Racist Obama T-Shirts for sale: 'Curious George'
By John Amato Tuesday May 13, 2008 8:30am
Hurry, hurry, step right up! Get yourself a cool monkey/Obama t-shirt.
Marietta bar owner Mike Norman says the T-shirts he's peddling, featuring a look-a-like of cartoon chimp Curious George peeling a banana, with "Obama in '08" underneath, are not meant to offend.
Norman acknowledged the imagery's Jim Crow roots but said he sees nothing wrong with depicting a prominent African-American as a monkey. We're not living in the (19)40's," he said. "Look at him . . . the hairline, the ears — he looks just like Curious George."About a dozen prostestors rallied against the shirts Tuesday afternoon, condemning them as racist and asking Norman, longtime proprietor of Mulligan's Bar and Grill on Roswell Street, to stop selling them.
Marietta native Pam Lindley, 47, joined the protest after reading about the controversy online.
"I don't want people to think this is what Marietta is all about," she added, motioning towards the tavern. "This is what some people think the South is still like. Marietta's come a long way but I guess it's still got a little ways to go."
What's just as scary is the poll results so far. I grabbed this last night from the same web-page. 
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No racism here. How 'bout we put a white hood on ol' Maverick McCain?
As a former resident of the Atlanta area for over 20 years, I can state that Marietta is indeed racist!
McCain could then say he was "honoring the Pope" by wearing "vestments."
I think the author or his family who wrote the Curious George books should sue this tavern owner for everything he's got. After all, this isn't the 1940's.
Read this by R.C. Lewontin, Professor Emeritus of Zoology at Harvard University, here is an excerpt:
Over the last thirty five years a major change has taken place in our biological understanding of the concept of human “race,” largely as a consequence of an immense increase in our knowledge of human genetics. As a biological rather than a social construct, “race” has ceased to be seen as a fundamental reality characterizing the human species.…
This is little more than a PR stunt. It is good that no one printed the name of the bar so that it would profit from the attention. No matter how nasty, people will flock to a place just to say they were there.
Wouldn't be the first time this country elected a chimp this century.
How can anyone with a brain not think this is racist!! I can just hear the slurs (and laughter) being made in the bar about it. Pathetic!! I feel sorry for the decent people of Marietta!
It's obviously racist. Overall, however, I think it's a pretty benign statement, I mean, listen to the messenger. He's a classic right-wing mouth breather.
That's the South for you. I lived down in FL for many years and came to know quite a number of blatant racists. But, of course, they don't see themselves as racists... They're just good ol' boys who love America!
I think the SNORGTEES Greece Lightning T-Shirt Banner Ad is more offensive.
Wow. This is embarrassing - I live here in Marietta. The results for "It's racist" are up a bit now, though. We'll see what they're like at the end of the day.
The difference in neighborhoods here regarding racism is extreme. You'll find places like where I live that are some of the most integrated spots imaginable - my father (from Ohio) calls my street "the UN." But then drive a few blocks and you've got rednecks flying the Confederate flag.
Can we PLEASE shut up about "this is the South for you"? I live in South Carolina, and this t-shirt would be offensive pretty much anywhere you go here. Might get your ass beaten down if you wore it in a college town. You want racism? Hell, go to Chicago. Go to Los Angeles. Be a black man walking in the wrong neighborhood in Brooklyn. Man, I get tired of folks who think they understand the South because they read some Faulkner once during a literature course.
Comparing a human to an ape is rarely used in a positive sense. W isn't referred to as 'the chimp' because he's so cute and like-able. If the bar owner is truly that oblivious to the insult in the comparison he needs some remedial education quickly, as do the other 41.65% who think it's fine.
ignorance is bliss
So, saying/printing "General Betray Us" needs an act of Congress, but this is fine. I'm wondering if the guy's business is suffering and he's hoping someone will burn it down.
How can someone with such an excellent blog not know how to spell "alike"?
Sorry, I just couldn't let this one pass.
When the opponent is a republican, we all know: "It's gonna get ugly."
America has to unite and flush the entire GOP down the toilet of history this november.
Ah, my current home state of Georgia once again making the news for our great traditions of tolerance and ethnic sensitivitude.
And they wonder why people have such a dim view of the south and southerners.
They ought to spend less time printing tee shirts and more time at their snake handlin' church.
The same restaurant used to display on its outdoor sign the message "I wish Hillary had married OJ."
And who can forget the Hillary "nutcracker," on sale at novelty shops around the country.
The Curious George T shirts need to go -- they are clearly racist.
I'd also like to see similar outrage at the sexist comments and actions that are routinely directed towards Hillary Clinton.
steve davis @ 13:
Yeah, OK. I guess living in North Florida for about 15 years doesn't quite qualify me to "understand the South." FYI, college towns everywhere are usually more progressive than normal.
Funny I always thought of Bush as an evil curious George, only dummerer.
Not only is it politically incorrect (or racist), it's grammatically incorrect. '08 with a single quote in front of the 08 should be an apostrophe. OK. that's the elitist desktop publisher in me railing against Microsoft smart quotes.
At least the Clintons have finally found a way to pay off their campaign debt.
Good grief! Not racist? Ummmmmmmm....what a bigoted jerk. Obama is a brave and talented man who doesn't deserve this.
cnn.com has a video of the klansman who owns the bar and the name of the place is no secret.
steve davis @ 13:
Dude, I've grown up in the south and have lived all over the country. Yes, many people everywhere would find this racist, but the difference is that in many parts of Dixie, people think racism is OK. People in other parts of the country may be racist, but most of them know it's not accepted (yet they are that way anyway.)
I'm having carpet installed, and one shop I looked into seemed to be just what I needed, and I was assured the job would be done well in the following manner: "Our installer has been working for us for years. He's a black man, but he does a good job." Oooooh, so glad he assured me of that, 'cos I'd be worried if an installer showed up at my house and his skin color was different than mine. How EVER could I trust him to do a good job?
steve davis @ 13:
You are spot on. Racism is alive and well all over this country. We even see racists who call themselves progressives and enlightened. The msm would have us believe we have come along way since MLK gave his "I have a dream speech". but the truth of the matter is,we haven't moved much at all.
Surely you jest. Racism? From the district that gave us Newt Gingrich?
I wonder what the copyright holder of the curious george trademark would think of this?
Agent_M @ 18:
The problem is that this racist is probably a good ole boy democrat.
There are many "progressive" bloggers that post here who would like to own that shirt.
Sorry, but I don't think the monkey on the t-shirt resembles Curious George. This is simply another blatant case of racism.
This country is an embarrassment.
Someone needs to start selling T-shirts with the side by side pictures of chimps and George W. Bush from www.bushorchimp.com. God, they could not be funnier. They get his stupid expressions and mannerisms exactly right every time. It's hilarious!
Jim @ 359:
Wow, and to think that in your feeble little mind, you thought that using the shield of intellectual dishonesty would allow you to get away with saying "blacks as dangerous savages that need to be kept away from normal people"
As I said it before, it takes a special kind.
I am not black, but if you were to call me a banana eating monkey, I will most definitively rearrange your face.
steve davis @ 13:
I wish blacks would get even with white racists. It's about time.
Wacko in Waco @ 2:
Atlanta has grown in population by around 400% in the last 20 years. It is hard to find a native Atlantan around town now.
The largest amount of growth has been in the suburbs, areas like Marietta.
Most of the people who have moved into the area are from the Northeast, Midwest, and West.
The majority I have seen are from California, Ohio, Illinois, and New York.
Most of the people here are making generalizations about people in the South when the majority of people in Atlanta are not from the South.
If you feel it is racist in the Atlanta area, it is not because of native Atlantans, but the people who have moved here.
There are racists everywhere in the world, not just the US, not just the South.
Michelle Obama supposedly wrote racist items in college. The Obamas frequented a church that spoke poorly about whites.
Everyone has biases.
To single out a group of people such as Southerners, calling them racist, is in itself discrimination.
Get over it and vote for the one with the best views and ideas.
I'd like to hear Obama's. Now his campaign seems to be as complicated as Curious George's life.
Instead of petting bunnies like Curious George, Obama talks about "change."
Give me some substance, so people can actually compare you to Clinton!
Harold @ 363:
That is a racist comment.
Statements like this just promote perpetuation of hatred between people.
There is no justification in revenge.
Even if it feels good, no good will ultimately come from it.
Harold @ 363:
How exactly does this fantasy of yours work. How would "blacks" (I assume you mean Black People) get even with racists?
Frankly, I wish that you would get your head out of your ass.
drago @ 340:
Back up your assertions about black folks, Armstrong and King with links. Prove it or shut up.
Probably some combination of both. They have to be stupid to get accepted into the training regime which involves being dropped on the head a few times.
The south will always be racist! These people are stuck in the 1940's.
Very clever, Obama!
Just like Hillary's fake "Iron My Shirt" rotuine, when she paid those two radio DJs to show the sign.
Real, old-style "false flag" politics.
The rubes and hicks are falling for it, too!
matt102 @ 365:
Here here. Dr. King thanks you.
How come nobodys going after the little girl and her mom who called the rush limbaugh show saying he looks like a monkey. That happened back in March. Thats probably where the guy got it from.
matt102 @ 364:
So let me see if I get this straight; It turns out that it is them Good Ol' Boys who are the victims here. Right?
Wow, did you come up with all that innuendo while supposedly having sex with that goat?
See, making shit up and adding "supposedly" as to not having to own to one's crap is fun!!!!
The intellectual dishonesty of some people can be rather amusing, in a car crash short of way....
bmw H. 528 @ 371:
Which Dr. King are we talking about, the sanitized "white folk" friendly Mattel version. Or the guy who was in the FBI's top Most Dangerous People in the country list?
The ironic thing about folks like Gandhi, MLK, et al is that their messages have been corrupted to such an extent. That it is now used by the descendants of the folks Gandhi et al fought against as a justification for other people to take their shit quietly.
Not only is it seriously offensive, but absolutely stupid. What's more, 40% of the poll respondents don't think it is.....wow.
Look at the positive side.
The monkey is cute.
He is not a liar and murder.
Like Bush and McCain it also is a knuckle walker. And they all three sling s..t at people they don't like.
And even though the monkey is only the figment of someone's imagination, he is still smarter the the flesh and blood, Yale, Harvard graduate,Commander-in-Chimp or McCain.
Mike @ 370:
yeah, people in the South would never do anything bigoted and/or racist...
JohnnyThief @ 362:
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jes @ 379:
You are making the assumption that the "bros before hoes" t-shirt is somehow acceptable, which is not.
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The results of the "poll" are not surprising!! I just went to the ajc.com link and "voted" to say I felt the t-shirt was racist -- which it is. I was immediately blocked from further access to their site without revealing personal information. Who is ajc? and why do they need to know the personal info on people offended by overt racism?
[Please don't post in all Caps or in all Bold lettering. It's YELLING and it's rude. Site Monitor.]
You see,for the inbred racist ,Obama is a poke in the eye.It.s killing them to see a black man who is eloquant,educated and who has the ability to captivate so many people.These bigot SOB would prefer to listen to a bumbling idiot we have.I'm not black,but if i was i'l be mighty proud of Obama.For the bigots out there, eat your heart out.Go back to Rush Limpball to get your marching orders. [Deleted-Sitemonitor]
Do you think if O'Reilly bought one he would have it personalized to
have Curious George shouting..."Give me some more mother fucken iced tea!"
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I don't think it's racist. Christ, I've been calling Dubya a chimp for damn near a decade now...
foolme1ns @ 4:
Just in on CNN, he is!
mark wall burg @ 382:
Get lost creep.
jojo @ 381:
Ignorant people of your ilk is the exact reason trash like Bush/Cheney have been in the White House for the past 8yrs.
I hope you suffer greatly.
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Rusty Shackleford @ 346:
I challenge you to find a black person who isn't offended by that t-shirt.
Clarence Thomas. He's already sold out most of the black interests in America, he's a perfect fit for Georgia. Want a comparison? He's a real like Uncle Ruckus, from The Boondocks. Just like the gay Republicans, self hate is a pretty great Republican trait.
Now, what was that about betting my entire life savings versus yours? :)
Here's something we can do. The divide is almost too big to be bridged anymore, so lets just widen this social rift. Let's go ahead and photoshop a picture of a priest molesting a little boy. "Child Molesting Closeted Gay Priests for McCain" would be a nice fit, whatcha think?
That poll should be a little different.
How do you feel about the Obama t-shirt?
It's racist
I'm racist
That's it. There should be no: It's fine. Cause it aint fucking fine.
diamondmc @ 33:
I am curious as to how you reached this conclusion?
This is so totally disgusting that I'm ashamed to be an American. I'm an oldster and I thought we had gone past this division by race. Does this man have any idea just how hurtful this is to not just Obama, but to all African American families to be pictured like that. There must be a remedy of some kind in the Courts. What does he think of Obama's white part? Between the sly Muslim slurs and race - we have really reached a new low in Politics.
Someone should put this on a t shirt with the words "Marrietta Georgian" underneath.
I just called Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in Boston to alert them that this guy is using their copyrighted imagery. I hope they are interested, and might put a stop to it. We''ll see.
ashton @ 36:
My point is that its not just repugs who are racists. Lets not delude ourselves that racism runs along party lines.
adam franklin @ 32:
I don't think he's going to like it! Someone needs to send this story to him! ;)
xoites (One White Vote for Obama) defends Constitution @ 38:
Nice one, Xoites!
It's offensive and racist.
The latest results of the Atlantic Journal overwhelmingly say it's racist too, which is a good sign:
What do you think of the Obama T-shirt?
It's racist 61.78% 13531
It's fine 38.22% 8371
Still nearly 40% think it's OK. Ugh.
Jerry Hooten @ 39:
Good job! In fact we should start a campaign to DEMAND that they get an injunction immeadiatly.
As West Virginia shows, most white Americans are still not ready to elect a black man as their president. Sadly, I'm afraid a lot of people will vote Red strictly on account of skin color.
Left&Left @ 34:
Really? Name one?
I wish I could say I'm shocked that someone in this day and age and in this country of all places, would openly display something like that but sad to say I'm not.
That t-shirt sums up the USA in a nutshell. We give lip service to a whole bunch of lofty ideals but when you peel back the phony facade we reveal ourselves to be crude, racist, hateful and ignorant.
It's a sad day to be an American.
actually I have two thoughts when i see this
1. i love curious george, why would any body use his cute little powers for evil.
2. hey, i didn't know george bush endorses Obama
If you don't have a problem with Bros before Hoe's, then you shouldn't have a problem with the Curious George shirt or is sexism crap different?
its the banana that makes it racist. its irrelevant and that makes the monkey a symbol. if it was a flag pin or a red turban or something politically satirical it would be fine because, yeah, he looks like a monkey as much as george bush looks like a monkey. some people just look like freakin monkeys.
Shouldn't Curious George be holding a m****r f*****g iced tea too?
Why is this OK?
http://www.bushorchimp.com/
My only problem with all this is that no one really stepped up when all the racist cartoons where coming out about Condoleezza Rice. Many of the cartoons that where being printed in news papers depicted her with monkey features but they did not make make national news no one asked for the papers to fire the people responsible. Why is it that only conservatives can be racist?
during the past 8 years "curious george" was a political statement always associated with the bush administrations inept of foriegn policy, katrina, and the economy.
It is very ironic that it would be used by a republican on Obama,
is it racists? yep.
but more so its a copy right infringement.
its a missappropriation of an image, owned by an author /childrens book publishing company.
so sue mr Bubba appropriately
I never would have believed that President "Curious" George Bush would endorse Senator Obama, that is the Pesident in the picture right!
yeaaa leave it up to YT to make T-shirts like that. ((SMH))No suprise. I knew something like this was gonna happen soon......I agree with the person that said why don't we put a white hood on ol' (and I do mean OLD) Maverick McCain's head. And throw in a swastica too and a burning cross while you'r at it.
Pecka-wood is on the prow as usaual. (rollineyes)
hell no this ain't racist, just like the KKK and the Minutemen are comprised of fine upstanding citizens all just trying to uphold what's right about this country. Someone commented "find one black person who is not offended by this shirt." I would suppose that one needn't look any further than asking a Black who is in the Republican party.
dlm @ 390:
perhaps because there has not been a spate of references to the Caucasian race as having monkey or ape-like features as have been applied to African-Americans for at least the last two hundred years. maybe that is why they are a little more sensitive to racist digs.
Russo @ 384:
Clarence Thomas. He's already sold out most of the black interests in America, he's a perfect fit for Georgia. Want a comparison? He's a real like Uncle Ruckus, from The Boondocks. Just like the gay Republicans, self hate is a pretty great Republican trait.
Now, what was that about betting my entire life savings versus yours? :)
Here's something we can do. The divide is almost too big to be bridged anymore, so lets just widen this social rift. Let's go ahead and photoshop a picture of a priest molesting a little boy. "Child Molesting Closeted Gay Priests for McCain" would be a nice fit, whatcha think?
Clarence Thomas - good call. The check's in the mail. :^)