Monkey biz
The creators of the SockObama monkey doll, David and Elizabeth Lawson, have issued a letter describing the attack they underwent for attempting to market a politically incorrect toy.They say they were driven out of business for daring to sell a doll that presents Barack Obama as a monkey:
The blogging dens of resistance quickly began their fury of emails. An electronic battery of fiery darts flowed swiftly but silently through the veins of technology ... A steady stream of repetitive verbal eloquence graced our Customer service inbox with tasty tidbits like, eff-ewe and every other colorul expletive you could possibly imagine. We thought we had heard it all. Hey thanks. This is America, right.
The Lawson's claim they were deprived of their God-given right to practise free enterprise.
With the number of customers we've had to disappoint in our first week of business; are we saying it's okay to take something out of the marketplace that other people want to buy? Are we now censoring one another's liberty as Americans to freely purchase goods and services on our own terms? Is this the kind of America we want?Death threats and hate mail to the couple, of course, are uncivil and downright wrong.
But the Lawsons need to climb down off their high horse. No one banned the SockObama doll—no rule or law was passed to stop the production and sale of insensitive and racist toys. Nobody even sued over it.
A bunch of people, mainly blowhards on the great anonymous Internet, simply excercised the same First Amendment right the Lawsons have— in this case to bitch about the doll and name call. TheSockObama Co.'s supplier uncourageously decided that making a doll labeled racist would be bad business.
My advice: Get another supplier and produce your SockObama and let the market decide. This is America, right?
Here's a free ad to get you going:
Ebay-ers! A racist doll depicting America's first African-American presidential candidate is going to be worth big money someday.
2 Comments:
Yes. You nailed it, Warchol. Thanks for saying it right. (And I never post anonymously...!)
"A bunch of people, mainly blowhards on the great anonymous Internet, simply excercised the same First Amendment right the Lawsons have— in this case to bitch about the doll and name call. TheSockObama Co.'s supplier uncourageously decided that making a doll labeled racist would be bad business."
I'll agree that they're uncourageous. Courageous would have entailed a sincere apology and acknowledgment that the monkey doll was a mistake. If you can't see the racism in depicting an African American as a monkey, then you most definitely need to learn more about American history from the end of the Civil War through the Jim Crow ere and beyond. The dehumanization of African Americans through depictions of them as animals (especially monkeys, apes, or gorillas) or caricatures (Aunt Jemima, Uncle Remus, Nappy Headed Hos) is well-documented and still fresh in the hearts and minds of many.
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