October 11, 2002
1:21 PM Subscribe
A follow-up to last week's post about the racism conference at which all non-blacks were expelled, the sponsoring organisation of that event is now asking the white community to pay off its $200,000 debt from the conference. And it gets worse.
Attention, Reverend Aaron “Buddy” Larrier:
GO.
FUCK.
YOUR.
SELF.
That is all.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 1:35 PM on October 11, 2002
GO.
FUCK.
YOUR.
SELF.
That is all.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 1:35 PM on October 11, 2002
"...if white people don’t see it fit to contribute towards that, then I will be asking black people to look very carefully at how they spend their money with white people..."
Give us money or we'll boycott your ass.
"..., then we, who are introducing new ways,..."
Blackmail, it's the new non-violence movement.
Well done!
posted by mikhail at 1:37 PM on October 11, 2002
Give us money or we'll boycott your ass.
"..., then we, who are introducing new ways,..."
Blackmail, it's the new non-violence movement.
Well done!
posted by mikhail at 1:37 PM on October 11, 2002
I don't really see much of a problem with him asking for the money even though the method seems to be quite the 'strong arm' technique, but shouldn't they have some cash in the coffers before they start spending it?
posted by Wallzatcha at 1:45 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by Wallzatcha at 1:45 PM on October 11, 2002
The profound, relentless hypocrisy of this is completely inescapable. How can anyone keep a straight face using the term "anti-racism" in the same breath as this racially-polarized accusatory belligerence? (I speak, by the way, as what almost any conservative would call a card-carrying liberal.)
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:47 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:47 PM on October 11, 2002
Interested parties can make donations to CARB via their new site, SaveRevAaronBuddyLarrier.com. To hear them tell it, they foolishly ran up $20,000 worth of credit card debt buying Prada "Kill Whitey" bags and subscriptions to "Reparations Weekly" magazine, and they're asking for your assistance. CARB is actually a group of nice people; they just made some mistakes and hope that the wonderful (white business-owning) people of the Internet can help.
...
MetaFilter is such a whitezone!
posted by Danelope at 1:53 PM on October 11, 2002
...
MetaFilter is such a whitezone!
posted by Danelope at 1:53 PM on October 11, 2002
That is some chutzpah, I'll tell you what.
posted by RylandDotNet at 1:55 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by RylandDotNet at 1:55 PM on October 11, 2002
Sounds like a culture jam to me. Has all this noise been verified to be on the level?
posted by Fupped Duck at 2:01 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by Fupped Duck at 2:01 PM on October 11, 2002
"whitezone": how exactly are you aware that the posters are white? ever heard of yellow? brown? ever heard of black folks that think racism is non-productive?
you gotta admit danezone, the whole thing's a bit far-fetched. let's say, i have a meeting a bout racism, throw all the colored people out, and then ask the naacp for funding in a grant? i heartily reccomend that the rev buy a lotto ticket. a slightly better approach would have been to do some fundraising for a conference about racism before it happens; and make it clear during the registration phase that non-blacks weren't invited. 'nuff said.
?
posted by alpha60 at 2:07 PM on October 11, 2002
you gotta admit danezone, the whole thing's a bit far-fetched. let's say, i have a meeting a bout racism, throw all the colored people out, and then ask the naacp for funding in a grant? i heartily reccomend that the rev buy a lotto ticket. a slightly better approach would have been to do some fundraising for a conference about racism before it happens; and make it clear during the registration phase that non-blacks weren't invited. 'nuff said.
?
posted by alpha60 at 2:07 PM on October 11, 2002
I was being a smartass, alpha60, in reference to previous discussions about MetaFilter being a boyzone. I thought this would've been clear, given the satirical tone used in the rest of the comment, but I guess the humor was...elusive.
posted by Danelope at 2:12 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by Danelope at 2:12 PM on October 11, 2002
Keep in mind that he's offered to sell his house if it can't be paid off by other means. You have to wonder where he's going with this. Is he trying to set himself up as a martyr?
posted by buskpay at 2:16 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by buskpay at 2:16 PM on October 11, 2002
The WHITE ZONE is for loading and unloading only . . . if you have to load or unload, go to the WHITE ZONE. . . you'll love it . . . it's a way of life . . .
posted by mikhail at 2:19 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by mikhail at 2:19 PM on October 11, 2002
Danelope: What's a whitezone?
General Comments: MLK, Gandhi, Elias Chacour and other great civil rights leaders got a lot done because they understood a central concept that I think a lot of activists don't understand: dignity. Never had personal contact with them, but their writing and actions just exude the stuff. They stood up, demanded their human and civil rights, but they did it with a dignity and class that could hardly help but appeal to anyone with a sense of moral justice.
The articles listed are only one point of view, so I'll keep a grain of salt handy, but their actions and rhetoric seem to be lacking in the dignity category. If you're going to claim a moral high ground and awake and use the sense of moral justice in others, you'd better walk the walk. Boycotting a bus system is one thing. Boycotting businesses who refuse to retroactively support costs for a conference is moving toward the mafia-protection-racket side of things.
Don't replace ugly white entitlement with ugly (fill in the blank of your race) entitlement. Work for socially and economicaly just world. And ask for your donations ahead of time, without compulsion.
posted by namespan at 2:22 PM on October 11, 2002
General Comments: MLK, Gandhi, Elias Chacour and other great civil rights leaders got a lot done because they understood a central concept that I think a lot of activists don't understand: dignity. Never had personal contact with them, but their writing and actions just exude the stuff. They stood up, demanded their human and civil rights, but they did it with a dignity and class that could hardly help but appeal to anyone with a sense of moral justice.
The articles listed are only one point of view, so I'll keep a grain of salt handy, but their actions and rhetoric seem to be lacking in the dignity category. If you're going to claim a moral high ground and awake and use the sense of moral justice in others, you'd better walk the walk. Boycotting a bus system is one thing. Boycotting businesses who refuse to retroactively support costs for a conference is moving toward the mafia-protection-racket side of things.
Don't replace ugly white entitlement with ugly (fill in the blank of your race) entitlement. Work for socially and economicaly just world. And ask for your donations ahead of time, without compulsion.
posted by namespan at 2:22 PM on October 11, 2002
Don't call him a martyr until you see his "family estate" I can put my head up a bulls ass... no wait, you can put YOUR head up a bulls ass... no that isn't right either, .... okay, you can call a piece of shit an estate, but it is still a piece of shit., there I go.
posted by Mushkelley at 2:24 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by Mushkelley at 2:24 PM on October 11, 2002
Let's see... they group didn't want to talk about race-related issues in front of white people cuz the white people get uncomfortable, act out, tell jokes, and don't understand. Huh. Now where would I have seen that before...
Umm, also? The name of this conference is "The African and African Descendants World Conference Against Racism." Now, when was it that white people were invited?
I feel like white people get so freaked out about things like this. Big deal! Some tiny broke NGO in the middle of nowhere is acting a little wacky. Is it some tidal wave of black separatism? No. Was it poorly planned and executed? Totally. Should anyone pay attention to their silly request for money? Probably not, merely because of the way it was done. So when people sound so outraged by this, it makes me wonder.
In any event, there's a time and a place for communities to discuss things alone. It's just fine if white people can't go somewhere once in a blue moon. We can go everywhere else.
posted by RJ Reynolds at 2:35 PM on October 11, 2002
Umm, also? The name of this conference is "The African and African Descendants World Conference Against Racism." Now, when was it that white people were invited?
I feel like white people get so freaked out about things like this. Big deal! Some tiny broke NGO in the middle of nowhere is acting a little wacky. Is it some tidal wave of black separatism? No. Was it poorly planned and executed? Totally. Should anyone pay attention to their silly request for money? Probably not, merely because of the way it was done. So when people sound so outraged by this, it makes me wonder.
In any event, there's a time and a place for communities to discuss things alone. It's just fine if white people can't go somewhere once in a blue moon. We can go everywhere else.
posted by RJ Reynolds at 2:35 PM on October 11, 2002
I'm with Fupped Duck on this one. I never believe the news when, at first glance, it seems to be this ridiculous. I have a feeling that the truth is somewhere in the middle of all these stories and far less extreme...
But that's just my two cents, as usual.
posted by BirdD0g at 2:40 PM on October 11, 2002
But that's just my two cents, as usual.
posted by BirdD0g at 2:40 PM on October 11, 2002
RJ Reynolds...are the black slave-owners in Mauritania allowed to go, too? What if you're only half-black? Are you only going to be half-uncomfortable and make half-jokes?
The number of people in that room who were actually enslaved is zero. The number of white people there to laugh was zero; they were mostly journalists.
I didn't know Al Sharpton was a MeFi member.
posted by Kevs at 2:50 PM on October 11, 2002
The number of people in that room who were actually enslaved is zero. The number of white people there to laugh was zero; they were mostly journalists.
I didn't know Al Sharpton was a MeFi member.
posted by Kevs at 2:50 PM on October 11, 2002
As far as I know, Africa was never home to just black people (Arabs, etc.)...
posted by titboy at 2:54 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by titboy at 2:54 PM on October 11, 2002
I didn't know Al Sharpton was a MeFi member.
Improbable namecalling and fallacious arguments don't interest me.
Moving on, the fact that none of these people were ever slaves themselves is of no interest: the point is that these are black people who wanted to meet with only black people. What's wrong with that?
What about support and activist meetings for people with AIDS only? What if I started a queer activist networking conference and asked for queers only to attend? What about closed meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, where only people with a desire to stop drinking are allowed? What about Klan meetings, where they "encourage" only non-white attendance? What about the Congressional Black Caucus, whose members can only be black?
Not all of these are germane to an out-of-US argument, but the point remains: why can't an organization host a meeting for only Africans and those of African descent?
posted by RJ Reynolds at 3:26 PM on October 11, 2002
Improbable namecalling and fallacious arguments don't interest me.
Moving on, the fact that none of these people were ever slaves themselves is of no interest: the point is that these are black people who wanted to meet with only black people. What's wrong with that?
What about support and activist meetings for people with AIDS only? What if I started a queer activist networking conference and asked for queers only to attend? What about closed meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, where only people with a desire to stop drinking are allowed? What about Klan meetings, where they "encourage" only non-white attendance? What about the Congressional Black Caucus, whose members can only be black?
Not all of these are germane to an out-of-US argument, but the point remains: why can't an organization host a meeting for only Africans and those of African descent?
posted by RJ Reynolds at 3:26 PM on October 11, 2002
How come the only news here about black white stuff is always something like the Jesse Jackson film thing or this? I know constant posts on racism wouldn't get much interests (like we know blacks are disciminated against, duh!) but though I even agree that this is over the top, if you visited Metafilter from outerspace you'd think blacks were some weird cult whiners. The equivalent white conspiracy theories are too tired to get a mention and everybody seems to find these things funny. Please tell me it's not everybody.
posted by Zootoon at 3:34 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by Zootoon at 3:34 PM on October 11, 2002
They can, but it's racist.
posted by techgnollogic at 3:34 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by techgnollogic at 3:34 PM on October 11, 2002
I don't find it funny, I find it counterproductive. Someone mentioned Gandhi earlier; a very salient counterexample. He was that rare activist who truly understood the necessity of rejecting all racism rather than simply turning it around.
It's very sad, because they actively harm their cause in two ways: 1) rather than seeking to eliminate divisiveness they choose instead to perpetuate it on their own terms, and 2) they make themselves an obvious target for just the remarks you've seen here, and give racists easy ammunition to discredit them.
posted by George_Spiggott at 3:47 PM on October 11, 2002
It's very sad, because they actively harm their cause in two ways: 1) rather than seeking to eliminate divisiveness they choose instead to perpetuate it on their own terms, and 2) they make themselves an obvious target for just the remarks you've seen here, and give racists easy ammunition to discredit them.
posted by George_Spiggott at 3:47 PM on October 11, 2002
I don't find it funny
I'm sure you don't and I agree with what you say but my point was that this seems to be the only racism topics we get recently here on mefi.
posted by Zootoon at 3:53 PM on October 11, 2002
I'm sure you don't and I agree with what you say but my point was that this seems to be the only racism topics we get recently here on mefi.
posted by Zootoon at 3:53 PM on October 11, 2002
He owes workers money that he knew he did not have.
He's a thief, plain and simple, and I'm not amused by his antics. A lot of businesses will tell you that this isn't unusual when dealing with clergy.
posted by 2sheets at 4:27 PM on October 11, 2002
He's a thief, plain and simple, and I'm not amused by his antics. A lot of businesses will tell you that this isn't unusual when dealing with clergy.
posted by 2sheets at 4:27 PM on October 11, 2002
CARB was forced to reduce the initial budget ... from US$1 million to BDS$450 000
This line is misleading; it makes it sound like a 55% shortfall when in fact (since 450,000 BBD = 226,130 USD) it's a 77% shortfall. Reverend Buddy's fuck-up is twice as bad as it sounds.
If Buddy's constituents are also in the habit of paying 23 cents on the dollar, perhaps white Barbadian business-owners (and black, too) would be happy for them to stay away.
posted by Hieronymous Coward at 5:08 PM on October 11, 2002
This line is misleading; it makes it sound like a 55% shortfall when in fact (since 450,000 BBD = 226,130 USD) it's a 77% shortfall. Reverend Buddy's fuck-up is twice as bad as it sounds.
If Buddy's constituents are also in the habit of paying 23 cents on the dollar, perhaps white Barbadian business-owners (and black, too) would be happy for them to stay away.
posted by Hieronymous Coward at 5:08 PM on October 11, 2002
Sad part is, some white corporation(s) will probably be guilted into picking up the tab.
I'm reminded, in a stream-of-consciousness kind of way, of a comment made by Alonzo Bates many years ago. The then-member of the Detroit Board of Education came under fire in the press for flying first class to seminars while other board members went via greyhound. He also preferred five star hotels for his accommodations. His only comment was "don't blame me, the White man invented first class."
posted by Oriole Adams at 5:20 PM on October 11, 2002
I'm reminded, in a stream-of-consciousness kind of way, of a comment made by Alonzo Bates many years ago. The then-member of the Detroit Board of Education came under fire in the press for flying first class to seminars while other board members went via greyhound. He also preferred five star hotels for his accommodations. His only comment was "don't blame me, the White man invented first class."
posted by Oriole Adams at 5:20 PM on October 11, 2002
sorry danelope i guess i was a little slooooow on the uptake there.or fast to rant. something. anyway, mikhail, thanks for the killer zappa linkp
posted by alpha60 at 8:48 PM on October 11, 2002
posted by alpha60 at 8:48 PM on October 11, 2002
these are black people who wanted to meet with only black people. What's wrong with that?
Nothing, per se. I think the problem as posited in the original thread was that the people who moved for the exclusion of non-black people waited until they were not only at the conference but in the hall (may be wrong with that detail). Furthermore it was stated that these people were not representatives, but ancillary employees (translators and so forth). Thus it was easy to get the impression from that report (which was the only one that seemed to be available at the time) that it was not a matter of policy but rather a bit of grandstanding, that the display of excluding the non-white attendees was as important as any sense of Black unity. I noted that it was moved by the U.S. representative, and also that there was a quote to support my hypothesis in the article from Jean Violet Baptiste.
I would very much like to read a more detailed and informed commentary, however. Preferably one that doesn't come from the U.S. or Caribbean African diaspora (not to dismiss those accounts, but it would be interesting to hear an account from a representative of a country with a tradition of Black dominance and governance).
posted by Grangousier at 12:14 AM on October 12, 2002
Nothing, per se. I think the problem as posited in the original thread was that the people who moved for the exclusion of non-black people waited until they were not only at the conference but in the hall (may be wrong with that detail). Furthermore it was stated that these people were not representatives, but ancillary employees (translators and so forth). Thus it was easy to get the impression from that report (which was the only one that seemed to be available at the time) that it was not a matter of policy but rather a bit of grandstanding, that the display of excluding the non-white attendees was as important as any sense of Black unity. I noted that it was moved by the U.S. representative, and also that there was a quote to support my hypothesis in the article from Jean Violet Baptiste.
I would very much like to read a more detailed and informed commentary, however. Preferably one that doesn't come from the U.S. or Caribbean African diaspora (not to dismiss those accounts, but it would be interesting to hear an account from a representative of a country with a tradition of Black dominance and governance).
posted by Grangousier at 12:14 AM on October 12, 2002
Yes, what is a "white corporation"? Isn't race itself a racist concept? I'm Argentinian and for me it's funny to divide people.
posted by Carlos Quevedo at 12:48 PM on October 18, 2002
posted by Carlos Quevedo at 12:48 PM on October 18, 2002
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posted by Frank Grimes at 1:33 PM on October 11, 2002