Let's just outlaw comedy all together. That way no one will ever be offended by anything!

I meant to say noting* instead of nothing in my comment above (#86).

#106, that was comedy? It's possible to be funny without dressing up to look like something out of Der Stürmer.

@drawn and @cracked - no that wasn't sarcasm. He really did say that. Not sure what else he could've meant by it or what the point would've been other than the bar mitzvah thing.

Oh stop it, tkc. He deserves to be called out for this. He'll apologize and we will all move on but there's no reason people should take this lying down, no matter who did it. It was outrageous and he should hear about it. End.

FINALLY the mods deleted a racist Juche post! MODS=GODS

Ah. The old, "I didn't mean anything bad by it, so it's ok!" response.

Not that Anzel Herz is to bothered with facts or context (see the Police Shooting articles), but that is not actually what he said. He did not say that he dressed up as a jewish person, but that it wasn't offensive because he "didn't mean anything bad by it" (i.e., what the people who dress up as other cultures for halloween or something might say), he said he wasn't actually dressed up a jewish person. And, in his defense, from other angles (not the ones Anzel posted, obviously) it is very obviously a fake witches nose and not a fake jewish nose.

Ohhhh this makes me feel so disappointed. Why, why why? He really should have known better. :(
He needs to own his fuck up and apologize.
:(

What's even more shocking to me than Macklemore's meathead costume is the parade of people here who don't think it's a Jewish stereotype. Didn't any of you people go to school? Have you heard of Nazi Germany? The nose and beard are straight out of Der Stürmer and should be instantly recognizable to anyone past 11th grade. Ringo Starr? RINGO STARR? You people are morons.

He dresses up as a nasty Jewish caricature while rapping about being a cheapskate and then claims he didn't know what he was doing. What a ridiculously disingenuous liar.

And, as to the question,

Why Didn't Anyone Notice Macklemore's Anti-Semitic Costume at EMP?

I am guessing nobody noticed because in person it didn't actually look like he dressed up in an Anti-Semetic costume. It never would have occured to me that he was trying to dress up as a jewish person. I can see it now, especially in the pictures that are nearly head-on, but in other pictures it is very clearly a witch nose and doesn't really look anything like a stereotypical jewish nose (those pictures weren't included in the article, obviously). The people in attendance weren't looking at pictures from certain angles, so they probably weren't outraged because they didn't think he was dressed up as a jewish person. Just a guess?

At issue is how goddamn easy it would have been to say "Wow, a giant, crooked nose... we have seen this kind of thing before." Intent is less the issue than good sense. All Macklemore would have had to do is say "Sorry -- I should've been more aware. It's on me and I apologize." We all make mistakes of judgment, we all fail to fully consider how our actions might be interpreted. Own it, learn the lesson, and move on.

Had he signed with a major label they would have covered this up by now with a hologram.

By the way, #110, it's the framing of this piece - that nobody in local media noticed this possible racist thing - I'm really talking about.

The Stranger didn't "notice" their own flirtation with egregious racist stereotypes. And that is every bit as outrageous and hypocritical.

Maybe it is just me, but does anyone actually think his costume bears more than the scantist resemblence to a jewish stereotype from the side, as shown in the article on Billboard?

http://www.billboard.com/articles/column…

@120: I believe VL just misnumbered. His comment was meant for Juche @93.

Ok point taken tkc, but I honestly don't know what Kelly O did back in 2007, other than what I've seen you say about it. It sounds to me like you're suggesting that anyone who hasn't been outraged by everything has no right to be outraged by anything, and that the stranger/ we are gleefully tearing him down because of his success, and I disagree with both. That is what I reacted to.

@124 I'm talking about The Stranger's habit of very selectively mainlining outrage (The commenters, however? Well. Half are lunatics and shut-ins. They are going to do what ever and it's best to ignore 70% of them. But. They are not the ones who are the so-called journalists.).

This is like The Strangers third attempt at tearing Macklemore down after years of absurd obsequious fawning.

You don't "notice" the well-worn tabloid pattern of building up a celebrity and then tearing them down? How can you not resent being manipulated for lazy page views? That's all this is about. Until next weeks outrage.

@124 this is what I'm referring, BTW:

http://blackcannon.org/kelly-o-2.jpg

@101 He already said it was a witch nose.

Look, I totally agree that he needs to issue a sincere apology and put better thought into his wardrobe in the future but I honestly don't believe there was any intended anti-semitism here; just poor choices. We've all made poor choices that have offended people. The best we can do is to apologize and learn from our mistakes. I believe he will because all evidence up to this points to him being a compassionate person.

Wow yes that is pretty terrible.

Of course I'm familiar with the media behavior you're referring to. I just happen to think this is a legit criticism. And yeah, that pic you linked to is outrageous, and deserved the same criticism. I see your point re hypocrisy but I still feel like this is warranted, especially given the more generic nature of it (he wasn't dressed as a specific person a la Kelly's Flava Flav - not that that is ok either - definitely not!!) I'm just saying it had a much more broad audience and target and the conversation surrounding it it as valid one, even if it is hypocritical. We are all hypocrites sometimes.

Don't call it racism if it isn't a race, I would add.

@122: Comparing that to VL's link to a caricature of an Ashkenazi Jew... It's spot on.

So you can be accused if being racist just by putting in a fake nose?

Did he say anything racist?

Did he act like a racist?

Were any of his actual actions racist?

You've got some real evil in your heart to accuse someone of something so awful.
I don't see it. Whatever you people think you see isn't there. I'd expect apologies from a few people if I was Macklemore.

While I try to be compassionate and loving to all humans, I've been struggling with my own feelings about Judaism recently, especially with the recent widely-covered ADL survey claiming 1/4 of humans are anti-Semites.

I'm deeply bothered by Israel's military actions. I feel there is something wrong with the practice of intermarriage. I find the belief that the jewish people are God's "chosen ones" offensive. Does my unwillingness to accept these parts of the jewish existence make me an anti-Semite? Self-observance tells me that I'm apt to defend Macklemore's gaff because of some thread of anti-semitism within me, a sort of pushback for to the parts of Judaism that I am opposed to. But perhaps the jewish community lacks the capacity to self-criticize.

As for Macklemore, this sure cheapens the humanitarian image he's craftily built for himself and shows that his fame far exceeds his talent.

JF @120 (&94): the comment before yours was pulled and so you became the new 94. VL was replying to the old 94.

I've noticed this happening in a few threads lately. Comments get pulled and the numbering gets all screwed up and it looks like people are arguing with folks they actually agree with. In threads filled with racist idiots we may need to do more than simply reply to "@##".

@128 Fair enough. There are worse things than hypocrisy. For sure.

@125 I'm both a lunatic and a shut-in. Sort of a Slog triple threat.

@ 130 - Well it is close-ish. If he had been wearing a wig that looked anything like it was supposed to be stereotypical jewish hair, if it weren't just a random beard style, or if the nose actually looked like a stereotypical jewish nose and wasn't obviously a cartoon witch nose. I don't know, I guess if we are looking for something to be outraged about this might work. We could pretend that it is likely that he was trying to dress up like a jewish stereotype and not just that the inclusion of a witch nose happened to make one of his dozens of costumes look kinda like a jewish stereotype, especially in still photos from certain angles.

@ 132 -

I'm deeply bothered by Israel's military actions. I feel there is something wrong with the practice of intermarriage. I find the belief that the jewish people are God's "chosen ones" offensive. Does my unwillingness to accept these parts of the jewish existence make me an anti-Semite?

Israel's military actions as well as their domestic policies are not some inalienable part of being Jewish. Disagreeing with a countries policies does not mean you harbor racists feelings about its people. Would you assume that someone who denounced the Khmer Rouge harbored some hatred for the Cambodian people? The fact that you associate their military policies with their jewishness is actually more problematic than your opposition to Israeli policies.

The rest of your quote does sound pretty racist. I mean you are against intermarriage? Really? And doesn't the stuff about Jews being god's chosen people come from the Christian Bible? I think that is more a Christian belief than a Jewish one.

@89 Actually, I'm neither of those things. In a different context I may have noticed. I wasn't sitting in history class, I was at a pop concert where EVERYONE was encouraged to dress up in music themed costumes.

@137,132
I working in the Pike Place Market for many years, and meeting people from other countries was easily my favorite part. Israel is not so giant organism, people there disagree with each other just as much as here. We just don't hear about it. The people of Israel individually are in no way responsible for the actions of the government. People may disagree, but what would you say if you met an Iraqi who asked you why YOU invaded their homeland? When that question was posed to me, I had to admit that I wished the war hadn't happened, but it wasn't within my power to control.

From post 132 (
I'm deeply bothered by Israel's military actions. I feel there is something wrong with the practice of intermarriage. I find the belief that the jewish people are God's "chosen ones" offensive. Does my unwillingness to accept these parts of the jewish existence make me an anti-Semite? Self-observance tells me that I'm apt to defend Macklemore's gaff because of some thread of anti-semitism within me, a sort of pushback for to the parts of Judaism that I am opposed to. But perhaps the jewish community lacks the capacity to self-criticize. "

From post 132 (new at this sorry about double post)

"I'm deeply bothered by Israel's military actions. I feel there is something wrong with the practice of intermarriage. I find the belief that the jewish people are God's "chosen ones" offensive. Does my unwillingness to accept these parts of the jewish existence make me an anti-Semite? Self-observance tells me that I'm apt to defend Macklemore's gaff because of some thread of anti-semitism within me, a sort of pushback for to the parts of Judaism that I am opposed to. But perhaps the jewish community lacks the capacity to self-criticize. "

I think finding Jewish belief offensive is slightly anti-Semitic. You're entire post seems anti-semetic. Our country prides itself, and has roots, in religious freedom. Jews should be able to believe whatever they want. I'm a Christian. Jews disagree with Christians about to most important aspect of Christianity (Jesus is son of God). I'll say it out loud: I think Jews are wrong when it comes to Jesus. But they have a right to believe whatever they want and I won't infringe on that right. And I doubt any Jew reading my post is the least bit offended.

Man. This thread took a decidedly bizarre turn.

From a white rapper to Zionism. It's like fly paper for cranks up in here.

Remember what happened last time Macklemore apologized? It was after the Grammys and he sent a text message to Kendrick Lamar saying sorry that he “robbed him.” That led Drake to issue this stinging rebuke:

That shit was wack as fuck… I was like, ‘You won. Why are you posting your text message? Just chill. Take your W, and if you feel you didn’t deserve it, go get better — make better music. It felt cheap. It didn’t feel genuine. Why do that? Why feel guilt? You think those guys would pay homage to you if they won?

This is how the world works: He made a brand of music that appealed to more people than me, Hov, Kanye and Kendrick. Whether people wanna say it’s racial, or whether it’s just the fact that he tapped into something we can’t tap into. That’s just how the cards fall. Own your shit.”

Macklemore was simply “owning it” with the Fagin costume.

From Wikipedia: Fagin /ˈfeɪɡɪn/ is a fictional character who appears as an antagonist of the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. In the preface to the novel he is described as a "receiver of stolen goods,"

"Racism 101, people: ... It's about taking a step back and evaluating whether your behavior is racist."

Yes. And if you come away from that evaluation with the answer "it isn't" then are you 1) Always wrong 2) Not invited to talk about it unless you answer the former question with an affirmative or 3) expected to be chastened anyway?

I am not swayed by a "because I said so" argument, especially when you have conflicting results from the judges. Meh. I don't know if it was racist. I don't associate a witch nose and a beard with Jewish people but I suppose I don't have to because I'm not a member of the group.

I hear the tsk tsk already starting. If I'm not a member of the group then I'm supposed to STFU and let them tell me what's what. With no input, feedback, questions, or opinions. I'm supposed to suppress my own mind and blindly accept. Uh huh, that's a reasonable expectation of any human on the planet ever.

This will blow over for Mack as soon as the flavor of the week changes.

This is silliness. The Stranger being so tragically righteous and reading an entire narrative into something that doesn't exist.

Because your last name qualifies you to determine everything that is anti-Semitic.

Yes.

Totally.

As a Jewish person who has dealt with real anti-semetism, the writer of this article is an idiot. Stop finding meaning in every little thing. I grew up in Seattle and know a lot of Ben's friends, thinking this is the dumbest thing I can possibly think of. That guy strives to end all hate. The tone this article take is disappointing to say the least. It is unfair and shows ignorance.

How is that a Jewish costume? It isn't traditional dress, and he has no star of David. All those people saying he looked Jewish are just displaying their own stereotypes of Jewish culture. A nose and curly white hair? Jesus tap-fuckdancing Christ folks.

Read your damn comments and what you wrote as your opening line then maybe ask who is being racist. You immediately recognized a large nose and hat on someone in a suit as Jewish? Assess yourself before you wreck yourself.

Isn't the leap to associate a large nose and curly hair with Jews far more anti-semetic than a rapper who happened to wear them? Why the hell did the stranger think to itself, hey look, a big nose and afro, he must be going for Jewish? That's downright messed up. Assess yourself before you wreck yourself. I highly doubt he was going for Jewish, and if he was he did a crap job.

I have a massive nose, and curly black hair, and I'm Italian. Stop relabeling my identity slog.

"Why Didn't Anyone Notice Macklemore's Anti-Semitic Costume at EMP?" Because the only people that thought it was anti-Semitic are paranoids who think everyone is out to get them?

From the two pictures I saw, he looks like a troll doll (bottom-up) or many of the Middle Eastern, Italian, and Russian dudes I know (top-down). In other words, you're seeing stuff that isn't there. Stop trying to make a name for yourself with hyperbole and conjecture from pointing out non-existent racism. You're part of the problem, not part of the solution.

"Why Didn't Anyone Notice Macklemore's Anti-Semitic Costume at EMP?" Because the only people that thought it was anti-Semitic are paranoids who think everyone is out to get them?

From the two pictures I saw, he looks like a troll doll (bottom-up) or many of the Middle Eastern, Italian, and Russian dudes I know (top-down). In other words, you're seeing stuff that isn't there. Stop trying to make a name for yourself with hyperbole and conjecture from pointing out non-existent racism. You're part of the problem, not part of the solution.

I am Jewish and I do not think Nickelbacklemore knew what he was doing by donning this ridiculous "costume" nor do I think he's anti-Semitic. He's just dumb. Seriously, the dude has enough money to really do a better job of going as Humpty, Fagin or for that matter, some beardo with a crazy nose - this is where I am mostly disappointed.

The type of Jewish caricature that Macklemore (unintentionally?) appropriated has not been part of the culture here in the USA since before WWII - well before Macklemore was born, & even before WWII it was more of a European thing than a US thing.

I think it's pretty understandable that he wouldn't be aware of the stereotype.

ON the other hand, when you have a racist stereotype that develops into a rabid racism that leads to a GENOCIDE that kills millions, it's understandable that the groups targeted would get a bit sensitive about that ...