking that we knew anything about the groups that we class individuals into. I dont know anyone who thinks that we cant make some general statements about gays, what has happened is that the stereotypes have shifted, they have become more positive.

It is pretty clear that you have a flawed idea of what a stereotype is, that for you it is a negative belief about at group, whether the belief is true or not, and you dont want any negative opinions of groups whether true or not and are willing to use force to push others towards your will.

How about a KKK Kostume ?





David

Well, just look who dropped in.

CBC had a show called Little Mosque on the Prairie, and now, coming to a station near you in November is: All American Muslim.

"TV network TLC is making a reality series following the lives of Muslims living in America.

The programme - called 'All American Muslim' - will follow five Muslim families in Dearborn, Michigan hoping to expose the 'misconceptions and conflicts' they face 'outside and within' their own community'.

Dearborn has one of America's largest Muslim populations and has the largest mosque in North America.

In a statement TLC's general manager Amy Winter said: 'Inviting viewers into a world they might not otherwise experience.

'Through these families and their diverse experiences, we will explore how they blend their values and traditions with everyday life in America.
She added the programme would provide: 'Insight into their culture with care and compassion.'

The series - which will be released in November - is set to feature a range of characters including a set of sisters one of whom wears a headscarf while the other sports piercings and tattoos and is married to an Irish Catholic Islamic convert.

Other characters include: 'Recently married, Nadar and Nawal,' who are, 'having their first baby and trying to find the balance between their traditional Muslim roots and American culture.

'Mike, Deputy Chief for the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department, works tirelessly to educate the department about the Muslim religion in an effort to reduce discrimination and ignorance while his wife, an executive who works as a consultant to a major auto manufacturer, struggles to find the balance between work and raising a modern Muslim family.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2018319/Islamovision-Network-creates-All-American-Muslim-reality-TV-show.html#ixzz1cMpzeuDz

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2018319/Islamovision-Network-creates-All-American-Muslim-reality-TV-show.html#ixzz1cMpEcNBf

So, I don't think it's as dire as you paint it, max.

Is this some kind of Halloween trickery?

The ghost of Slappy Doo Hoo?

Or does Slappy live......?

I'm just doing a little haunting.

Then it should be Slappy Doo BOO!

Hi, Slapster!

Hola!

http://edmonton.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20111031/raffi-torres-halloween-controversy-111031/20111031/?hub=EdmontonHome

Just goes to show how important race is, despite all the chin wagging to the contrary....

I guess Lance Armstrong thawt so.

Would that I would look like Beyonce, not to mention dance and sing like her. Tina's more my age. Would take a lot of work for me to remind anyone of either of them and not just skin color. First I'd have to learn to sing.

In this case (one at a time), I'm sure it's meant well, fine with me, not anywhere near a border crossing. But that's me.

On the kid dressed "arab" with faux explosives, I'm dragging a little, but he's a happy boy, I'm mostly ok, fer gosh sakes, it's halloween. <pro on that ny mosque>

These comments are about line crossing re offense or wisdom or taste. As I said earlier, I have come around to thinking that nothing is out of reach of humor. (Ok, near nothing)

I'm trying to remember the name of a book in a class I took in the early sixties on the social history of the US. One of the better classes I'd ever had until then and since then. The school was UCLA, the teachers name was Meyer. (No, not Meyer Meyer.) The book was named (here comes the fuzz) something like American Humor. Nothin' about the book was funny, which threw me for a loop. It wasn't about comedy, but a wider sense of what humor means, a kind of perspective.
Naturally, I don't remember who wrote that book. I got a C+ in the class, an incredible disappointment re a class I sort of devoured whole. That was, of course, before grade inflation. That's also the class I started sneezing in and hardly ever stopped for the next twenty years. (I figure old building, dust, smoke (lots of smokers there including me and the teacher), allergy awakening).

So, in what I fuzzily remember as a wider sense of the word, I think humor is a kind of balance to what goes on in life, which can include joy and horror.

(Steps off of rickety orange crate)


edit - checked - none of the books "american humor" on amazon are anything like that book that was probably written around 1960 or possibly before.