Saturday, March 13, 2010

#199. Black Barbie Dolls


Amidst the People of Walmart rests a haunting secret, for lurking on one of the shelf’s sits merchandise so impossible to unload that it turns the laws governing revenue management inside out and threatens to reverse years of economic teachings.

In a nation of 300 million people (13 percent of that population being Black), the predominate form of entertainment for young girls has been through the Barbie doll, an innocuous toy analogous to a young boys G.I. Joe.

However, a horrifying, mortifying, stupefying dangerously offensive secret was revealed recently that threatens to endanger the market capitalization of Mattel, the company that manufactures Barbie. As of late, other toys targeted for young girls – mainly the hip-hop influenced Bratz – has cut into the market share of Barbie, but recent economic indicators point and strong sales of Ken’s former girlfriend point to excellent returns for investors:

Don't bet against Barbie.

Sales of Mattel Inc.'s fashion icon and her pink-and-white empire increased for the first time in almost two years, helping put some holiday cheer into Mattel's fourth-quarter earnings.

That and cost cutting helped the No. 1 U.S. toymaker's fourth-quarter profit jump 86 percent on a 1 percent sales increase.

"Barbie is back," CEO Bob Eckert said.

Mattel seems to be back as well. The better-than-expected earnings are a big improvement from the previous year, the weakest holiday season in decades, when Mattel's profit slid by nearly half and revenue dropped 11 percent.

The improvements stem from price increases taken over the past year and a global cost-cutting program. During the year the company cut jobs, improved its supply chain, reduced the number of items it developed and slashed capital spending to offset weak sales.

Sales of Barbie - who turned 50 last year - rose 12 percent in the quarter, including a 9 percent rise in the United States and a 14 percent jump internationally.

Key items were Barbie's new Fashionista line, which are smaller, more bendable Barbies accompanied by fashionable accessories; I Can Be Barbies, which depict Barbie in career outfits; and accessories such as a camper and townhouse.

The sales increase was "by far the biggest increase in Barbie sales in over 10 years," said Needham & Co. analyst Sean Needham.

And the brand continues to show momentum, after stagnation for several years. Eckert said Barbie market share and retail orders are up so far this year.

"I think the product line has turned a corner," said BMO Capital Markets analyst Gerrick Johnson. "It looks sharper, more relevant than it has in the past."

During the three months ended Dec. 31, Mattel profit rose to $328.4 million, or 89 cents per share, during the quarter. Excluding a tax benefit, earnings totaled 81 cents per share - handily beating Wall Street forecasts of 68 cents per share.

The resurgence of Barbie comes at a time when the secret crept out for all to see and behold, as the price-cutting giant Walmart was working to unload a commodity few wanted nor desired, and at a price below the market value of the traditional Barbie.

You see, although the brand Barbie is undergoing undeniably fortuitous sales far above the expectations of Wall-Street, some members of the Barbie family are being left behind… and No Child should be Left Behind:

Walmart is raising eyebrows after cutting the price of a black Barbie doll to nearly half of that of the doll's white counterpart at one store and possibly others.


A photo first posted to the humor Web site FunnyJunk.com and later to the Latino Web site Guanabee.com shows packages of Mattel's Ballerina Barbie and Ballerina Theresa dolls hanging side by side at an unidentified store. The Theresa dolls, which feature brown skin and dark hair, are marked as being on sale at $3.00. The Barbies to the right of the Theresa dolls, meanwhile, retain their original price of $5.93. The dolls look identical aside from their color.


Editors at Guanabee.com said the person responsible for the photo told the Web site that it was taken at a Louisiana Walmart store. The person did not return e-mails from ABCNews.com.
A Walmart spokeswoman, who could not verify the exact store shown in the photo, said that the price change on the Theresa doll was part of the chain's efforts to clear shelf space for its new spring inventory.


"To prepare for (s)pring inventory, a number of items are marked for clearance, " spokeswoman Melissa O'Brien said in an e-mail. "... Both are great dolls. The red price sticker indicates that this particular doll was on clearance when the photo was taken, and though both dolls were priced the same to start, one was marked down due to its lower sales to hopefully increase purchase from customers."


"Pricing like items differently is a part of inventory management in retailing," O'Brien said.
But critics say Walmart should have been more sensitive in its pricing choice.


"The implication of the lowering of the price is that's devaluing the black doll," said Thelma Dye, the executive director of the Northside Center for Child Development, a Harlem, N.Y. organization founded by pioneering psychologists and segregation researchers Kenneth B. Clark and Marnie Phipps Clark.
"While it's clear that's not what was intended, sometimes these things have collateral damage," Dye said.


Other experts agree. Walmart could have decided "that it's really important that we as a company don't send a message that we value blackness less than whiteness," said Lisa Wade, an assistant sociology professor at Occidental College in Los Angeles and the founder of the blog Sociological Images.
Last year, Wade posted a blog entry on another case where a black doll was apparently priced less than its white counterpart at an unidentified store. Wade said that when white dolls outsell black dolls, it's usually because black parents are more likely than white parents to buy their children dolls of a different race.


"Most white parents wouldn't think to buy black doll for their child, even if they believe in equality and all those things," she said.


Overcoming 'Decades of Racial and Economic Subordination'
Decades after segregation and the civil rights movement, studies show Americans -- both black and white -- continue to internalize the heirarchical notion that lighter skin tone is considered "better than" darker, Wade said.


One landmark study revealing color hierarchies among black children took place in the 1940s. Run by the Clarks, Northside's founders, the study asked a group of black children to choose between playing with white dolls and black dolls; 63 percent chose the white dolls.


Last year, following the inauguration of the country's first black president, "Good Morning America" revisited the experiment. This time, at least some of the results were markedly different: of the 19 black children surveyed, 42 percent said they'd rather play with a black doll compared with 32 percent for the white doll. But when asked which doll was prettier, nearly half of the girls in the group chose the white doll.


"Black children develop perceptions about their race very early. They are not oblivious to this. There's still that residue. There's still the problem, the overcoming years, decades of racial and economic subordination," Harvard University professor William Julius Wilson told "Good Morning America."
Wade said that Walmart could have chosen to keep the dolls at equal prices in an effort not to "reproduce whatever ugly inequalities are out there."


But Sociological Images co-author Gwen Sharp, a sociology professor at Nevada State College, said that inequality might not necessarily be what's behind Ballerina Theresa's lagging sales.
Black parents, she said, may simply choose black dolls whose physical features hew more closely to those of themselves and their children. Barbie has weathered critcism in the past for producing dolls that bear little resemblance to the ethnicities they represent.


"Maybe for both parents and kids, it seems more real and less symbolic of a change to have a doll that actually presents a range of attractive features rather than 'Oh we've changed the skin tone slightly,'" Sharp said.

Last year, Barbie manufacturer Mattel debuted a new line of African American dolls, "So In Style," designed to better resemble black women's facial features with wider cheeks, broader noses and fuller lips.


"I wanted to make sure that the makeup and face and skin tone was true to girls in my community," doll designer Stacey McBride-Irby said in a video on the So In Style Web site.


A Mattel spokeswoman said that the So In Style dolls have met with a "great response" and are part of the toymaker's 2010 catalogue.


Whatever Ballerina Thesesa's lagging sales may say about society, retail analyst Lori Wachs said Walmart may ultimately regret their pricing choice. The discount giant, which reported a quarterly profit of $4.7 billion last month, could have absorbed whatever loss it might have suffered had it kept Ballerina Theresa's price the same as that of Ballerina Barbie.


"I fully respect retailers rights to mark things down as they see fit but I also think they need to look at the bigger picture," Wachs said. "I think there are certain things companies have to be sensitive about and clearly this was one of them."

The "bigger picture"? The rest of this entry will showcase why the bigger picture isn't a positive one.

For those wondering what that ominous secret is need only read “The Walmart Effect”, a book that describes the incredibly efficient advanced analytics and pricing algorithms garnered through complex consumer spending to locate the best price for maximum purchases by shoppers. Aggregating the data from disparate Walmart stores (geographically), Walmart pricing analysts can ascertain the most efficient prices to sell goods and quantify prices to best divest unwanted goods to calibrate the actual market price it should conceivably sell for to the general public:

the real story of Wal-Mart, the story that never gets told, is the story of the pressure the biggest retailer relentlessly applies to its suppliers in the name of bringing us "every day low prices." It's the story of what that pressure does to the companies Wal-Mart does business with, to U.S. manufacturing, and to the economy as a whole. That story can be found floating in a gallon jar of pickles at Wal-Mart.

Thus, the reason the Black Barbie doll was marked down to $3 dollars, as Walmart analytic research had established that was the price point at which the doll should sell for, although the white Barbie doll was nearly 100 percent higher priced because it was still being purchased at that price!

For those wondering what we are talking about, please consult this link about revenue management, so you can understand the dreaded secret that priced Black Barbie below the white Barbie doll.

Black people have long had a hate/hate relationship with Barbie, yet never yield nor waver in their demands for a more favorable doll that reflects Black physiology:

With so few black dolls on toy-store shelves, many black parents had high hopes when toy powerhouse Mattel Inc. released So in Style, its first line of black dolls with wider noses, fuller lips, sharper cheekbones and a variety of skin shades.

Now, despite the company's efforts to solicit input from a group of high-profile black women, including Cookie Johnson, wife of former basketball star Magic Johnson, some parents are saying the dolls aren't black enough. They complain that five of the six dolls feature fine-textured, waist-length hair; half of them have blue or green eyes.

Moreover, all have the freakishly skinny body of a Barbie (something that irks some white parents as well).

"I thought it was unfortunate that once again we're given a doll with hair that is so unlike the vast majority of black women," says Cheryl Nelson-Grimes, the mother of a 7-year-old girl and a resident of Queens, N.Y. "I feel very strongly that I want my daughter to love herself for who she is and not believe that using a hot comb or straightening her hair is the only way to be beautiful."

The criticism over Mattel's new black fashion dolls underscores how difficult it is for large commercial companies to please a widely diverse black community with a single image or two depicting young African-Americans.

"If they had given the dolls short, kinky hair or an Afro, people might have complained that it was too Afro-centric," says Nicole Coles, a 40-year-old mother from Temecula, Calif. "We're so hard and picky."

Mattel nonetheless has taken the comments to heart and plans to expand the line in the fall of 2010 to include a doll with more of an Afro hairstyle.

Like Mattel, Walt Disney Co. met with a number of black advisers while making its first animated movie featuring a black heroine, "The Princess and the Frog," which opens widely next week. Based on their feedback, the heroine's name was changed to Tiana from Maddy, which was thought to be too close to mammy, and her job went from a maid to a waitress, according to Dee Dee Jackson, national president of Mocha Moms, a support group for women of color that Disney consulted for input on the film. "Her skin hue is darker, her hair is in Afro puffs as a young child, and her features are full but not exaggerated," Ms. Jackson says.

This isn't Mattel's first foray into creating black dolls. The El Segundo, Calif.-based toy maker first introduced a black doll in 1967, when it painted Barbie's cousin Francie brown. Two years later, Barbie got a black friend named Christie. A black Barbie came along in 1980, but her features were almost identical to those of her white counterpart.

The expensive line of American Girl dolls, also owned by Mattel, features a black doll named Addy Walker, a runaway slave whose story is set during the Civil War. But with a price tag of $95, it is out of reach for a lot of families.

Other toy lines, including the popular Polly Pocket miniatures, also made by Mattel, include only a few black dolls. "Polly Pocket only has one or two brown dolls, and my daughters fight over them," says Mary Broussard-Harmon, a mother of three girls from Corona, Calif.

Doll designer Stacey McBride-Irby says she sought to fill the black-doll void when she dreamed up So In Style dolls for Mattel two years ago. Ms. McBride-Irby says she wanted to give her 6-year-old daughter a wider choice of "dolls that looked like her."

The sad state of Black Barbie sales must be explained by the lack of Blackness these dolls exude, for they have white features that Sir Mix-a-Lot would find unsettling and sadly inhabit countless toy shelves instead of Black kids rooms.

If you’ve seen the family film Jingle All the Way, you’ll understand what we mean when we say the demand for Black Barbie dolls is inversely proportional to the demand for Turbo Man dolls.

This isn’t the first time a company has sold Black dolls for less than white dolls, as just last year Baby Alive dolls were embroiled in a similar scandal, with Black dolls selling for 10 percent less than their white counterpart.

Dolls have played an integral part in American history, as the landmark Brown V. Board of Education decision utilized doll studies to conclude segregation was wrong. Unfortunately, these doll studies also conclude something else entirely:

Fifty years after psychologist Kenneth Clark conducted the doll test that was used to help make the case for desegregation in the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education, a 17-year-old filmmaker redid the social experiment and learned that not much has changed.

In the 1954 test, Clark showed children a black doll and a white doll and asked black children which doll they preferred. The majority chose the white. The findings were not surprising for the time. In the summer of 2005, Kiri Davis, a high-school teen, sat with 21 black kids in New York and found that 16 of them liked the white doll better.

"Can you show me the doll that you like best?" Davis asked a black girl in the film. The girl picked the white doll immediately. When asked to show the doll that "looks bad," the girl chose the black doll. But when Davis asked the girl, "Can you give me the doll that looks like you?" the black girl first touched the white doll and then reluctantly pushed the black doll ahead. Watch the video.

The film has left audiences across the country stunned and has reignited a powerful debate over race.

"You hear the audience really gasp because they feel the pain," said Thelma Dye, who worked in Northside Center for Child Development, founded by the late doctor Clark.

"The result of the test is just as painful as [it was in the] 1950s," Thelma Dye said on ABC. "I would not take the film to say all the black children's self-esteem is suffering. We have to continue to ask questions about this film, to ask questions about its meaning."

For Davis, the film was personal. "I remember when I was little," Davis said. "People told me I can't be a princess because I was black. All princesses aren't black. These little things get you after awhile."

Black girls like white dolls (about the only thing that Tiger Woods would find agreeable with Black people). Even at discounted rates – thanks to complex analytical formulas that show Black dolls don’t sell at the same rates as white dolls – Black people still find them untenable.

Even in the film Small Soldiers, the paucity of Black Barbie dolls is noticeable (go to 10:25 in the video to see the hilarious scene).

Stuff Black People Don’t Like includes Black Barbie dolls, because study after study concludes Black girls want to play with white dolls. Like Tiger Woods, they find the white dolls prettier. Not much of a secret anymore.









25 comments:

Anonymous said...

I know to to fix this. Affirmative action for dolls. Have a required number of black dolls, and sell them at equal value sd the whites, no matter if they do as good as the white dolls in sales. Just like real affirmative action. That might also mean a few trannie barbies, both pre op and post op. Lesbian barbies, both butch and lipstick. Maybe Obama could even pass a law forcing stores to sell dolls at equal value no matter how well they sell. Oh, I just love diversity so much!!!!!!!

Phalluster said...

imagine the outrage if the black dolls were twice as expensive, inhibiting the spread of diversity. what a social injustice!

the common theme is: complaining.

Anonymous said...

I think I will start buying all the white Barbies I can find. You can bet that in the near future King 0bama will issue one of his executive orders that outlaws everything white, and I'll make a fortune selling white dolls on the black market to black people. heh heh

XD45

Anonymous said...

Shouldn't the black Barbie have been priced at three fifths of the white Barbie?

I would entertain the idea of buying a black Barbie if she were more realistic. You know, if she came with food stamps, a Cadillac Escalade, a positive HIV test, and a black 'Ken' doll (L'Ken? Kenshaw, maybe?) boyfriend who beats the shit out of her. One of black 'Ken's' outfits could be a prison uniform. If I was running Mattel, black 'Ken' would come equipped with a meat thermometer, so he can keep whitey in check while enjoying a movie.

You are right, Phalluster. Imagine the outrage if subhuman Barbie was more expensive than human Barbie.

-Dale Nixon

NC17 said...

Yeah right, I'm pretty sure "king" Obama's daughters like most black little girls only has a Black Barbie because someone forced it on them, and they still play mostly with the white one.

Anonymous said...

Dale Nixon,

Do you actually understand the 3/5th compromise in its actual historical context? You have to read a real history book for that information. If that is too difficult for you, There's always the next black history month "celebration".

I guess you blame the public system for that one.

-Black guy

Anonymous said...

Black Guy (L'Roi, right?) -

I completely understand the 3/5th compromise, why would you assume I do not? My "three fifths" comment was obviously humor, and apparently you weren't capable of grasping that. You, like the rest of your race, are well conditioned to believe that people with my point of view are "ignorant," etc. If you had three fifths of my education, you would probably be the first negro in history to win a Nobel Prize in medicine. By the way, I am very proud to be 5/5ths.

"I guess you blame the public system for that one."

Huh? Which 'one'? What the hell are you talking about? What is the correlation between "the public system" and the first paragraph you wrote? I blame the public system for what? Black History Month? The 3/5th compromise? Celebrations? The fact that you are in my Country and stealing oxygen? I have been reading your posts here for quite some time, and have observed that you are a big fan of the fragmented sentence, but that statement is a complete non-sequitur. Black Guy, I think you do more to further the point of this blog than you realize.

I can only surmise that you are assuming I attended public school, and this is the reason for my "ignorance." I most certainly did not attend public school. If you attended private school, I would suggest that you ask for a partial refund, as your written communicative skills are atrocious. Although, since only 16% of negores have an IQ above 100, you must be the Albert Einstein of your locale.

Additionally, you stated that I have never read a real history book. This is completely laughable. Do you mean to imply that there are counterfeit history books? Who makes them? Most members of your race are criminally inclined, but I don't believe that negroes would counterfeit books. It would be as absurd as a negro counterfeiting a condom (by the way, please encourage all members of your family to use them).

-Dale Nixon

Anonymous said...

Do you actually understand the 3/5th compromise in its actual historical context? You have to read a real history book for that information. If that is too difficult for you, There's always the next black history month "celebration".

I guess you blame the public system for that one.

-Black guy

One more thing, negro guy. There was no need to capitalize "There's" after a comma. Please go to night school and take an English course. Please. You aren't as intelligent as you am think you be.

I guess you (can?) blame the public system for that one.


-Dale Nixon

Critical Thinker said...

Black Guy, the 3/5th compromise revolved around issues of representation and taxation for the slave states. Northerners wanted black slaves to not count as people so as to deprive the South of representation, despite the fact that counting slaves would result in Southern states being taxed more.

Southerners wanted slaves to count as full people for purposes of greater political representation in the House of Representatives and the electoral college. The higher taxation that would accompany counting slaves was seen as less important than political power.

Anyway, none of that's the point. Who cares about the specifics of the 3/5th compromise? The point of Dale Nixon's joke was that pricing the black barbie at three fifths of the white barbie would evoke the 3/5th compromise.

Stuff black people don't like: Historical allusions.

Anonymous said...

OOOOOO YOU JUST GOT KNOCKED THE FUCK OUT!!!!

Anonymous said...

I am SO happy my people don't but this crap for their daughters. This shows a decidedly intelligent response to that plastic and ill proportioned Mattel trash.

AND..if you whites are honest with yourselves, you will admit that buying this CRAP for your daughters is just as harmful. It promotes a unattainable "beauty" standard. Even her very proportions have been likened to a beast/animal. White or Black, I would NEVER buy this crap for my daughter. I know Black, White, Asian, Indian,ect. people who just don't buy into this Mattel mess and good for them. ALL of them.

I'm sure some of you will say something negative but this..this isn't about Asian vs. Black. vs. White vs. ect. This is about our daughters being brought up with a healthy self image and Barbie just doesn't do it.

I also have a problem with the way they have emasculated Ken/men. I understand that children don't need to see genitalia but dang, can't Ken at least get some decent clothes and some "real" hair?! LOL

Anonymous said...

Kradmelder says...
How well would Sambo dolls sell if they were placed next to black barbies?
The sales of these dolls reflect the desirability of black women. The majority of black women are ugly, loud, and rude. They are a curse upon the world as they breed more useless eaters just like themselves.
Despite what black women physically are, what makes them really detestable is how they behave and act. No one really wants to be around them, even their own males find them repulsive. Every thing they say or do is abusive and selfish. They live as ungrateful parasites on AA or welfare. Despite having all the blessings of White Mans technology and the benefits of living in the civilization created by decent people, black females show the morality of alley cats and behave as cannibal savages.
The way they treat their unwanted bastard children is also a reason those same children do not want black dolls.

Anonymous said...

Such hurtful things on this site. Do you hate black people? If so, WHY? WHY are you so racist?

Anonymous said...

During a sale at a big toy store, a customer asked, "Does this Barbie come with Ken?"
The weary and cynical checkout clerk said, "No, she's married to Ken, she comes with G.I. Joe".

By the way, I can't seem to post with only my name. A URL is demanded, which I don't have, just an email address.

Stuff Black People Don't Like said...

Gentlemen (perhaps ladies posting too),

Let's refrain from personal attacks in posts. The Barbie doll situation is one of simple economics, as the invisible hand of Adam Smith comes into play and attempts to move an unwanted supply of goods where an artificial demand was created.

Thus, the need to lower prices to an appropriate market value the consumer is willing to spend (however that might conflict with the pride of Black, notwithstanding).

As the nation becomes increasingly non-white in children 10 and under (half of all births are to non-whites), how will the sale of dolls reflect the demographic trends?

Again... no need for personal attacks around here guys. Black guy is a valued poster, as are all posters.

Anon at 12:05 a.m. - your comments intrigue me, because they do bring to life truth about beauty and standards that govern such.

Watching shows like "Project Runway" and "America's Next Top Model" one is left with the impression that gay men are dictating what is deemed beautiful.

The fashion industry is run by homosexuals... this is a statement of fact.

To me, this is nonsense. A casual glance at Victoria's Secret or Sports Illustrated Swim Suit issue will show you what all heterosexual men deem attractive.

I pity all men raising daughters in this world. Being a guy, I know how we think and how easily we look at women as mere objects.

To the anon who asked why are such hurtful things writing on this site...

Come on dude! For a people who voted 96-1 in favor of Obama and still support him with 94 percent approval ratings, trying to peg this site as racist is pathetic.

You ask why, like some tired recording of Annie Lenox, are we racist? We are not. This site provides real-world anecdotes and evidence (read every link) to justify EVERY entry posted.

Cracker Americanus said...

It is obvious. White people are more attractive. Black people are driven to evolve.

Anonymous said...

"Stuff black people don't like: Historical allusions."

Genius. Pure Genius.

Anonymous said...

I'm surprised no one mentioned how this pricing fiasco is essentially subsidizing a lower price on the black doll with the money of whites (that buy the white model).

Dave

Anonymous said...

So what else is new Dave? SBPDL... Black Guy fired the first shot but I agree rather look forward to his posts. He certainly can make a more intellegent case than say...Micheal Vick could have.

Anonymous said...

Im sorry but websites like this show the true side of white america racist angry bitter and JEALOUS. Lets here some comments correcting my grammar and spelling even though it doesnt mean anything since the internet is anonymous. Most of them are immature teenagers whites with little to no accomplishments in life or failed losers still living with their mom or dad blaming their failure on the very few number of blacks who benefit from affirmative action. Blacks have been kicked around and treated like crap for centuries and there are no more than ten black racist websites. Even those websites arent as bad as this website or STORMFRONT.

Jefferson age 13

Stuff Black People Don't Like said...

Last ANON,

Racist, angry, bitter... JEALOUS?

What?

Why would I be angry that Black Barbies go for 40 percent less than white dolls?

Why would I be jealous that Black dolls sell far less frequently than white dolls?

I could care less about your grammar, dude. But what I do care about is those who aren't the beneficiaries of affirmative action.

That number is actually quite high, dude. Black people do benefit to the point where they find themselves represented disproportionately in most government agencies.

http://adversity.net/fed_stats/OPM2007/001_blacksFY2006.htm

Black people have been treated bad in the past, you are correct. Problem is, I wasn't part of it, nor do I feel the least bit a part of that history.

I have no white guilt. You apparently have plenty of Black Anger though that no amount of reparations could ever amend.

10 Black racist websites exist, eh? The problem is, they all get sponsored by Fortune 500 companies (NAACP, BLACK PLANET - great site by the way - and others all have corporate sponsorship.

MONEY!! They get money from white corporations... evil websites espousing white supremacy don't.

This site, by the way, doesn't espouse anything, except works as an aggregation of news stories from across the nation that deal with Black people.

Jefferson... outside of your school lurks a big world. You already have done a few things most students (white or Black) don't do... and that is read.

More power to you. Never stop reading, never stop learning and never stop educating yourself about views that not only solidify your positions on life, but also read conflicting viewpoints.

The only nation that loves diversity is America. That won't last much longer.

Assignment for you, Jefferson, if you choose to take it: read the entry on "hate facts"... or "Listening to the CDC"...

everything cited in those articles is fact, every piece of evidence supplied for reputable sources.

Can facts be racist, my friend? If so, the world is headed toward a most unpleasant future.

Anonymous said...

Jefferson, I disagree with you. This site is an excellent source for debate in regards to race, something that is sorely lacking in the U.S. and Europe. SBPDL made an excellent argument that counter your own opinions, and I also ask you to accept the assignment you were challenged with.

An additional comment that I feel compelled to make, is that spelling, grammar and punctuation MOST CERTAINLY MATTER. I find this especially true on the internet, where there is no other way to asses an individuals intellect. If you dont know where to place a period or comma, or how to properly construct a sentence, it means one of two things; either you have a room temperature IQ, or you are poorly educated (or more than likely a combination of both). Trust me Jefferson, you will always be judged by how well you write (or don't write).

I dont have much use for Stormfront either. Amren (www.Amren.com), however, is an excellent website that would definitely be worth your time.

-Dale Nixon

Critical Thinker said...

So, I guess we whites are jealous of blacks? It's funny the way blacks always claim that white "racists" are simply jealous of blacks, which causes them to be bigoted against blacks.

Sorry, but we're not jealous of you. We're not jealous of the fact that EVERYWHERE in the world, blacks are at the bottom. The unique legacy of "systemic racism," slavery, and Jim Crow cannot account for black failure. Whether they're living in the United States, Central/South America and the Caribbean, Africa, Europe, or even certain parts of Asia, blacks are at the bottom of the world's food chain.

Blacks claim that they were the first philosophers, mathematicians, doctors, etc. Africa, even after years of imperialism and plundering of resources, still possesses the greatest natural resources in the world. So, unless I'm mistaken, blacks created the first great civilizations/empires, medicine, mathematics, and philosophy. In addition to these wonderful accomplishments, Africa also possessed the greatest natural resources known to man.

Blacks are basically admitting that they gave up the greatest head start in human history!

So, Jefferson, I'm not jealous of a people who are unable to create lasting civilizations and thrive in today's world despite possessing a dearth of natural resources. Yeah, some whites might be jealous of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and other great black athletes. But trust me, we're not jealous of you.

Anonymous said...

How do you expect black people to be on top of the world when have been treated like objects for years and placed at the bottom of the pecking order?
Wow! I am literally shocked that Americans still make such racist comments in this day and age. I live in Canada and honestly had no idea of the extent to which people still think this way.

"Blacks are basically admitting that they gave up the greatest head start in human history!" Regardless whether or not this comment is correct, how would they accomplish this after being SOLD INTO SLAVERY? They didn't voluntarly "give something up".

This topic was about how CHILDREN think they are UGLY because of how their race is portrayed by the media and by society. Such a disgrace to turn this into a rascist bashing session.

Anonymous said...

-"Blacks are basically admitting that they gave up the greatest head start in human history!" Regardless whether or not this comment is correct, how would they accomplish this after being SOLD INTO SLAVERY? They didn't voluntarly "give something up".-


So you're telling me that EVERY black person on Earth has at one point been sold into slavery rendering any progress or innovation inert by proxy? I suppose you learn something new everyday, thanks for clearing that one up for me. I was under the impression that somewhere south of 100% of blacks were made slaves by whitey, but what do I know?

What about those blacks in Africa today? Why is it, exactly, that there are still tribes in existence there that lack basic WRITTEN LANGUAGE? That seems relatively fundamental to me. Why is it that when the Western world was, say, inventing the printing press and discovering new continents the vast majority of Africans were enslaving and slaughtering each other en masse, hunting with spears, and practicing female genital mutilation?

Oh wait, they still do that. My bad.

The fact is that even with extensive Western humanitarian aid and support there is still nearly an entire continent that has failed to evolve. What's the point of giving a man a fishing pole if the man is incapable of learning to fish?


-ColoradoBlonde