8 year old boy kicked out of class for dressing as Martin Luther King Jr. for school project - Polidicks

[QUOTE=Paul McCartney;36060065]Then why don't any of you see that[/QUOTE] Because most people give the benefit of the doubt before screaming troll. Most of us like to assume users aren't intentionally making asses of themselves.

[QUOTE=cornndog;36060022]Well even if he is trying to be one then he is missing the point MLK was making completely and his parents are idiots for thinking its a good idea.[/QUOTE] /me facepalms Was MLK black or was MLK not black? If you answered the last question as black then you have an answer why an eight year old would want to look black when dressing up as one of the best known black characters in US history.

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060075]Because most people give the benefit of the doubt before screaming troll. Most of us like to assume users aren't intentionally making asses of themselves.[/QUOTE] And I'm not, but every time I voice an opinion somebody doesn't like you guys go hogwild to make me look like a fucking retard

[QUOTE=Paul McCartney;36060100]And I'm not, but every time I voice an opinion somebody doesn't like you guys go hogwild to make me look like a fucking retard[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=Paul McCartney;36060009]negroes[/QUOTE] You're making yourself look like a moron just fine on your own pally.

That's the plural form of negro, what's your point

[QUOTE=wraithcat;36060098]/me facepalms Was MLK black or was MLK not black? If you answered the last question as black then you have an answer why an eight year old would want to look black when dressing up as one of the best known black characters in US history.[/QUOTE] MLK was a man first and a black man second.

[QUOTE=wraithcat;36060098]/me facepalms Was MLK black or was MLK not black? If you answered the last question as black then you have an answer why an eight year old would want to look black when dressing up as one of the best known black characters in US history.[/QUOTE] jesus fucking christ dude. do you struggle with connect the dots puzzles? come on dude, this is simple. 8 year old wants to do something potentially offensive, is too young to realize it's offensive. what educational authority figures found in the child's own residence need to step in?

Oh it must be because I said "negro" not "black" or "african-american", goodness me

[QUOTE=Led Zeppelin;36055791]Haha what? Right reason? What on earth are you talking about? You really believe that his blackface added much needed 'authenticity' to a second grade project? Would his presentation really have suffered without it? It was wholly unnecessary and you know it. Well you are certainly a self righteous one aren't you? If the kid and the kid's family apologized for being unintentionally offensive I wouldn't have an issue. The fact that they have the gall to demand an apology from the school shows that they, like you apparently, don't give a fuck what anyone else thinks, and that they're somehow entitled to being able to be offensive. See above.[/QUOTE] They are. You don't have a right to remove everything that offends you. The world is allowed to offend you. Freedom of expression, if it exists, is the right to offend. There is a difference between being malicious and rude and simply reminding somebody of something. If you thought white hooded sweatshirts reminded you too much to the KKK, would you try and get that banned as well? It's ridiculous that concepts, behaviors, and ideas should be shunned from existence simply because they remind people of something from the past, even when done with absolutely no malicious intent.

[QUOTE=Paul McCartney;36060151]Oh it must be because I said "negro" not "black" or "african-american", goodness me[/QUOTE] "nigger" is the preferred nomenclature

I don't care who's to blame - what kind of stuck up, back-asswards individual gets offended over an 8 year old with black face paint? The parents probably could be pinned for not doing anything, sure. But they weren't painting their kid with blackface. They were giving him black face paint. There's a difference. It's ridiculous that it's suddenly offensive when a white person colors their face black for a [I]school project.[/I]

[QUOTE=cornndog;36060142]MLK was a man first and a black man second.[/QUOTE] No, damn it. Every time a black person is mentioned or portrayed it doesn't somehow need to be a statement about how white people don't believe in racism. He was an American male, who's skin was of a color that was many shades darker than the child's. The child, whose project was to resemble Martin Luther King Jr, dressed up as best as he could to create a resemblance of him. His skin color was a part of him as much as anything else. His actions were inspired and governed by the mistreatment of people who shared this trait of dark skin. It's incredibly ironic that the child was shunned and his family mistreated for the apparent color of his skin. This artificial colorblindness is sickening.

[QUOTE=TheHydra;36060143]jesus fucking christ dude. do you struggle with connect the dots puzzles? come on dude, this is simple. 8 year old wants to do something potentially offensive, is too young to realize it's offensive. what educational authority figures found in the child's own residence need to step in?[/QUOTE] But there is nothing offensive at all on what the kid did. How is what he did offensive. It is not a racist stereotype (unless you think stating that black americans are black is a racist stereotype) It is not meant to offend It is not done to undermine the character of MLK Either my European brain is too addled to see a problem with this or there just isn't one and people are making a camel out of a bee sting. [QUOTE=cornndog;36060142]MLK was a man first and a black man second.[/QUOTE] So are you saying that there is a group difference between man and black man? To me it seems that black man is merely a specification and subset of the man group. So by saying he is a black man you are directly stating he is a man. Saying that he was black is not racism. It is a factual statement. If I say he was black and therefore - stupid, thieving, foulmouthed, uncuth or whatever other silly connotations people might think of, then me indicating he is black would be racist. But this is not the case. The kid wanted to show him as a black man to everyone else, for the sole reason that Martin Luther King was black. Not to point him out as a bad social group, but because he was factually dark skinned. Tl;Dr version By using statements like he's a man first, black man second you are in fact giving the term black man an extra emotional charge which does nothing but increase potential racism as opposed to as using a nonemotional aproach to it. Oh he's a guy and he happens to be black - ergo he's a black man. (a man who is black skinned). Imagine the same applied to fat people. (using fat intentionaly because it's actually pejorative). Some super well known historical character, but fat. Kid plays him and stuff a pillow under his clothes. People get offended and start saying stuff like - He was a man first, fat man only after it. Do you notice how odd it sounds.

[QUOTE=wraithcat;36060284]But there is nothing offensive at all on what the kid did. How is what he did offensive. It is not a racist stereotype (unless you think stating that black americans are black is a racist stereotype) It is not meant to offend It is not done to undermine the character of MLK Either my European brain is too addled to see a problem with this or there just isn't one and people are making a camel out of a bee sting.[/QUOTE] It's an unfortunate disorder that seems to be inherent to a lot of Americans. We treat African Americans the same way we treat handicapped people in that we think treating them properly is not acknowledging the trait we consider to be a handicap. We then take it so far as to insist that nobody point out the trait or mention it, because it might offend somebody. As an American, I find it absolutely maddening.

[QUOTE=Paul McCartney;36060151]Oh it must be because I said "negro" not "black" or "african-american", goodness me[/QUOTE] unless you're speaking spanish, no, you're not allowed to call people 'negroes' [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=FreakyMe;36060322]It's an unfortunate disorder that seems to be inherent to a lot of Americans. We treat African Americans the same way we treat handicapped people in that we think treating them properly is not acknowledging the trait we consider to be a handicap. We then take it so far as to insist that nobody point out the trait or mention it, because it might offend somebody. As an American, I find it absolutely maddening.[/QUOTE] are you black because if you aren't black i don't think you should be talking about what black people should be thinking

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060343]unless you're speaking spanish, no, you're not allowed to call people 'negroes'[/QUOTE] I didn't know you were a language officer

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060343] are you black because if you aren't black i don't think you should be talking about what black people should be thinking[/QUOTE] Do you read. Because I think you didn't and perhaps you should read again because what I was saying is that the reason fiascoes like this occur is because Americans in general (not black people) persistently make the mistake of thinking that the way to be unoffensive is to not acknowledge differences at all. Rather than rationally being able to say "That American is black" and move on, we try and convince people that he or she isn't.

[QUOTE=Paul McCartney;36060409]I didn't know you were a language officer[/QUOTE] well considering "negro" (neh-grow) is the spanish word for "black," yes I am. In English it is a racial epithet [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=FreakyMe;36060430]Do you read. Because I think you didn't and perhaps you should read again because what I was saying is that the reason fiascoes like this occur is because Americans in general (not black people) persistently make the mistake of thinking that the way to be unoffensive is to not acknowledge differences at all. Rather than rationally being able to say "That American is black" and move on, we try and convince people that he or she isn't.[/QUOTE] that doesn't answer my question [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] are you black if not who the fuck are you to tell black people what they should and should not think

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060433]well considering "negro" (neh-grow) is the spanish word for "black," yes I am. In English it is a racial epithet [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] that doesn't answer my question [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] are you black if not who the fuck are you to tell black people what they should and should not think[/QUOTE] But he's not telling black's what they should and shouldn't think. He's saying that americans tend to jitterish about racial issues to the level that mentioning race is really problematic. There's no blacks should think some way int here.

[QUOTE=wraithcat;36060471]But he's not telling black's what they should and shouldn't think. He's saying that americans tend to jitterish about racial issues to the level that mentioning race is really problematic. There's no blacks should think some way int here.[/QUOTE] uhhh mentioning race isnt the problem its sort of hard to talk about martin luther king jr without mentioning race the problem is the kid was wearing blackface in the middle of school and the parents didn't do anything about it furthermore, yet again, it was the [I]parents[/I] that chose to leave after being asked to remove the face paint.

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060433]well considering "negro" (neh-grow) is the spanish word for "black," yes I am. In English it is a racial epithet [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] that doesn't answer my question [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] are you black if not who the fuck are you to tell black people what they should and should not think[/QUOTE] I'm not black and I did not once tell people that they don't have the right to think. You have the right to be offended, and feel offended. You have the right to feel feelings and have thoughts, and express them freely. The fact that you are having a reaction to the situation in front of you however, does not mean the situation needs to be suppressed unless it is patently malicious or harmful to another human being or yourself.

[QUOTE=FreakyMe;36060486]I'm not black and I did not once tell people that they don't have the right to think. You have the right to be offended, and feel offended. You have the right to feel feelings and have thoughts, and express them freely. The fact that you are having a reaction to the situation in front of you however, does not mean the situation needs to be suppressed unless it is patently malicious or harmful to another human being or yourself.[/QUOTE] blackface isnt being suppressed, it just isnt being allowed in a publicly funded place of education

[QUOTE=FreakyMe;36060248]No, damn it. Every time a black person is mentioned or portrayed it doesn't somehow need to be a statement about how white people don't believe in racism. He was an American male, who's skin was of a color that was many shades darker than the child's. The child, whose project was to resemble Martin Luther King Jr, dressed up as best as he could to create a resemblance of him. His skin color was a part of him as much as anything else. His actions were inspired and governed by the mistreatment of people who shared this trait of dark skin. It's incredibly ironic that the child was shunned and his family mistreated for the apparent color of his skin. This artificial colorblindness is sickening.[/QUOTE] FreakyMe put it in such blunt, easy to understand terms. I don't see why this argument is continuing. There's absolutely nothing racist here and you people are fucking grasping at straws in a focused effort to paint this 8 year old as a die hard skinhead. What the hell, guys?

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060433]well considering "negro" (neh-grow) is the spanish word for "black," yes I am. In English it is a racial epithet [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] that doesn't answer my question [editline]22nd May 2012[/editline] are you black if not who the fuck are you to tell black people what they should and should not think[/QUOTE] Hablo espanol. Creeme, comprendo And who the fuck are you to tell me what I should and should be allowed not say?

if you want to fucking wear blackface you're free to do so. everyone else is going to call you an ass but you're free. but there is no fucking free speech in school. In fact, the Supreme Court has ruled countless times that free speech doesn't exist in schools.

[QUOTE=teh pirate;36060499]FreakyMe put it in such blunt, easy to understand terms. I don't see why this argument is continuing. There's absolutely nothing racist here and you people are fucking grasping at straws in a focused effort to paint this 8 year old as a die hard skinhead. What the hell, guys?[/QUOTE] NO ONE IS SAYING THE 8 YEAR OLD IS RACIST.

[QUOTE=Lankist;36060484]the problem is the kid was wearing blackface in the middle of school[/QUOTE] For the last time it isn't fucking blackface

[QUOTE=teh pirate;36060499]you people are fucking grasping at straws in a focused effort to paint this 8 year old as a die hard skinhead. What the hell, guys?[/QUOTE] nobody's doing that actually

[QUOTE=Kalibos;36060519]nobody's doing that actually[/QUOTE] Then what [I]are[/I] you doing? What is this about? It doesn't make any sense.

[QUOTE=Protocol7;36055332]Are you saying people still carry racism from the period?[/QUOTE] I mean, people who were around then are still alive. That carries both the hatred that was with it and violence done in that hatred with it.