“Autobots Mudflap and Skids, a pair of twin robots voiced by Tom Kenny, sport noticeable inner-city accents and are adorned with gold caps on their teeth. At one point, they’re asked if they can read some ancient runes that keep popping up. “Nah, we don’t really do much reading,” one of them replies.” – Washington Times
We’ve posted the video of one of them saying that they don’t read much below (Until the movie company has it deleted).
Um…maybe someone should get these robots “Hooked on Ebonics”? Another reminder that this is not a post-racial America. Black face robots, Sambots (as an article notes below)…sad.
And I haven’t even begun to talk about the racist-caricature robots of “The Twins,” who speak in thug slang and “aren’t much for reading” and talk about getting “up in that ass,” and one of whom has, I wish I were kidding, a gold tooth.
That disconnect only deepens with the introduction of two new Autobot characters, the illiterate, bickering twins Skids (Tom Kenny) and Mudflap (Reno Wilson), both of which take the shape of Chevrolet concept cars. The characters have been given conspicuously cartoonish, so-called black voices that indicate that minstrelsy remains as much in fashion in Hollywood as when, well, Jar Jar Binks was set loose by George Lucas. For what it’s worth, the script, by Ehren Kruger, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, also includes a crack about Simmons, who’s coded as Jewish, and his “pubic-fro head.”
Something has me troubled. This seems like the perfect place to collect some input on it:
In a conversation with my daughter and son-in-law the other day I used the word “negro.” They were aghast and horrified. I was not being disrespectful and, frankly, I have long found the word to be rather elegant.
I’d like an African-American’s point-of-view on that.
Thanks.
Pam
Well, African-Americans…What do you think? Is “negro” a bad word? Should this 62 year old grandmother refrain from using it.
I will say, for her generation Negro was far more dignified than Ni**er. Now if she’d referred to black folk as “Colored”…then I could understand her daughter and son-in-law’s reaction. In her prime years, the term “African-American” didn’t even exist and being “Black” was new. My dad said, When he was a kid some people would get made if you called them “Black” (as in “Blackey” or “You ole black so-in-so!”).
Over the last few years of doing this blog we’ve received several comments from people who feel that the name of this blog is offensive. Someone even wrote that Negro was equal to the other N-word. “Negro” is used everyday in Spanish speaking countries. Caucasian would be the white equivalent…no one is calling for a ban on that. We don’t see any thing wrong with the word, however we would suggest that when referring to African-Americans one use “African-American” or “Black”. Very PC.
I’m in shock. Really. Michael Jackson has died today, so suddenly. It’s a shame.
I was on the Metro (Red Line…I’m never scared) around 5:45 and I heard someone say “Michael Jackson died”. Well that just sounded like craziness. There was a quick rebuttal from another random passenger saying, “NO, he just went into cardiac arrest.” While losing all function of your heart is no simple matter and from what I hear 90% of the time leads to coma or death…The thought that came to my mind was “OH, that’s all. Mike will be alright”. I went on to the gym and was greeted by CNN’s coverage. At the time, they hadn’t confirmed Jackson’s death and were quoting the LA Times and AP Wire. In an interview on CNN, Brian Osman (Jackson Family spokesperson) basically compared Jackson’s situation to Anna Nicole in terms of drug abuse. Heavy allegations. That’s serious. Shortly after that, the LA coroner’s office confirmed Michael Jackson died today at the age of 50.
Somebody tell me this is just a publicity stunt. Somebody roll the secret footage.
Damn. The King is dead. No comeback album. No colabo with Prince, or Beyonce, or the Jonas Brothers. Damn. This is worse than Luther. If Stevie Wonder goes anytime soon, I’m not going to make it.
Rest in Peace, Michael. I never will say goodbye. ”Though I try and try to hide my feelings, they always seem to show…don’t wanna let you go…”
Sidenote: [Updated: In the last 24 hours over 70,000] people have come to this site today and viewed the post on Michael Jackson’s children (one of our most popular posts). Why? I have no clue. Keywords make the world go round I guess.
He apologized but I don’t give a F***. Sorry. This is unacceptable. Totally.
Today former state election director Rusty DePass issued an apology Wednesday for his comments last week linking an escaped gorilla with the ancestors of First Lady Michelle Obama.
The formal apology came during a noon press conference at the offices of the State NAACP.
“I am truly sorry for any offense I have caused,” DePass said, speaking to a small group gathered for the press conference.
DePass, commenting on the facebook.com social networking Web site Friday, created a stir when he said an escaped gorilla at Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia was probably one of Obama’s ancestors.
DePass responded to a facebook.com link to news the gorilla had briefly escaped his cage by writing: “I’m sure it’s just one of Michelle’s ancestors – probably harmless.”
DePass later admitted he was referring to the First Lady. source
Um…NAACP, why did you host this fake apology? Why?
I ran into Sista yesterday minutes before she had her Black moment on the mall. It didn’t occur to me to give her a long goodbye hug, knowing that she might possibly be the last person of color that I’d encounter for the next hour or so as I participated in the Capital Striders weekly Smithsonian Run. Turns out there were 3 of us this week! New record!
This isn’t just a phenomenon at the Mall. Main Avenue, Hains Point, Mt. Vernon Trail, C&O Canal, Rock Creek Park. If there are white people out and being recreational, we’re not there.
There are plenty of Black treadmill creatures and spin cyclists present during my semi-annual trip to the gym but mention doing anything outdoors within the city limits to them and you might as well be asking them to throw flames on the Emancipation Proclamation.
It’s interesting enough being a Black woman in city “formerly know as” Chocolate City. If you live here you know it’s being rapidly gentrified. No surprise there. However, there is one place in the city that has never been fully “chocolatized”. That is the National Mall. You can thank the tourists for that. It’s funny, I’ve talked to African Americans who were born here who have never ventured down except for school trips back in the day.
Unless Barack Obama is being elected, there is a Civil Rights march reenactment, or so other event that is highly attractive to black folk, the Mall is very vanilla. Don’t get me wrong…I love white folks too. I’m happy about the visitors to the Mall from out of town spend here in the District and what not…blah blah. I just find it funny that when I go to the Smithsonian museums, stroll the mall, or visit the monuments…I see a handful of black people (many of them working security in the buildings). However I can walk 10 min in any direction (except the direction of Georgetown and George Washington U) and the city is Chocolate and balanced again. It’s like going to Virginia. lol
Anyway, I had a “Black moment” at the Lincoln Memorial yesterday. I walked there from Union Station…don’t ask me why, just wanted to walk. I saw about 6 other black people during my walk (no lie). There were hundreds of people out there, mind you (I saw like 6 softball games, lots of people exercising, and tons of tourist groups). I get to the top of the stairs at Lincoln Memorial and watch for 10 min to see how many people notice the “I HAVE A DREAM” engraving noting Martin Luther King’s name and the date of the march. It notes the place on the stairs where he gave his historic speech. Guess how many people noticed it. 2 children.
Now, to their credit it’s not as pronounced as it should be, in my opinion. Hey, I think Obama should do something about that.
I remember when I first visited the Memorial that spot on the steps was something I looked for. The image of King standing on those steps looking out at thousands gathered in the name of civil rights is burned into my psyche as an African American. I wasn’t looking for that engraving, didn’t even know it was there. I just wanted to stand in the place and look out over the reflecting pool and think about that day. Why? Cause I’m black, and moments like that mean a lot to me.
Maybe that’s why not many people noticed the black history upon which they stood yesterday. Maybe I shouldn’t expect them to care, but I do. I find that I’m having more and more of these moments in this so-called “post-racial” America.
I have nothing against old white guys—I’ll be one soon enough myself—but is this any way to compete in an increasingly diverse democracy? The GOP is rapidly becoming a dinosaur. An albino one.
“Autobots Mudflap and Skids, a pair of twin robots voiced by Tom Kenny, sport noticeable inner-city accents and are adorned with gold caps on their teeth. At one point, they’re asked if they can read some ancient runes that keep popping up. “Nah, we don’t really do much reading,” one of them replies.” – Washington Times
What the GOP is missing: a DEMOGRAPHER
June 17, 2009
Former SC official basically calls Michelle Obama’s ancestors to gorillas
He apologized but I don’t give a F***. Sorry. This is unacceptable. Totally.
Um…NAACP, why did you host this fake apology? Why?
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