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This isn't a "witch hunt" against Paula Deen for using the N-word once 30 years ago when someone put a gun to her head. This is a woman that has a history of using the N-word in her workplace as well as wanting her black employees to dress up as slaves for the amusement of her family and God knows what else.
Her racism isn't the worst part. She has the right to feel however she feels about whoever. The worst part is her denials of being a racist then speaking out against it not because it's the right thing to do but because her business was being threatened.
Sorry but she gets not an ounce of sympathy from me.
I don't think Deen using the n-- word once long ago is worthy of all this brouhaha either. But I did read the complaint filed against her restaurant which is run by her brother. If the complaint is correct the resto which she owns, is in serious trouble with the feds. The accusations include sexual harassment, refusal of management to allow Black employees use the rest room in the front of the restaurant, refusal to address numerous complaints about sexual harassment, paying a female in a responsible position less than male employees in less responsible positions, refusal of a raise for a female employee based on her divorce, refusal to transfer the employer to a different job, and on and on. This employee was not even allowed her own email account, but had to share email with Deen's brother who frequently left porn up for her to see.
To me these allegations are more serious than a one time use of the n-- word. I believe it is alleged that racial epithets were used in the resto as well.
Deen refused to intervene, or get involved. Her accountant/general manager refused to act. Finally the complainant had to quit. She then found out that the well had been poisoned by the Deens, and she ultimately had to find employment in another town.
I'm not sympathetic to Deen for the above reasons, but it is maddening to see such a landslide of disapproval for something that isn't that significant, when there is so much more to this that is terribly significant. And this sort of thing happens again and again, doesn't it? Later, much later, we find out that what we thought was awful, was not actually true. Witness the IRS thing, where now we know that the IRS was targeting all sorts of citizen groups to make sure they were what they represented themselves to be. People lost their jobs over this. And much of it appears to be manufactured.
But, back to Deen, it will be interesting to see if Deen settles out of court. I predict she will.
Yes, and if those things are true then that is different than all that is going on now. But she hasn't even had her day in court yet. She has allegations against her but she hasn't been found guilty of anything. I thought a person was innocent until proven guilty. Yes, those companies have a right to distance themselves from her but it all seems a little hasty and rush to judgment to me.
One wonders if Capitol One will now release Mr. Baldwin for his tweets which were not only filled with foul language, he made some very derogatory remarks about gays. I've not seen outrage anywhere about him. People are just so hypocritical and over the top PC,
Definitely a witch hunt. It's sickening how many companies are cutting ties with her because of the accusations of a former employee. Bubba sounds like a jerk, but my God, how many years must we go back looking at every word Paula uttered? Who hasn't said or did something that someone else considered offensive? Must we all be fired from our jobs and be ostracized by our peers? I don't like Paula Deen much, but what is happening to her isn't fair at all.
BTW, I don't see the difference between calling someone colored or black. How is being called colored offensive? Most African Americans aren't black at all.
It is nothing new for celebrities to fall from grace due to bad judgement in the past coming back to haunt them. It happens all the time, she isn't being singled out. Advertisers and businesses cut their ties to avoid controversy, no one should be surprised that their only concern is profit, that is all they are obligated by their shareholders to focus on.
I do not support the views she seemed to express in the things she said, but I am also aware that she was raised in a culture that was different than mine was here in the northeast. I don't think she is hateful, just insensitive and showed poor judgement.
Definitely a witch hunt. It's sickening how many companies are cutting ties with her because of the accusations of a former employee. Bubba sounds like a jerk, but my God, how many years must we go back looking at every word Paula uttered? Who hasn't said or did something that someone else considered offensive? Must we all be fired from our jobs and be ostracized by our peers? I don't like Paula Deen much, but what is happening to her isn't fair at all.
BTW, I don't see the difference between calling someone colored or black. How is being called colored offensive? Most African Americans aren't black at all.
It's not just the accusations of a former employee. It's the accusations of several former employees. Why would a company want to alienate any demographic of customers by doing business with someone that openly displays hostility towards said customers?
No one cares that she's a racist. She's a 66 year old Southern white woman so I'm quite certain the N-word was never unfamiliar to her growing up. Times, however, have changed and just because it may have been socially acceptable to publically say it when she was young doesn't make it so today. Words have power and if you're not willing to think before you open your mouth then that means you're willing to accept whatever consequences come from it. She's now finding this out the hard way.
What does your last statement have to do with anything? It's not for you, me, or anyone else to decide or question what's offensive to any group of people. The racists don't get to define what's racism (not calling you a racist but simply underlining my point). Blacks don't want to be called colored no more than whites want to be called pale faces or Native Americans called Injuns.
It's always confused me when a black person calls another the N word, it's acceptable, yet when a white uses the term, it's racist.
Those of us who were brought up before the civil rights movement vividly remember hearing the term used frequently. I'm not inferring it was right, just a fact of life. We were mugged a gunpoint by two black man and I have to admit the N word came back to me with a vengeance. My spouse became afraid every time she saw two black males together, refused to go out alone and it took years for her to come to terms with it.
I don't feel Paula Deen should be punished the way the media has been doing nor should the public be so righteous, acting like they have never used or heard the word. I don't believe she is a racist and those coming out of the woodwork to sue her are jumping on the bandwagon for their 5 minutes of fame and possibly some of her money.
Must we all be fired from our jobs and be ostracized by our peers?
When your job is based purely upon public acceptance, hell yeah!
Dean is in the entertainment business, she had endorsements not just because she was the greatest cook in the south (I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt) but because she was popular with the public and public good will sells products. When you lose that good will, for any reason, you have no value. No value, no sales, no sales, no profits, no profits no endorsement deals.
I'm not sure why this is too hard to understand... well that's a lie. I know perfectly well why this is so incomprehensible to some folks.
Last edited by ovcatto; 06-28-2013 at 07:06 PM..
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Alec Baldwin
