Thursday, October 23, 2008

from Tobe to Joe Sixpack

One of the events in my life that I have never forgotten occurred when I was in Junior High School. It was when the television mini-series ROOTS came out. I will never forget that music or the father holding his child up to the universe. The show was hard to take and I must admit, it brought out sentiments that I did not even have as a child during the civil rights movement, with the exception of seeing the Nation Guard on my street telling me I couldn’t play outside the day Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in my home town of Memphis.

It was cool after the Monday show, but after the Tuesday episode things hit the fan. It was as if everybody in the world was looking at roots. And seeing that folks from around my way were selectively bused to a predominantly white school, the environment during that week was completely different. Prior to this, we all just had a ball, no problems never. But after that Tuesday segment, like I said it was on. See, that was the episode when Kunta Kinta was made, via whip to call himself Tobe.

There was a tension in the air that day. That is all we talked about on the bus. And it didn’t take long that morning before the advents of the prior evening manifested itself in real life form. And it was all started when one white kid called my folk Tobe. There may have been 40 to 50 fights that morning before home room until after first period, causing the principal to cancel school and send us black kids back home. Rocks were thrown at our buses and we would get off and resume the head cutting we had been engaged in all of that morning. It was like we were doing what we felt our ancestors should have done.

Just thinking about this has me on edge, in particular as it relates to the present political environment as proffered by Mr. McCain and Mrs. Palin. When I hear “Joe Sixpack”, I can’t help but think this is a code phrase for not me, or the average American, but rather those that harbor the hatred of the past and the racist beliefs that yielded Jim Crow, and even slavery. For me, the average American is more like Bill Jones. For we all have Bills, and see them going up each day: Light Bill, Auto bill, tuition Bill and Gas Bill. Not no Joe Sixpack. I see a man, somewhere in the woods, with a rebel flag on his truck, with a rifle and one that may pride himself on living in a neighborhood with no black folks, Latino folk, or Asian folk; even taking pride that there may be no kids as such attending the school that his child does. I also see a man that would wear a shirt that says “Nigger Please, it’s called the Whitehouse. True, I love me some brew, and pride myself on my Gat and rifle game, but I too am an Average America, but don’t see myself as no sixpack Joe.

I guess this is the true state of American affairs with respect to out political climate. I know and believe that most Americans are true civil-minded patriots and frown on hate regardless. I just do hope that folks like us, regardless of race and gender or any other contrived difference fall on our commonality as being human beings, and stand against this, for I don’t ever wanna be called Tobe again and if someone like Joe Sixpack does, he best be prepared to take a loss, for real though. I mean its like from Tobe to Joe Sixpack and back again.


Addendum: Thanks Tia for Gratitute with Attitude Award

80 comments:

Anonymous said...

wow, the first thing that caught my attention is the shirt........



and hes still standing there wearing it...

Anonymous said...

heyyyyyyy, I forgot, I was first...umm well second too!



How are you bruh?

Unknown said...

That 'my name is toby' moment of Roots had an impact on any brother old enough to understand ... as did the more popular moment of holding the newborns up to the sky ... and the other negative moment when Kunte's foot was axed off by the slavecatcher...

I agree with you about the silent dog whistle that McCain-Palin are sending out to 'Joe SixPack/Plumber'.

I remain hopeful that an Obama presidency (if he wins) will help to change more minds and push the racist feeling backwards in time...

peace, Villager

NoRegrets said...

Wow. I truly hope also that people can stand together, because if/when Obama becomes president, these hateful types will come out of the woodwork I believe. It sells media/advertisements.

Lazy Genius said...

PREACH!!!

paisley said...

as i have stated time and time again on my blog white america,, of which i am a part,, is not as diverse or liberal as we would like you to believe... hell no,, we aren't even as liberal or diverse as we try to talk ourselves into believing we are..


but i also believe,, racism knows no color... we are all equally as guilty...

true change can only come from within... no political party or lack there of can bring change into our hearts,, and if it doesn't happen there,, in my book,, it isn't change....

Mrs. Mary Mack said...

Great Post!

Ms. Shai said...

i missed the series as a movement. but i remember finding the book in my house and reading it end to end one summer. things like can really solidify your identity

Anonymous said...

You should check out this youtube video where this guy goes to his hometown and interviews people about why they refuse to vote for Obama. It was disheartening to watch because even the younger generation shared the same sentiments that were passed down from their parents and grandparents. I really hope if Obama is elected people who think like that realize that they are in the minority who still hold on to those perceptions.

OG, The Original Glamazon said...

What is even crazier is places like Ohio where people ain't got a POT to piss in and they still undecided. I mean really the last eight years done phucked you shyt up royally if you are an Ohian WHAT IS THERE TO BE UNDECIDED about?

Maybe some of it is fear for Obama will be on eof the MOST powerful POTUS thanks to all the power Bush has managed to garner himself in his administration.

I also wonder what his staff will do when he goes. I remember the Clinton staff took all the W off the keyboards when they left office...they better not leave no foul shyt behind (you know like nooses or bits or rebel flags)

-OG

Anonymous said...

I was rather young when the roots series aired...but my Senior year my History teacher thought it would be wonderful to show the class a few episodes, well, I laid my head on the desk in the opposite direction in protest and got sent to the principal's office. I told him, "I didn't want to see that bullshit, I'm sick of hearing about slavery" and my principal was a cool white dude and he said..."ok". I really want to move on from this...racism...having grown up and studied my culture prior to the enslavement of my ancestors, I have a new found pride [gone from militant sistah to content w/good people period]I'm free.

great blog.

Anonymous said...

What a powerful post RawDawg. Really. I think you've captured, very intelligently, the way I think we as Black Americans have been feeling during this entire campaign. Im not a big politics follower but Joe Six-Pack and this obsession with Small-Town America that Palin has, has me looking at the Republicans like "REALLY??"
Bill Mahr made an excellent point about this woman's husband being a secessionist and how the media is not really covering this-WTF? So these particular Alaskans don't want to be Americans?? Yet,the wife of one wants be the next VP? Im confused.

BTW:Im too young to remember Roots but I definitely remember the discussions about it amongst my older family members. And Rosewood made me feel similar to what you and your peers must've felt that Tuesday.

T.Allen said...

Gripping post! Yes! (I'm excited can you tell?) I remember seeing Roots...I was young and it was the elephant in the room where I grew up. It was NYC a predominately white neighborhood; lots of European immigrants-it came and went. But the impact has remained with me. I don't play the shortened names, variations, Anglicized pronunciations and translations-ever. And I certainly feel a burn when I hear anyone proudly proclaim and accept these horrific generalizations, Joe 6Pack/Plumber, Tito the Builder...all of it is so ignorant.

Anonymous said...

My mother went into one of her bi-polar rages and snapped my front tooth in half the second night of Roots. That's all I remember about it. I was 10. Strange how the same program could be such a defining moment for us in such completely different ways.

My friend is a professor at a college in eastern Tennessee. She is single, no chilren, never married and a democrat. The people in her community are convinced she's a radical lesbian. She thinks it's almost funny, except for the fact that they think she deserves to be punished for it. She's not a lesbian, but that matters little. She told me that "Joe 6-Pack" is indeed something that the men in her area are calling themselves as a means of disguising their blantant racism. It describes any white male, republican or democrat, who refuses to vote for Obama because of his race. Oh, and they're proud if it. Disgusting.

12kyle said...

I agree with you. I think that white folks should be offended by being called joe sixpack. He is a "good ole boy". They won't be calling me Tobe. I guess it's like the old saying..."It aint what they call you but it's what you answer to."

Oluchi said...

good post, unmarred by that memphisian colloquialism. you have no idea how smooth your posts read when you don't have to hurdle over jones, and mane.

keep it up. i' prolly going to repost this on facebook, citing you of course.

RunGirl. said...

Amen to Kyle ...

Shelly- Mom Files said...

really well written post. Let's all hope for the best. Have a great day :)

Anonymous said...

I watched the same series and also had a wake up to things I couldn't have even fathomed without the imagery and excellent acting.

That series is an all time classic and should be seen by everyone.

Hope all is well with you and yours...

Melody.Darlene said...

ditto!!

Kitty said...

I feel you T. Palin's husband was not grilled nearly as hard as Auntie Chelle. WTF does he even DO for a living?? Come up with terrible children's names? Anyhoo have good one!

Oluchi said...

@ kitty
palin's husband is employed under the lost art of fishing, spearing wild animals and underwater basket weaving. his job title is listed under: hunter/gatherer. we here in CA wish him all the best in all his caveman endeavors.

Oluchi said...

@ kitty
palin's husband is employed under the lost art of fishing, spearing wild animals and underwater basket weaving. his job title is listed under: hunter/gatherer. we here in CA wish him all the best in all his caveman endeavors.

msladyDeborah said...

Roots...I have only watched the entire series twice since it was first aired on television. The original airing and with my boys (along with Chaka Zulu) during a long cold winter weekend. My sons liked both of these films.

This latest surge reminds me of the old days. The only difference that I see in the racists is the fact that they are not rolling down and terrorizing black communities. I suspect that is due to the fact that there would be blood shed if that happened. This is an entirely different generation of folks in the nation now. And they should be considered armed and dangerous also.

This is also a sight that many people needed to see. Because there are generations who really have no clue about how intense it can be in America. They have only seen filmed footage. Ain't nothing like the real baby! It will make you get your self in line with what you think and how you will respond if pressed.

Anonymous said...

Good Post :)

BTW, it is me, or do you actually receive more comments when you talk about sex vs. talking about more important issues? Just talking about something I've noticed.

Adrienne said...

Great post and WTF....that shirt!??!?!

Babz Rawls Ivy said...

Ah the veritable Dr. Stephens speaking truth to power yet again!

Looking forward to Thursday 10/30/08 11:00 pm

QH said...

Well, I guess the cracker wants a big, meaty black fist for breakfast, lunch, and din din.

People are ignorant.-QH

Unknown said...

Great post Torrance...

Rich Fitzgerald said...

Bill Jones here.

I try not to trip off this racist atmosphere that Obama's candidacy has sparked. At the end of the day, folks will show their true colors.

Sista GP said...

T, you and hubby really need to get together. yall are too much alike, lol. the day after the first episode aired, every (or almost every) white kid in his school (cleveland) got beat up.
i was in the 2nd grade in an 99-100% black school; i don't remember anything happening there.
i bet many teachers were afraid, though.

Dope Fiend said...

Amazing post!

and that shirt is DIRTY!

Its is so shameful the way some of the older generation still haven't learned from their mistakes, and still fight the momentum of change.

I missed this place! my intellectual haven!

xoxo

All-Mi-T [Thought Crime] Rawdawgbuffalo said...

Kin'shar
foul aint it

Villager
yea folk but u know we kindred spirits true old school village warriors

NoRegrets
glad we hoping for the same col.

paisley
your world is like mine - one made with human beings

mrs. mary mack
thanks hon u like the stories?


Ms. Shai s
yes indeed and glad u read it

Nicole
i could be foul and say lets handle this and off with their heads, but I will prsy for them

OG, The Original Glamazon
i know exactly where u coming from - i have no fear


Cheron L. Hall
thanks babe, i was doing battle for u ok

Thatchicknik
sounds like u recant enuff and thanks 4 the accolades maam

T.Allen-Mercado
i was in the dirty , heart of civil rights movement, kids of parents who had dogs sick on them and water hoses, we vowed never agin so imagine how we got down folk

Jersey Girl
Damn, damn, my daughters mom is bipolar, damn

12kyle
first folk i know how u get down, its like a threat to the 3 youngins, real man and father u are will always show folk

Emeritus]
thanks babe, but i did say bill jones
RunGirl.
yep 12kyle is the truth

Sheliza
thanks mom


BuelahMan
yea bruh, u know what i mean so im preaching to the chior in u - a good man

Melody.Darlene
good look jones

Kitty
wonder how i would have been vetted?




[Emeritus]
that kind of talk is sexy folk


msladydeborah
u know i know u got my back folk

Val
yep seems folk, especially wome love my dick more than my brain when both equal

Adrienne
u and me both and thanks hon

Lovebabz
thats right show, and i can curse
QH
im trying to hold on to ghandi and king, didnt know no better in jr high school


Blog Queen
thanks queen

R. Fitzgerald
aint that the truth folk

Sista GP
i bet we are and sounds like it

All-Mi-T [Thought Crime] Rawdawgbuffalo said...

@Dope Fiend
wondered where u had been and thank u
thought u aint love me no more

ken said...

hello

rainywalker said...

When Palin refers to Joe, Joe sixpack she is talking about Showless Joe Jackson the baseball player and relating him to Joe Biden. Thats my understanding?

ken said...

i dont like racism i dont care if its some body running around yelling n-word or some classy racist on a blog being proud and voting for the first time because its a black man i was just starting to see the world around me when roots came out asked myself why they would do that to somebody i was going to help the poor blackman whenever i could but in my suburb of hartford ct i had never seen a blackman outside of tv well about the same time they started to bus city kids into my town the catholic school i went to thought this was a good idea so they invited some kids who really wanted a education to my school after the first couple of days things started to come back to normal then one day one of the black kids was in the bathroom when he asked every body to come over here and look at this there was a big white turd floatin in the toilot bowl well that made sense to my 7 year old mind white crapped black so the black man crapped white well after a couple of days of being laughed at and asking some questions i asked this kid why he did it he told me his parents told him to eat certain foods and then make sure them white boys saw it after then i wasnt so quick to feel sorry for somebody just because of some movie on tv or some story in the newspaper met plenty of racist sense then black and white the only question i have is it a action or reaction do i think that obama or mccain can make a better presidentone site told me that if you listened to the debate you heard that obama is going to create two thirds of his new jobs with goverment money and mccain is going to create two thirds of his new jobs in the private sector i dont know about you but but i believe that you cant keep sucking off the same teet 24 hours a day 7 days a week the milk dryes out then you have to let her go graze for awhile stop bleeding my country dry start a buisness hire some people see how you feel about new taxes i worked for a blackman once he was the cheapest guy i ever met you need to wake up talk to people in countrys where the goverment controls everything they will tellyou its much better here the angry white man

shine said...

so true

Anonymous said...

When I was younger my grandmother made me watch the series on tape every day....i can still recite parts from the series/movie. I would be shocked at the tshirt...but I expect things like that and I'm looking for a lot worse as the election progresses. Somebody shoulda ran his ass over!!! lol

Monroe Anderson said...

Torrance: You knocked this one out of the park!

Lena said...

Sadly, I don't think it will ever end but I remain hopeful that if Obama is elected it will show how far we have come as a society despite the hatred that still lingers

Anonymous said...

It's been a long ass day and my brain is fried, so no deep thoughts from me right now, but DID want to say this was a powerful post, Torrance. And yes, I remember when Roots aired, too. Another blog for another time...with renewed brain cells. :)

Anonymous said...

"Joe the Plumber" is a fake who had an agenda. His lie-in-your-face hypocrisy is, I believe, very representative of that subsection of the population I refer to with affection as "wingtards." There aren't all that many of them, but they vote as a monolithic bloc, giving them an importance much larger than their actual numbers.

2008 may be the year all that changes. I certainly hope so.

Linda said...

Great post! Needs to be said too.. Did I mention that I LOVE roots? Eventhough I don't think I was even born when it aired (?)

Say, can you come over here and hold that speech around December.. when white folks start calling my husband 'a black pete' again, because st. Nick's in the country, bringing his 17th century negro slaves with him?

*lol* Can you tell how much I hate that celebration yet? ;)

Greetings from the netherlands!

Miriam said...

Torrance, that was such a great post!

Roots was deep. Now, thinking back, I can't believe they aired it.

Unknown said...

what bothers me most is NOT the blatant (or sometimes subtle) racism itself. it's the DENIAL of the racism. it's the pretense of the old 'i'm not racist, some of my best friends are....fill in the blank here....'. as an example the woman who was responsible for posting the barack obama with the fried chicken and watermelon on a food stamp background, claimed OVER AND OVER it was not and she was not racist. to this day, i'll bet she's still be denying it. to me that is far more frightening than the shirt on that man (it is a white house). at least with him one KNOWS outright

KELSO'S NUTS said...

JONES: Joe-Six-Pack is a White conceit meant to intimidate everyone Whites deem "the other."

I grew up in the city and such a creature as "Joe-Six-Pack" was not a familiar figure. Immigrant families from all over the world and Black Americans formed the society I grew up in.

But that "Joe-Six-Pack" semiotic was just as terrifying to me. My mother and father used to always say to me when I was little "it's not always going to be like this for us, we're working hard, we're getting ahead we'll give you and your sister more when we have more and (to me) they'd say besides you have a gift for that...anyway, one thing you should always remember is that you can REASON with a rich man. You can't REASON with a "shitkicker". They hate us. Look, they'll kill anyone who isn't like them.

This was, of course, around the time when Andy Goodman, Mike Schwerner(who were from NYC) and Jim Chaney were killed in Mississippi. So, the "shitkicker" was a nightmare figure for me.

Then when I went away to college I fell in with a bunch of guys whose fathers had worked for Allegheny-Ludlum Aluminum mill. I guess these were the "Joe Six Packs" Palin was talking about, because they were mill workers who liked beer but they're big things for being "hunkys" (Hungarians) was the opening of deer season and the opening of mushroom picking season. They were pretty learned men really, involved in their union and in the local Democratic party thing and were very keen on seeing their kids go to top universities. They were no different really from my dad; just from a different part of Eastern Europe. The passion they brought to their work and their politics and their customs and families was pretty familiar. They weren't the Joe-Six-Packs of Palin's imagination, despite having littel formal education. Union activists? Not hardly!

So, I myself am left with the image of these ghostly figures who killed Andy Goodman, Mike Schwerner and Jim Chaney in Philadelphia, MS or Jackson or wherever it was.

Of course, it's meant to frighten. That's how they do things.

Darius T. Williams said...

Ahhh - Joe six pack...I bet he had no idea.

James Tubman said...

not even the biggest, gutless uncle tom can love their master after seeing images of how whites abused their grandparents

i have these images in my mind everyday

thats why i will never be confused about who white people really are and what they are capable of

Anonymous said...

i'm with thatchiknik on the whole rosewood bit... i watched that movie at my granma's house and she dropped her holier-than-thou baptist conventions quicker than you could say "i"... she just went to cursing and ranting.. it was the most powerful reaction I'd ever seen from anyone due to anything ever in my life...

a.eye said...

It is really actually refreshing to know that I don't fit into the mold of a Joe Six Pack. Makes me feel better about my self that I am not one of "them".

Miss Lovely said...

speak on it folk! I can't stand that "Joe Sixpack" nonsense. Love the Bill Jones breakdown haha

Big Man said...

I enjoyed that story about your travails with busing.

Also liked that Bill Jones comment.

Good post.

Tafari said...

Hey, you forgot about credit card bill!!!

Anonymous said...

that shirt is crazy! folks actually have the balls to rock apparel with this mess on it.

Bloggal said...

that shirt...wow.

that's such a good point though. 'joe sixpack' is a small demographic. its the working class, middle aged white male from the south. when mccain and palin us this joe sixpack/joe the plumber bullshit analogy as an umbrella for ALL americans, they're excluding a hell of alot of people...ugh, it's infuriating. this is why i don't fuck with politics.

and you missed my shout out to you on my 100th blog post:)

http://loveisaminefield.blogspot.com/2008/10/this-is-better-than-time-when-i-made-my.html

Unknown said...

Hey T!
Great post as usual.
At this point no matter who wins they are gonna have a hell of a time with our economy.

It saddens me to think of what might happen of Obama does not win. I think black folks have so much aggression built up and this entire campaign made it worse. If O losses some folk are likely to start set trippin! Then again if he wins the "other" folk will start trippin. either way I think America is caught in the cross hairs of a lose, lose situation...

Sister Girl said...

Word up,my brotha...excellent writing !

T.

Chari said...

Yeah, the craziness. That shirt is out of control.

One Man’s Opinion said...

Now here is the post of the week for me. Roots...Joe Sixpack. When the McCain/Palin administration spoke about Joe Sixpack I never thought they were talking about me, because when I think of sixpack, black folks don't come to mind. Still, I never focused on that underlining message that they were not truly here for people that look like me. They were reaching out to people that look different from me. This is why McCain puts me off so. I knew it wasn't his age, I didn't have a problem with that. It is because his campaign does not speak to people who look like me as a whole.

RunningMom said...

I'm a little young to remember Roots as well.. I remember bits and pieces... I should watch it again.

Joe six-pack is supposed to be an average blue-collar American. I'm not blue collar, I drink my beer from a bottle and I'm a woman. Regardless of race, I can't relate to the image that McCain't is trying so hard to push.

He's not the one - Never was the one - and never will be the one. He's a dried up old man with old ideas and old thoughts. Sometimes old folks have wisdom, and for those folks, I am thankful. But not McCain't.

I never want someone to lump me into a group of people because of my gender, my race, or for any other reason - So I don't do it to others. We live in a multi-racial world - or better yet a world made up of many people who believe they are once race when really - most of us are two, three or more "races" combined.

It's been estimated that up to 30% of "white" Americans have African American ancestry, and most African Americans have European ancestry - sometimes even a larger percentage than their African American ancestry.

There are sooo many people that look one way, but have a genetic makeup of multiple races - can you tell? Nope, not always.

I know of one woman in particular who claims to be "black" and states openly that she hates white people, but her mother was white and she looks basically like a white person with a tan. So here she is hating a part of herself and her heritage. She assimilates herself with the black community and ignores the part she doesn't like and/or doesn't relate to.

For good, for bad, for indifferent we are all a HUGE part of America. Our love stories are so full of love and our hate stories are so full of hate and yet somehow most of us can come together and work toward a common goal.

I don't care what color you are, or what country your ancestors are from. I care about you, your mind, your thoughts, your experiences, and what we can do together to improve life for all of us equally.

Kellybelle said...

Say it! Say it! I'm just sick in the stomach. I really believed America was better than this. But Barack has America showing its ass. Well, half of America. I wish I could focus on all the people canvassing and putting up yard signs at their peril. But why should it be at their peril? This is America! You should be able to proudly participate in the political process, regardless of who you support.
Good post.
Have a good weekend.
VOTE!!!

SjP said...

Yes! Just like John Lewis said!

Anonymous said...

I agree with the Joe six pack comment in the post. Who or what is a Joe Six pack? A beer drinker?
I think not... great observation

no_slappz said...

torrance,

A couple of points.

First, as you should know, Alex Haley plagiarized AND fabricated many parts of Roots.

The book is a blend of fact and fiction. It is NOT an accurate historical account of anything.

Based on your recall of Roots, no one read the book. People only saw the TV show, which undoubtedly took further liberties with the truth.

Second, you mentioned the assassination of MLK and the presence of the National Guard as though the Guard acted against blacks in Memphis after King's killing.

I remember when Roots was on TV. But after the showings NOTHING happened, no racial altercations, no problems. Nothing happened where I lived at the time.

Meanwhile, it is my nature to be skeptical of recollections like yours.

You wrote:

"And it was all started when one white kid called my folk Tobe."

Did you witness this? Or is this what you were told by others?


You wrote:

"There may have been 40 to 50 fights that morning before home room until after first period, causing the principal to cancel school and send us black kids back home."

If school was canceled and you were sent home, how do you know the white kids remained in school?

Meanwhile, you imply that something was wrong with the idea of busing black kids to predominantly white schools. Is that what you believe?

You wrote:

"Rocks were thrown at our buses and we would get off and resume the head cutting we had been engaged in all of that morning. It was like we were doing what we felt our ancestors should have done."

Is "doing what we felt our ancestors should have done" your view of the way to a better country?

A.u.n.t. Jackie said...

Roots didn't have near the impact on me that Sankofa did. I still have haunting dreams about Sankofa, although being raised in an Islamic family, watching a man denounce his name was truly painful.

My work has me traveling in the cross over states allot I know Joe Six Pack, I know him well I know him well, I've seen in the suburbs of Pennsylvania, tailgating with him family in his segregated community, I have watched his kids us the Walmart parking lot as entertainment in Vineland New Jersey, he's refused me dinner with a white co-worker under the assumption that we were an inter-racial couple in Little Rock, and the list goes on and on.

One of my co-workers said it best when she said that she can't believe that she lives in a country where her political views are a minority...and that my friend is how i feel.

no_slappz said...

Aunt Jackie,

I noticed an interesting aspect of your comment -- no mention of being victimized by a white criminal.

On the other hand, you showed plenty of anti-white bias.

What were these white Joe-six-packs doing in Pennsylvania?

How do you know these people lived in "segregated" communities? Did you visit a realtor and ask to see homes in these places? Or did you simply assume something?

You wrote:

"...he's refused me dinner with a white co-worker under the assumption that we were an inter-racial couple in Little Rock..."

This is too much. How about giving some details of this episode?

How did you know what the food-server "assumed."?

What did your white co-worker do after this refusal to serve you dinner?

What year did this occur?

However, I can understand your feelings about these issues. Not long ago, in NY City, I was stopped at the door of an upscale bar that catered to black patrons. The bouncer would not let me in, despite the fact that the place was just a bar, not a hot nightclub.

But like most places that limit customers on an illegal basis, the joint went broke.

kid said...

Kellybelle , ditto.

All-Mi-T [Thought Crime] Rawdawgbuffalo said...

ken
sup folk?

rainywalker
gr8 analogy


ken
well said and i dont think anyone likes racism, black or white u aint one of them, u the we i spoke of

shine
thanks madam esquire

Tai Babyyyyy
yep , catch a case and when u stopping by my store for dogs

Monroe Anderson
thanks man, late on my blog checkin need ac adapter for my laptop

Lena
yep that is sad but lets keep the faith

SoCal Muchacha
thanks and im sorry for the headache again

JollyRoger
i hoping right along side with ya

Linda
yes i can and thanks for the accolades sister


Miriam
yep, im glad it was on tv


a rose is a rose
im with just be honest and truthful and tell me to my face

KELSO'S NUTS
a shit kicker - now thats classic Kelso

Darius T. Williams
LOL

James Tubman
yep never forget so it wont happen again

*KoKo*
yes it was powerful
and thanks for the love do return

Stuck in my head
we are the human beings folk u know that

Ms. Lovely
love the way u use folk jones and thanks

Big Man
thanks we need to see the likness more than the dislikness u know

Tafari
dang im slipping

Marcus LANGFORD
yep and its sad and shameful


Bloggal
thanks for the love folk and as i said most folk dont fit the beal

Regina
america is caught up in something i tell u that and thank u hon

Sister Girl
thanks ms cameo - lol

MysTery
OOC as we would say

One Man’s Opinion
thanks man, roots left a large imprint on me folk

RunningMom
bravo only group we should be lumped in is Americans

Kellybelle
thanks hon and i will and u do the same


SjP
now they villifying him

sexywomanceo
thank uu sister i hope u come back again


no_slappz
slappz welcome back - i guess different things for differnt places and memphis has a dif history with death of king u know?

Aunt Jackie
i feel ya but sankofa was a movie folks had to pay to see and wasnt on TV for a week

no_slappz said...

torrance, you wrote:

"When I hear “Joe Sixpack”, I can’t help but think this is a code phrase for not me, or the average American, but rather those that harbor the hatred of the past and the racist beliefs that yielded Jim Crow, and even slavery."

I agree the image of "Joe Sixpack" suggests a white male. Possibly a fellow who is a tradesman. Possibly a fellow who runs a small business, or works for one, or is a union member, possibly not a college grad, possibly a military veteran, possibly a municipal worker like cop or fireman or sanitation worker, probably is or was married, has a couple of kids and gets by okay and has conventional political views -- he is as likely to be a Democrat as a Republican.

On the other hand, you see things through the lens of race and have an innate bias against a Joe-sixpack fellow.

You added:

"I see a man, somewhere in the woods, with a rebel flag on his truck, with a rifle and one that may pride himself on living in a neighborhood with no black folks, Latino folk, or Asian folk; even taking pride that there may be no kids as such attending the school that his child does. I also see a man that would wear a shirt that says “Nigger Please, it’s called the Whitehouse."

Torrance, you're revealing the nature of your thoughts, and your thoughts are anti-white.

As for the photo of the biker wearing the t-shirt, where did you find that shot?

mrsFAB said...

The man in the shirt on the bike is a photoshopped pic. I have seen it all over the web and in emails. Each time, this shirt is a different color.

changeseeker said...

I was grown and well into my education as an anti-racist European-American when Roots hit the airwaves, so I was excited about it even though it raised the tension level everywhere. It's disappointing that after all this time, White people are STILL clinging to White Supremacy as if it didn't make 'em look crazy as bedbugs. As far as the photo is concerned, no_slappz, the shirt or lack thereof is of little consequence. The attitude is alive and well. RDB isn't "anti-White," as far as I can tell. He's anti-White Supremacist. And so am I. I like your blog, Dawg, and have added it to my blog roll.

no_slappz said...

Changeseeker,

Does it concern you that Alex Haley plaigarized Roots and that the original text is a NOVEL, not a true historical account of anything?

Does it concern you that the TV version diverged from Alex Haley's fictional book?

It amazes and disappoints me that people are desperate to believe phony stories.

You wrote:

"...when Roots hit the airwaves, so I was excited about it even though it raised the tension level everywhere."

Really? How do you know? I was living in a rough city in a poor racially mixed neighborhood when Roots aired. I didn't notice any changes from the usual ambiance.

It's more likely you were wishing and hoping the show would have a provocative impact leading to some social unrest.

You wrote:

"It's disappointing that after all this time, White people are STILL clinging to White Supremacy as if it didn't make 'em look crazy as bedbugs."

I'm still waiting for the appearance of the black Warren Buffett, the black Bill Gates, the black Albert Einstein, the black Thomas Edison, the black Henry Ford, and all the black scientists, inventors, engineers, mathematicians, manufacturers and financial geniuses who view these people as their role models.

Instead, the black community produces great athletes and entertainers. But few intellectuals.

White supremacy has nothing to do with putting bootheels on the necks of non-whites. It's simply a matter of recorded achievement.

Africa speaks for itself.

You wrote:

"As far as the photo is concerned, no_slappz, the shirt or lack thereof is of little consequence. The attitude is alive and well."

Really? How do you know? How do you identify and measure the attitude that you are sure is alive and well?

If this attitude is alive and well, what explains the emergence of the black millionaire class?

I gather you are one of those people who believes in the "larger truth" that you claim is shown by circulating a phony picture.

In other words, you believe in the propagation of lies.

Torrance said that a Joe-Sixpack is a racist in his mind. Even though the only evidence of this racism is his feeling. This is pure prejudice -- based on nothing except attitudes created by story-telling.

You wrote:

"RDB isn't "anti-White," as far as I can tell. He's anti-White Supremacist."

When he imagines Joe-Sixpack he imagines a racist white man. In other words, his first impulse conjures a racist. That's a seriously anti-white prejudice.

All-Mi-T [Thought Crime] Rawdawgbuffalo said...

no_slappz
yep thats what i hear when Palin speaks of him. ashe presents that image



mrsFAB
i have seen several even in real life

Changeseeker
slappz is on hi9s own accord, always been like this always will be, nit picky as my folks called it

Roberto said...

Reading Roots is what started me on my hunting for my own people- The Silver People- here in Panama who have a story all their own.

RR

Missy said...

You certainly know what's up with the Joe Six pack reference....just like when McCain says "my friends" you know who he's talking to...or at least I know who he's talking to...and it's not me!

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