# Attention white people: ITS BLACK HISTORY MONTH. Think. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 3, 2016, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036 "2016-02-03T06:55:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/41 "2016-02-03T15:06:02Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > You’re right, BHM should be discontinued in order to put a stop to these kinds of debacles. Nobody needs a whole month anyway. CHRIS ROCK: You see? They gave us our own month, but they made it the shortest month in the year! They also made it the coldest month in the year, just in case we wanted to have a parade! ---
**Author:** ![piepiepie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47774/32.png) [@piepiepie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/piepiepie)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/42 "2016-02-03T15:18:07Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > **piepiepie** , _deep nod of respect._ Yours and **faithfool** ’s were excellent, thoughtful posts. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/43 "2016-02-03T15:20:25Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > I’m usually first on the PC bandwagon, but this is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. The Kings are HUGE in China. Lunar New Year is huge in China. Celebrating it is an obvious thing to do. I agree, and black people getting their undies in a twist about their being a monkey on the t-shirts commemorating _CHINESE NEW YEAR_ and the Year of the Monkey when it overlaps with Black History Month is oversensitive, absurd, and idiotic. And, what’s worse, by being oversensitive, absurd and idiotic, it draws negative attention to the very thing that Black History Month is trying to promote. There’s no connection between the two things- had they done this in some other year, it would be a rat, or a tiger, or a bull or something, and nobody would have cared. But put a monkey on there, something which has probably been done in China for a lot longer than there have been black people in North America, and people get bent out of shape, primarily because they’re probably looking for a reason to get bent out of shape about something racial. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/44 "2016-02-03T15:34:08Z")
> [@piepiepie](#): > > Dude, I’m not gonna pick your post apart. I sort of got that. > [@](#): > > It just read like that super oblivious “we are all one race” “I see no color” bullshit you see from white people who don’t really have to worry about that. Well I don’t know what else to tell you. I do think we are all one race, I don’t think I’m racist, to the best of my knowledge I don’t discriminate or prejudge. Is it possible for anyone to say what I said and you believe them? Is there no-one in the world that you’d accept that from? If the initiatives you support such as “Black History Month” are having an effect should you not be able to point to a growing number of people that can honestly and truthfully say > [@](#): > > living my life without bias or prejudice. I don’t find that too much of a challenge. If I can’t say it then who? and when? ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/45 "2016-02-03T15:56:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by **Novelty Bobble** > Thankfully in the UK we don’t have a black history month. (or at least not one that I’ve ever heard about) > > Stupid, pointless and demeaning to all concerned. > Useful only as a backdrop to manufactured “outrages” like this shirt. > > I roll my eyes and go back to living my life without bias or prejudice. I don’t find that too much of a challenge. Hello there **Mr Bubble** , in the UK, Black History month is October, and if you have not heard of it then that’s a comment on your life and not on activists such as myself who try to build the self esteem of young first, second and third generation migrants from all over the world who find they just can’t get a break, even if they do happen to achieve the same grades/qualifications as their whiter peers. So you can guess what I will be doing in the run up to October You will also find that in staff performance appraisal systems that are used in the UK, black and ethnic minorities, along with women and people over 55 are also much more likely to be poor performed, not surprising really given that the managers running these schemes are stereotypically white - I have the exact figures for this if you really do want to know. As for living your life without bias and prejudice, that’s shit, you are talking total bollocks, you have your head under a blanket, I can say that with confidence, because I do not know any person of any race, religion, gender or background who does not have bias or prejudice, you will find that bias and prejudice are essential parts of human social interaction and can actually be very useful. Its the _ **unjustified** _ bias and prejudice that’s a problem You need to shut up, your ignorance is showing ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/46 "2016-02-03T15:58:16Z")
> [@faithfool](#): > > 1. Calling Black History month “Stupid, pointless and demeaning to all concerned.” is completely missing the point of why it was created to begin with, and how now, amidst all the racial conflicts the world has been seeing, it’s more important than ever to celebrate diversity. And also, showing that there’s unity in that celebration. Because that would certainly help. Unity would be a proper reflection of the full ethnic diversity in school curriculums etc. A special month marks the group out as “special” and “different”. I think it perpetuates the prejudice. > [@](#): > > 1. Then saying, “Useful only as a backdrop to manufactured “outrages” like this shirt.” sounds so incredibly tone deaf as to make me wonder where the hell you’ve been throughout the largest part of history. I’m from the UK, we don’t have it. It seems this “outrage” was only a problem because it was BHM. Now either the shirt is racist in and of itself or it is not (it clearly isn’t). Let’s pop depictions of monkeys during BHM on the list of things that are banned, now let’s look for something else. > [@](#): > > Again, when BHM first started, there were no manufactured outrages like we see now on the internet. No ‘one click and I’ll boycott you forever’ type actions. So, plastering today’s reality all over yesterday’s facts is ludicrous and makes the person lauding it sound silly at best. I’m sorry but I don’t understand what you are saying here. > [@](#): > > 1. Following all that up with a basic but I’m better than everyone else whitesplain “I roll my eyes and go back to living my life without bias or prejudice. I don’t find that too much of a challenge.” is hilarious. whitesplain? FFS. What is that label intended to achieve? As for what I said. I stand by it 100%. I do roll my eyes because such manufactured outrage does damage to the cause of racial equality. > [@](#): > > If you really got it and were more concerned about living your life free of bias, than you wouldn’t have intoned from on high how idiotic it is if, at this point in the game, black people are still offended. How dare they? \< huff \> But I can’t get it because I’m white apparently. Anyhow, leave off the “how dare they” shit, I never said it and don’t think it. People of all colours are free to feel offended. However I think it is a bullshit, stupid reason to be offended and, as I said upthread, it does more harm than good. > [@](#): > > The only thing left to add is that either your best friend is black or you’ve slept with a black person in the past. Your cred would go waaaaay up then. Ah well, hu-fucking-rrah! have a slow sarcastic handclap. Clearly the only acceptable way for me to prove my own anti-racist credentials would be those that step neatly in line with that you have decreed acceptable. Just stating plainly how I try to live my life is not good enough for you and you clearly don’t believe me, anything additional to that and I’m a racist by implication. I think now would be a good time for me to stop beating my wife. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/47 "2016-02-03T16:04:57Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > As for living your life without bias and prejudice, that’s shit, you are talking total bollocks, you have your head under a blanket, I can say that with confidence, because I do not know any person of any race, religion, gender or background who does not have bias or prejudice, you will find that bias and prejudice are essential parts of human social interaction and can actually be very useful. > > Its the _ **unjustified** _ bias and prejudice that’s a problem Then you’ll happily accept that I try to live my life without unjustified bias and prejudice yes? Is that fair enough? Or do you not believe me? As for Black History Month in the UK, I’m disappointed to hear that we have one, I’m glad I’ve never heard of it. I hope it dies a death and is replaced with a broad and representative historical depiction of all the ethnic groups that make up the UK. ---
**Author:** ![piepiepie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47774/32.png) [@piepiepie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/piepiepie)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/48 "2016-02-03T16:05:05Z")
It’s not that someone thinks you’re a racist, it’s just that I really don’t fucking care that you say you aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/49 "2016-02-03T16:18:22Z")
**piepiepie** , I deeply respect your contributions here and applaud the fact that you never just throw up your hands in disgust and say screw it. I can’t imagine being in the position of any of our Dopers of color who constantly have to listen to such claptrap as “Hurr durr, why there no white history month?” and “We’re all just one race, man!” when the realities are in such stark contrast with these moronic world views. I mean, I’m as much a hippie, kumbaya type as the next, and I understand that no matter how much I’d like to pretend this awful shit doesn’t happen, it just ain’t true. All you gotta do is turn on the damn TV. Then you understand that no matter how much you might want to assume what y’all go through, we just have no basis for comparison and can’t ever fully get it. I’m just sorry that it’s like that here too. This place didn’t use to read like Stormfront lite. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/50 "2016-02-03T16:22:04Z")
> [@piepiepie](#): > > It’s not that someone thinks you’re a racist, it’s just that I really don’t fucking care that you say you aren’t. Meaning: a person can say they aren’t racist and that they can look past this YotMonkey awkwardness, but that won’t change the fact that the awkwardness is history-based and still in the room? I am genuinely asking. If it went down as **The Stainless Steel Rat** describes - someone pointed out the potential for awkwardness and a decision was made, that seems like a reasonable approach. The blow-up would be after-the-fact and manufactured and not worth much time. Cultures overlap and sometimes bump up against one another. If someone points it out, and it can be handled easily and with no hard feelings, what is the issue? ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/51 "2016-02-03T16:48:12Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > **piepiepie** , _deep nod of respect._ Agreed. ---
**Author:** ![piepiepie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47774/32.png) [@piepiepie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/piepiepie)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/52 "2016-02-03T16:51:52Z")
This post is crazy long, sorry. There is no outrage over this shirt. The Kings are in 10th place in the West, and this will be most anyone will talk about them all season. A player said, “hey idk about this,” and the administration decided he was right and pulled the shirts _on that night_. The shirts can still be given out, and I hope they are because they’re “free” and are cool looking shirts, but maybe not on the first day of BHM. It’s a shame they play the Cavs away on the 8th. Cultures can overlap and bump. People get over it. Sure, I agree with that. And yet, you don’t think it’s a little dumb to give these shirts out? Who do you think would be wearing them? My guess is mostly white people. All those smiling white faces wearing their free monkey shirts while watching a bunch of black athletes celebrating (the shortest damn month of the year) the first day of BHM. Optics. This looks tone deaf at medium-best (best would be celebrating both with no fuss but I am not stupid enough to believe people are mature enough for that). It would be lovely if everyday we devoted as much time celebrating all the cultures that make up this country as we do white history. Or maybe, while we’re learning about the important white figures we also teach about the others whom history ignores. That would be great, but they push us into February, March, half of September and October instead. It’s easier that way. This country (and the UK) is not post-racial enough, or at all, for people to be beating their chests over their color blindness. So this whole thing will be awkward and only controversial in its awkwardness. There’s no real issue for me. Now, in my mind I wonder about why (some) white folks are getting so upset. Is it because they finally have the chance to call black people the real racists? You know that “only a racist sees a monkey and thinks of a black person” talk. Or if it’s so that they can pretend to care so much about all cultures that they can prop up the rich Chinese cultural history of California as being more relevant than those black people for once? You know like the “I’m as PC as they come, but what about the Chinese” folks. I can get behind people acknowledging this is absurd. But is it absurd because “duh it’s black history month so avoid monkeys and sambo” or is it absurd because “i just don’t see color”? I wonder, but I don’t care (despite this long ass post). [Some dude just verbally assaulted Melissa Harris-Perry](http://ajccenter.wfu.edu/2016/02/02/5756/). I care more about that. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/53 "2016-02-03T16:56:19Z")
How would this have gone over if this was the year of the Rat? Ox? Snake? Dog? Pig? Sometimes creatures are just creatures, but cultural eyes aren’t universal. Snakes symbolize Satan in Judeo/Christian culture, whereas North Africans and South Asians have snake charmers. If it was the year of the Horse, that would have drawn some chuckles about genitalia size. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/54 "2016-02-03T17:00:09Z")
> [@piepiepie](#): > > Cultures can overlap and bump. People get over it. Sure, I agree with that. And yet, you don’t think it’s a little dumb to give these shirts out? I think it was a little dumb to give these shirts out, yes. I think someone in marketing absolutely should have realized that there would be a small, but vocal, group of people who would pretend to be offended, and therefore it wasn’t worth the hassle to try to do something fun for the fans. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/55 "2016-02-03T17:14:37Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > How would this have gone over if this was the year of the Rat? Ox? Snake? Dog? Pig? > > Sometimes creatures are just creatures, but cultural eyes aren’t universal. Snakes symbolize Satan in Judeo/Christian culture, whereas North Africans and South Asians have snake charmers. > > If it was the year of the Horse, that would have drawn some chuckles about genitalia size. You don’t deny the derogatory historical connection between African Americans and monkeys, or do you? ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/56 "2016-02-03T17:41:33Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > A friggin’ MONKEY on a tee-shirt for a almost all black basketball team, ON the first (or second, does it matter) day of Black History Month? So a white person looks at a monkey and does NOT think of black people. You look at a monkey and you DO think of black people. Who is the racist? At some point, we will reach a stage where most people don’t know about old racist symbols, and therefore use them without harmful intent. Older people who remember them will freak out, of course, but that’s part of the process. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/57 "2016-02-03T17:49:33Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > At some point, we will reach a stage where most people don’t know about old racist symbols, and therefore use them without harmful intent. Older people who remember them will freak out, of course, but that’s part of the process. This has sort of happened to some extent. I remember there was some “controversy” a few years back around the “eeny meeny miny moe” rhyme which apparently has some genuine racial history. But, anyone under the age of 60 (I made this number up) had no idea about this history and therefore could not possibly have been using the rhyme in a racially insensitive way. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/58 "2016-02-03T18:04:42Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I think it was a little dumb to give these shirts out, yes. I think someone in marketing absolutely should have realized that there would be a small, but vocal, group of people who would pretend to be offended, and therefore it wasn’t worth the hassle to try to do something fun for the fans. Look at [this](http://betterchinatown.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2016-Chinese-New-Year.jpg) racist bullshit. It advertises a whole monkey-themed parade right through NEW YORK CITY right in the middle of Black History Month. There’s all sorts of funny squiggles on the poster, like it was written in racist code. I hope this march can remain peaceful. ---
**Author:** ![Memnon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Memnon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Memnon)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/59 "2016-02-03T18:48:27Z")
Clearly, the feelings and sensibilities of everyday Asians rank far below those of black millionaires in the privilege ladder. ---
**Author:** ![piepiepie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47774/32.png) [@piepiepie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/piepiepie)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036/60 "2016-02-03T18:53:32Z")
> [@Tithonus](#): > > Clearly, the feelings and sensibilities of everyday Asians rank far below those of black millionaires in the privilege ladder. Oh man. I’m so glad I get emails on updates to my subscribed threads. This is what you originally said: > [@](#): > > —Quote (Originally by piepiepie)— > It’s not that someone thinks you’re a racist, it’s just that I really don’t fucking care that you say you aren’t. > —End Quote— > All yo’ve done in this thread is fling shit about like a frenzied ape. Stop being a cunt. Fuck you, you racist piece of shit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-white-people-its-black-history-month-think/745036.md?page=4)