Fragony on 5/2/2010 at 14:07
Could just as well been ironic
ZergMasterBaiter on 5/2/2010 at 14:13
People see racism everywhere these days. Aren't those just examples of traditional African American cuisine? :confused:
R Soul on 5/2/2010 at 14:16
Why is that racist? Is that menu not available to white people? If I were black I might think it rather patronising for a TV broadcaster to honour my history, but where's the racism?
demagogue on 5/2/2010 at 14:50
Have you (OP) never been to a black restaurant?
That's what they serve... They'll have these huge signs saying "soul food" and nobody is going to be more hardline about stereotypical black food than they are (in my experience).
It's true that that leaves everyone else in the world wondering whether to acknowledge social reality & history (everyone's memory or opinions of which are also probably skewed) or push it aside as "racially" motivated ... one of the central paradoxes about "black/Asian/Latin history month" events.
To be honest, I'm glad that there are still some things in life that still have a racial character... music, food, accents. Of course whites can rap and blacks can play banjo, and everybody is cool with that these days... I'm not talking against that. I just mean in recognizing the historical character of something, I think some things are richer when you understand how steeped they are in history and social reality, how they really developed in the real world, and to appreciate that you really need to acknowledge the racial side of it. Being *too* colorblind is one way to be history- and society-blind too.
That said, this NBC situation comes across almost a little too ham-fisted; but opinions may vary. Ask the black restaurant owners with the big signs saying "Soul Food" what they think.
ZergMasterBaiter on 5/2/2010 at 15:06
Somebody dug pretty deep to find controversy here. Maybe I don't see it because I'm white :(. But sampling "Black" food as a way of honoring Black History Month sounds fine (and not to mention delicious) by me. Listening to some old-school jazz while you eat this soul food would be nice too.
CCCToad on 5/2/2010 at 15:20
Quote Posted by demagogue
Have you (OP) never been to a black restaurant?
That's what they serve... They'll have these huge signs saying "soul food" and nobody is going to be more hardline about stereotypical black food than they are (in my experience).
Of course, and it can be quite good.
Stitch on 5/2/2010 at 15:24
Quote Posted by ZergMasterBaiter
Somebody dug pretty deep to find controversy here. Maybe I don't see it because I'm white :(. But sampling "Black" food as a way of honoring Black History Month sounds fine (and not to mention delicious) by me. Listening to some old-school jazz while you eat this soul food would be nice too.
wash it down with some malt liquor and apply for welfare, too
what's the big deal
Edit:
More serious, less inflammatory reply: whether or not this is racist is debatable--especially when the cook who put the meal together and created the sign is black--but at the very least it is a pretty boneheaded thing for a largely white corporation to do, even if the largely white corporation wasn't directly responsible for it. There's a huge difference between a black-owned restaurant selling stereotypical "black" food and the NBC cafeteria doing the same in honor of Black History Month.
ZergMasterBaiter on 5/2/2010 at 15:37
Quote Posted by Stitch
wash it down with some malt liquor and apply for welfare, too
what's the big deal
Now you're just being mean, not mention actually racist. But back to the topic at hand: "...picture below was snapped by Questlove, the drummer for the Roots--Jimmy Fallon's house band". So we can safely blame this one on Jimmy FUCKING Fallon, along with most of the other things wrong with the world today. I used to have a punching bag with Jimmy's picture, and suddenly I'm getting the urge again :mad: (maybe replace his picture with the Twitter birdy pic).
