Did anyone else read this piece of trash article in today's Inquirer? The Reading Phillies, our eponymous minor league team, are giving away a Ryan Howard lawn gnome and it's super racist.
Where's the racism there you ask?
Apparently it brings back "memories" of something called lawn jockeys, figurines that started out symbolizing the Underground Railroad but ended up being some really lame and unfunny caricature of Black people popularized by dumbasses in the South.
Of course, a simple lawn gnome of Ryan Howard is turned into a racial scandal by the author of this piece of work, Annette John-Hall.
Most likely simply written because Ms. John-Hall had nothing else better to talk about this week, this article somehow draws a correlation between a lawn gnome give away and an insensitive figure from the past. Annette's conclusions are pieced together like trying to shove a triangle into a circle in one of those old toys we had when we were kids.
When read in its entirety, the article does nothing but further the fact that political correctness has gone too far in this country. When we start having "conversations" about lawn gnomes, we're wasting too much time worrying about each others' feelings.
Now John-Hall has done what all the race baiting "p.c." people do: she's gone and made a mountain out of something that isn't even a mole hill, it's nothing at all. Nobody who, in their right mind, would have linked the slugger's lawn decoration to racism is now re-reading and re-reading the article until John-Hall's cockeyed, stupid points make sense. The reader is guided, prodded, pressured along to agree with the author's point.
People worry too much about if what they're going to say is going to slightly offend someone else - so much that, these days, we actually are more racist for assuming others would be offended by something that doesn't look - on the surface - to actually be racist.
This article lacks any structure, unique insight or sign of talent whatsoever. If anyone should be offended, it's the readers of the Philadelphia Inquirer for having their intelligence insulted by this terrible and wildly nonsensical tripe.
An article about Ryan Howard lawn gnomes: semi-interesting. An article linking said giveaways to racism for shock value or what have you: amazingly stupid and, umm, yeah, that's pretty racist.
- AP
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Comments
This is BSw. Its a yard statue meant to be.....A yard statue. These false cries of racism have gone way to far. You can only cry wolf so many times. "Lawn Jockeys" I doubt most Americans have a clue about what they were or represented. A statue of someone on your yard is no insult.
I had no clue what a lawn jockey was before. I maybe thought it was a nickname for a kid who mows lawns? No f'n clue. How is a statue of honoring a BLACK man in your yard racist?
way to misrepresent what she wrote; all she said was that, as an african-american who actually knows the cultural history, this seems a little disturbing.
anyone who doesn't understand the inherent insult in lawn jockeys needs a little eye-opening.
Anyone who trolls every single thing in life looking for racism in it needs to calm down and live a little, too.
John-Hall ONLY writes about black 'issues'-she is a one-trick pony, the token black racist on staff. Read any of her columns, her only theme is how white people oppress blacks.
John-Hall needs to travel to Africa and live amongst her brethren so that she can enjoy the wealth of culture that seems to have escaped the slaves on North America.
Here's hoping the new owners of the Inquirer fire this waste of ink on the first day of the takeover.
I understand if someone who took it the wrong way is upset. It happens. We aren't that far removed from segregation etc. Older Americans, especially blacks, have the right to be sensitive about things that bring back awful memories. Having said that, the Ryan Howard gnome wasn't made for stirring the pot purposes. I think if you don't think it's racist then that's fine. If you do then that's fine. In this case both sides should respect the other sides opinion and realize this gnome was not made out of racial spite or to make an issue. Ryan Howard is easily the most marketable Philly. He's going to have eons of things made in his image.
FTA:
"This article lacks any structure, unique insight or sign of talent whatsoever"
Your post sounds like a 12 year old speaking without thought. Perhaps some English composition classes would help you before you attempt to insult others.
Laughing Chimp is correct in his or her comment. You are the one that made a mountain out of this and sensitivity is her forte, not yours.
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