The “New South”
Posted by
tgirsch
This is just lovely:
Inside the store, hooded Klan robes hang on the same rack as the racist T-shirts. Pictures of men, women and children in Klan clothing and pamphlets tell a partial history of the organization.
…snip…
“If anything turns people off, they shouldn’t come in here. It’s not a thing in here that’s against the law,” Howard said, adding that he was once the KKK’s grand dragon for South Carolina and North Carolina.
That a store like that can make enough money to stay in business belies the whole “post-racism society” crap. The market, apparently, likes racism, at least in that part of the country. Makes you proud to be an American, doesn’t it?
Wow! One little store with a racist owner proves that racism is rampant in South Carolina and proves this is not a post-racism society. You sure do have low standards of evidence.
Comment 3/10/2008
Yeah, I think Morris is on decent footing here. Of course, I agree with your conclusion (and one of the overarching themes of this whole site) that we are not a post-racism society, by any means. I’m not sure how the existence of this store is evidence of that in and of itself though.
I mean, look at the proliferation of child pornography sites on the web - well, don’t actually look at them… but, consider them. Would the size of child pornography market in the U.S. be evidence that we are not an anti-pedophilia society?
Comment 3/10/2008
digg:
It’s not just the existence of the store, but the fact that it could exist so openly, and draw enough business to continue operating for twelve years (so far). Child pornography exists only in the shadows because society has deemed it harmful and unacceptable and forced it there. Not so much with racism.
Then again, we’re talking about a state that still proudly flies the most divisive racial symbol in modern American history on their statehouse lawn (and which, until recently, flew it atop the capitol — even getting it moved from there to the lawn was seen as a “great victory” in backward SC). So we’re really not talking about the most forward-thinking state in the union…
A close friend of mine, who grew up under segregation and post-segregation in South Carolina, puts it well:
Comment 3/10/2008
“It’s not just the existence of the store, but the fact that it could exist so openly, and draw enough business to continue operating for twelve years (so far).”
Of course, you know nothing about the financial situation of the owner of the store. You don’t have a clue as to whether or not he is making a profit. Is your solution to force the closure and prosecution of any business with whom you disagree. Who made you the store god? I’ve never been in the store but I have walked past it. It is a sleazy dump that I hope will go out of business. It is a blight on the town. However, until he breaks the law, the Constitution protects his hateful speech just as it protects your hateful speech on this blog.
BTW, you friend doesn’t know what he is talking about. M-Benz does not have a manufacturing plant in the Upstate of SC. It is an ignorant statement full of bigotry to say that any part of SC is back to Gone With the Wind. The only Gone With the Wind similarity would be the invasion of pompous Yankees. They come here and tell us how it was up north. Their society fell apart, they lost their jobs so they had to move, and they think we are interested in how they do it up north.
Comment 3/10/2008
I’d debate how, “out in the open” the KKK is in general, even if they are rather open in some isolated pockets.
Polygamists, within their specific communities are rather open about their lifestyle, but that doesn’t color the entire country as accepting, tolerant or enthusiastic about multiplew wives.
All kinds of markets are sustainable, and many thrive, that say terrible things about the character of the consumers. One could use my market behavior to claim I have no respect for child labor laws, because I have a shitload of Nikes. They could look at Nike’s total U.S. sales and claim that we, as a culture, don’t care about sweatshop labor.
Granted, these are far less explicit conclusions to draw based upon market behavior than the one in question. But the main point is that it’s a tough road to navigate to make claims about a society based upon consumer decisions. When a similar type of argument is made, say the “anorexic standard of beauty” or the “emotional surrogates through consumerism” arguments, there is a wide variety of evidence, across all kinds of variable demographics, age ranges, etc. to support that. To look at a single thriving business as evidence of an entire country’s attitude (or at least substantial geographic region of that country) is pushing it, IMO.
Again, I completely agree with the conclusion, and in context of all the other evidence us not being a post-racism society, the stores fits. However, assuming I felt we were a post-racist society, the revelation of the existence of this store would not be enough to force me to reassess that opinion as it pertains to our society as a whole. It would just be an eyesore that is not representative of society in general.
Now, if you are saying that a true post-racism society would pressure the store to close down, that’s complicated because store’s merchandise is protected by free speech. But, the fact that such a stores can sustain itself wouldn’t necessarily preclude the larger society in which it exists from being possibly characterized as post-racist, IMO.
I’m probably way overanalyzing here because you probably meant to just post this simply to say, hey, look, this is fucked up. And to that extent, I certainly agree.
Comment 3/10/2008
Digg:
I’m not so much saying that society should pressure him to close down, per se. I just find it depressing to think that the guy hasn’t lost his shirt on a business like this.
Morris:
You’re right about Mercedes-Benz, but that’s about all you’re right about. Hey, it’s not like the guy goes back to visit family twice a year or anything. Why should I take his word for it?
Society in the North “fell apart?” Give me a break. Talk about ignorant statements!
Comment 3/10/2008
“Why should I take his word for it?”
That’s a good question. I live in SC so I think I know more about it than someone who visits every once in a while.
Comment 3/10/2008
“I just find it depressing to think that the guy hasn’t lost his shirt on a business like this.”
How do you know he hasn’t?
Comment 3/10/2008
It seems like a pretty safe assumption, if he’s still able to pay his lease after all these years.
Comment 3/10/2008
Digg, buying/selling racist merchandise is an explicit expression of racism. It is the first order consideration of the enterprise.
Nike is different. Nike is not in the business of perpetuating child labor, and people who buy their products do not do so as an expression of their support of child labor. Child labor is a second order consideration - one that only matters to those who care about social issues than how good their feet look. If Nike got a corporate conscience and eliminated the use of child labor, people would not stop buying their products (price considerations aside).
Comment 3/10/2008
I agree, Ted. And, I noted that it wasn’t the same exact thing. I think the point of the post was still clear though.
Are you familiar with the story of Jonah Peretti? Nike features an option where one can personalize a sneaker’s colroway, and even put a written message on them. The following is an email correspondence between Jonah and Nike that resulted from his request to print “sweatshop” on his personalized sneakers:
From: “Personalize, NIKE iD”
To: “‘Jonah H. Peretti’”
Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000
Your NIKE iD order was cancelled for one or more of the following reasons.
1) Your Personal iD contains another party’s trademark or other intellectual property.
2) Your Personal iD contains the name of an athlete or team we do not have the legal right to use.
3) Your Personal iD was left blank. Did you not want any personalization?
4) Your Personal iD contains profanity or inappropriate slang, and besides, your mother would slap us.
If you wish to reorder your NIKE iD product with a new personalization please visit us again at www.nike.com
Thank you,
NIKE iD
From: “Jonah H. Peretti”
To: “Personalize, NIKE iD”
Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000
Greetings,
My order was canceled but my personal NIKE iD does not violate any of the criteria outlined in your message. The Personal iD on my custom ZOOM XC USA running shoes was the word “sweatshop.” Sweatshop is not: 1) another’s party’s trademark, 2) the name of an athlete, 3) blank, or 4) profanity. I choose the iD because I wanted to remember the toil and labor of the children that made my shoes. Could you please ship them to me immediately.
Thanks and Happy New Year,
Jonah Peretti
From: “Personalize, NIKE iD”
To: “‘Jonah H. Peretti’”
Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000
Dear NIKE iD Customer,
Your NIKE iD order was cancelled because the iD you have chosen contains, as stated in the previous e-mail correspondence, “inappropriate slang”.
If you wish to reorder your NIKE iD product with a new personalization please visit us again at www.nike.com
Thank you,
NIKE iD
From: “Jonah H. Peretti”
To: “Personalize, NIKE iD”
Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000
Dear NIKE iD,
Thank you for your quick response to my inquiry about my custom ZOOM XC USA running shoes. Although I commend you for your prompt customer service, I disagree with the claim that my personal iD was inappropriate slang. After consulting Webster’s Dictionary, I discovered that “sweatshop” is in fact part of standard English, and not slang. The word means: “a shop or factory in which workers are employed for long hours at low wages and under unhealthy conditions” and its origin dates from 1892. So my personal iD does meet the criteria detailed in your first email.
Your web site advertises that the NIKE iD program is “about freedom to choose and freedom to express who you are.” I share Nike’s love of freedom and personal expression. The site also says that “If you want it done right…build it yourself.” I was thrilled to be able to build my own shoes, and my personal iD was offered as a small token of appreciation for the sweatshop workers poised to help me realize my vision. I hope that you will value my freedom of expression and reconsider your decision to reject my order.
Thank you,
Jonah Peretti
From: “Personalize, NIKE iD”
To: “‘Jonah H. Peretti’”
Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000
Dear NIKE iD Customer,
Regarding the rules for personalization it also states on the NIKE iD web site that “Nike reserves the right to cancel any Personal iD up to 24 hours after it has been submitted”.
In addition it further explains:
“While we honor most personal iDs, we cannot honor every one. Some may be (or contain) others’ trademarks, or the names of certain professional sports teams, athletes or celebrities that Nike does not have the right to use. Others may contain material that we consider inappropriate or simply do not want to place on our products.
Unfortunately, at times this obliges us to decline personal iDs that may otherwise seem unobjectionable. In any event, we will let you know if we decline your personal iD, and we will offer you the chance to submit another.”
With these rules in mind we cannot accept your order as submitted.
If you wish to reorder your NIKE iD product with a new personalization please visit us again at www.nike.com
Thank you, NIKE iD
From: “Jonah H. Peretti”
To: “Personalize, NIKE iD”
Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000
Dear NIKE iD,
Thank you for the time and energy you have spent on my request. I have decided to order the shoes with a different iD, but I would like to make one small request. Could you please send me a color snapshot of the ten-year-old Vietnamese girl who makes my shoes?
Thanks,
Jonah Peretti
Comment 3/10/2008
When are you lefties going to get around to condemning Spitzer? Your silence is deafening (and instructive).
Comment 3/11/2008
hmmm - did Morris receive some instruction?
Comment 3/11/2008