# The Onion calls Quevanzhane Wallis a cunt. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 25, 2013, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329 "2013-02-25T06:40:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/101 "2013-02-25T19:36:39Z")
What cracks me up is that I guarantee you that at least 80% of the people whining about this Onion tweet have not, and never will, see Beasts of the Southern Wild, or probably even knew who QW was before this kerfuffle. ---
**Author:** ![SleuFeets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SleuFeets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleuFeets)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/102 "2013-02-25T19:37:39Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > This post made my brain hurt so fucking bad. Melanin people no melanin that black people non melanin? Melanin. If you don’t know what melanin is, my post is not the cause of your brain problems. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/103 "2013-02-25T19:38:35Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > Exactly my point. What? > [@SleuFeets](#): > > Black people have melanin. Non melanin people are people with no melanin. > … White people have melanin, too. The only people who don’t have melanin are people with severe albinism. Let’s not abuse science here. ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/104 "2013-02-25T19:41:09Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > If you don’t know what melanin is, my post is not the cause of your brain problems. 🙂 You really need to step back and ask yourself what possible reasons there may be for people thinking you’re ridiculous for aiming the original statement at **MeanOldLady** (who pretty clearly spelled it out for you). ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/105 "2013-02-25T19:42:09Z")
> [@Moonchild](#): > > I might be wrong, but I also recall that Dakota Fanning was the target of a similar joke (about boozing and smoking, IIRC) _during the Oscar ceremony_; this joke at the expense of QW had nothing to do with the color of her skin. It was the Golden Globes and it was a comment about being in rehab. I posted a link earlier in the thread. ---
**Author:** ![SleuFeets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SleuFeets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleuFeets)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/106 "2013-02-25T19:43:42Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > You really need to step back and ask yourself what possible reasons there may be for people thinking you’re ridiculous for aiming the original statement at **MeanOldLady** (who pretty clearly spelled it out for you). Not at all. As a black woman, whose an Onion reader and movie fan. I feel confident in educating people who consistently say that there was nothing “racial” about the insult. Wether it was a conscious problem or not is another discussion. You can accidentally be racist you know. I mean, we’re fighting ignorance since 1973…right? -\_\_- ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/107 "2013-02-25T19:47:40Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > You really need to step back and ask yourself what possible reasons there may be for people thinking you’re ridiculous for aiming the original statement at **MeanOldLady** (who pretty clearly spelled it out for you). **MeanOldLady** apparently has insufficient melanin to be considered black. And she isn’t womanly enough to comment on sexism. **SleuFeets** , what’s your Melanin Quotient? ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/108 "2013-02-25T19:48:04Z")
Wait, you get to educate people on whether or not this is racist? And your qualifications are you’re a black woman? Well I am too. Now what? Did your puny little head explode? ---
**Author:** ![SleuFeets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SleuFeets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleuFeets)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/109 "2013-02-25T19:49:16Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > It was the Golden Globes and it was a comment about being in rehab. I posted a link earlier in the thread. Great observation. Also keep in mind that Dakota Fanning had not actually been in rehab, so the joke poked a little fun at child stars. And D fanning was Hollywood veteran by that time. Calling a 9 year old, unknown, first time actress who starred in a small independent film a deragotory name with no context is – well, lazy. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/110 "2013-02-25T19:50:16Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Did your puny little head explode? Oh great, more black on black violence. ---
**Author:** ![SleuFeets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SleuFeets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleuFeets)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/111 "2013-02-25T19:50:33Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Wait, you get to educate people on whether or not this is racist? And your qualifications are you’re a black woman? Well I am too. Now what? Did your puny little head explode? Not at all. I suppose it’s similar to how you get to educate us on how it WASN’T racist - because you’re a black woman. agree to disagree I s’pose. Nice to meetcha ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/112 "2013-02-25T19:52:46Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > Not at all. I suppose it’s similar to how you get to educate us on how it WASN’T racist - because you’re a black woman. > > agree to disagree I s’pose. Nice to meetcha If you’ll notice, I never declared my race or gender part of the reason I’ve concluded it wasn’t racist. It’s not a race thing to me at all. You’re the one who said “non melanin people” are the ones who find this funny, and it’s your job as a black woman to set everyone straight. I’m just a person who has not undergone the apparent humorectomy that you have. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/113 "2013-02-25T19:53:20Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > Not at all. > > As a black woman, whose an Onion reader and movie fan. I feel confident in educating people who consistently say that there was nothing “racial” about the insult. Wether it was a conscious problem or not is another discussion. You can accidentally be racist you know. It is implausible this comment was racial. And that it may have been racist is even more implausible to an exponential degree. You claim you have the means to educate people concerning the question of whether this was a racial incident. What evidence do you have that you can bring to bear on this particular incident that supports the view that it was racial? (And do you think, further, that it was racist? By “racial” I mean it depended for its force on the race of those involved. By “racist” I mean it either expressed or presupposed negative views of certain people by virtue of their race.) ---
**Author:** ![Spatial\_Rift\_47](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spatial\_Rift\_47](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spatial_Rift_47)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/114 "2013-02-25T19:54:22Z")
Here’s the real problem with the Onion’s tweet. Well, first, here’s what it isn’t: -It isn’t that the Onion “backed down” by pulling the tweet. -It isn’t a connection to Douchebag McFarlane’s joke about Wallis and Clooney. -It isn’t even specifically the question of a racial element to this whole episode. The major problem I see is the overwhelming response in this very thread. Forget any abstract notion of good taste, bad taste, or society. Right here, right now, what I see is a group of people deciding on behalf of someone else that something isn’t hurtful. That despite the use of her name, it isn’t “about her”. That any potential problem in using the word “cunt” to describe a nine year old child doesn’t really exist because “it’s a joke”. You don’t get to decide for someone else whether or not something hurts. You don’t get to negate someone else’s presence, especially when they are mentioned by name. You don’t get to use “it’s a joke” as a shield to protect your own interest in finding something funny from the idea that maybe you laughed at something that caused pain to others. I’ve now said what I needed to say. I’m not coming back to this thread. Go ahead, tell me I don’t understand, that I don’t get the joke. Feel free to get angry, or offended that I’ve insulted your good character. Because you see, I’m not deciding for you how you feel about this. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/115 "2013-02-25T19:56:10Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > Not at all. I suppose it’s similar to how you get to educate us on how it WASN’T racist - because you’re a black woman. > > agree to disagree I s’pose. Nice to meetcha How on Earth can you claim that it was a racist joke? Seriously, please educate me. Because that joke works (or doesn’t, depending on your tastes) no matter what color she is. Is “cunt” some kind of rasist code-word, like “uppity” or “boy”? Now, if they’d said that QW was “kind of uppity” I think you’d have a great point and I’d be just as grouchy about the joke. But there’s no there, there. You’re seriously grasping. Melanin. ---
**Author:** ![SleuFeets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SleuFeets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleuFeets)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/116 "2013-02-25T19:57:02Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > It is implausible this comment was racial. > > And that it may have been racist is even more implausible to an exponential degree. > > You claim you have the means to educate people concerning the question of whether this was a racial incident. What evidence do you have that you can bring to bear on this particular incident that supports the view that it was racial? (And do you think, further, that it was racist? By “racial” I mean it depended for its force on the race of those involved. By “racist” I mean it either expressed or presupposed negative views of certain people by virtue of their race.) I think this sums it up nicely \*The Onion‘s tweet was especially troubling because the newspaper courts a largely male demographic, with 48% of its readership making $75,000/year or more, and there is undeniably privilege when a newspaper with a largely white, male, and affluent audience with just under 5 million followers on its Twitter feed picks on an African-American girl who is the daughter of a teacher and a truck driver. \* > **[Why The Onion Must Be Held Accountable for Its Vile Tweet - Reluctant Habits](http://www.edrants.com/why-the-onion-must-be-held-accountable-for-its-vile-tweet/)** > > On Sunday night, The Onion broke the rules of edgy comedy. Why then isn't the magazine coming to terms with its mistake? ..It’s a good article. Written by a white guy , just in case, you know..you needed the validation. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/117 "2013-02-25T19:58:54Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > How on Earth can you claim that it was a racist joke? Seriously, please educate me. Because that joke works (or doesn’t, depending on your tastes) no matter what color she is. Is “cunt” some kind of rasist code-word, like “uppity” or “boy”? > > Now, if they’d said that QW was “kind of uppity” I think you’d have a great point and I’d be just as grouchy about the joke. But there’s no there, there. You’re seriously grasping. > > Melanin. They called her a name, and she is black, therefore it is racist. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/118 "2013-02-25T20:01:02Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > Also keep in mind that Dakota Fanning had not actually been in rehab, so the joke poked a little fun at child stars. And D fanning was Hollywood veteran by that time. And I think she was 11. The distinctions you are adding here don’t make any difference. It’s OK to insult Dakota Fanning because she’s been in more movies with bigger budgets? > [@Spatial\_Rift\_47](#): > > You don’t get to decide for someone else whether or not something hurts. That’s not what is being discussed. ---
**Author:** ![SleuFeets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SleuFeets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleuFeets)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/119 "2013-02-25T20:02:18Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > They called her a name, and she is black, therefore it is racist. No. They have positioned themselves to be a paper highlighting larger societal flaws through satire. They’re supposed to be smart. They turned into the people they’re supposed to be satiring. Therefore, they are frauds. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2013, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329/120 "2013-02-25T20:04:18Z")
> [@SleuFeets](#): > > I think this sums it up nicely > > \*The Onion‘s tweet was especially troubling because the newspaper courts a largely male demographic, with 48% of its readership making $75,000/year or more, and there is undeniably privilege when a newspaper with a largely white, male, and affluent audience with just under 5 million followers on its Twitter feed picks on an African-American girl who is the daughter of a teacher and a truck driver. \* > > [Why The Onion Must Be Held Accountable for Its Vile Tweet - Reluctant Habits](http://www.edrants.com/why-the-onion-must-be-held-accountable-for-its-vile-tweet/) > > ..It’s a good article. Written by a white guy , just in case, you know..you needed the validation. I saw that but didn’t notice that it was written by a white guy, because that would be racist of me. Interesting that you felt the need to point out the color of his skin. I’m curious what you thought of Beasts of the Southern Wild? On a scale of 1 to Mel Gibson, how racist was it? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-onion-calls-quevanzhane-wallis-a-cunt/651329.md?page=7)