PSA: Racist images are NOT ironic.

And so the circle turns, linking Marcottegate to Seal Press, you know, the same Seal Press whose rude and utterly BS invasion of Black Amazon's Blog seems to have set off an all around falling of the dominoes. So, 2 days ago, Radfem, in reactions to Jill's post on Feministe in which she endorsed Marcotte's new book (published by Seal Press) pointed out that there were some rather racist pics in Ms. Marcotte's new book. The clusterfuck blew up exponentially. Then the evidence dropped, as someone posted the pics. Maia at Alas, A Blog had this to say: I don’t just want to say ‘these pictures are racist and racism is bad’, but to talk about the harm that these sorts of images cause, because the racist ideas that they maintain are very specific. They are presenting indigenous people as a dangerous other. They are presented as things that must be conquered so that white people can live freely on their land. The idea represented in these images are one of the many ways colonialism is maintained and justified.

I live in a country where land has been stolen from indigenous people in the last five years. Amanda Marcotte lives, and Seal Press operates, in a country where the history of stealing land from indigenous people stretches back five centuries. We all live in a world where the distribution of wealth was established, and justified, by colonialism. The white woman, and man, in those pictures were stealing land and resources - everything Africa had that they could use (a century earlier, of course, they would have also been stealing people). Which was all kinds of awesome and hit the nail on the head with a vengeance.


Well, this was the last straw for WOC blogger Black Amazon, who decided to shutter her blog and renounce the feminist movement: I think the point where I went fuck it , is when a law student, a couple writers, and a professor basically endorsed a book and MISSED in reading something they were ATTACHING their names to.
Racist comics, about MY PEOPLE. Yeah MY PEOPLE, being KILLED and destroyed to save a white man and give a white woman the “courage” she so desperately desires .
And people fell over themselves to excuse them . Cause they’re learning
You know what , fuck off.
Hey it’s no expectation you be responsible and careful with what you endorse, write and publish, because it’s a ” friend” right.
They get the be nefit of the doubts, the benefit of not having to be called on their evil racist condescending crap.
My friends while your protecting your friends are completely disrespected and it’s okay right.


Indeed.

So, finally, after this and tons of other posts detailing the absoluteness of the clusterfuck that this had become (scroll down for the linkfest), the covering of asses began.
Jill apologised. Ms. Marcotte apologised. Seal Press apologized.


Alright. So they have apologised and everything is alright now, right? Its just a one-off thing anyway so dear WOC of colour, do some forgiving and forgetting right? ANd besides, fuck it, race is NOT a feminist issue! All those jealous meanie WOC need to shut up and MOVE ON, they are so sensitive, one issue and they blow it up like its the end of the world!

( Ah, no. There's a LOT more to it than that. )

Indeed.

Pic. viaAsk metafilter Blurb from Wikipedia.



The Soiling of Old Glory is a Pulitzer Prize–winning photograph taken for the Boston Herald American in 1976 by Stanley Forman.[1] The photograph depicts a white teenager, Joseph Rakes, about to assault black lawyer and civil-rights activist Ted Landsmark with a flagpole bearing the American flag. It was taken in Boston on April 5, 1976, during a protest against court-ordered desegregation busing...It won the 1977 Pulitzer Prize for Spot Photography.

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