Some people were all on my case about something I wrote for Slog, The Stranger‘s blog, concerning a Chinese girl found wandering the streets of Vancouver, BC, two weeks ago with a blond doll. I was thought cold for taking too much notice of the racial difference between the girl and her doll. But in my world, race is still a real and hard fact. It is not something that I have a theoretical or intellectual distance from. It is immediate. It is there all of the time.
For example, just last week, my daughter—who is 8 and happens to be the only brown person in her Accelerated Progress Program class at Thurgood Marshall Elementary—was ordered out of the classroom because her teacher did not like the smell of her hair. The teacher complained that my racially different daughter’s hair (or something—a product—in the hair) was making her sick, and then the teacher made her leave the classroom. My daughter was aware of the racial nature of this expulsion not only because she was made to sit in a classroom that had more black students in it (the implication being that this is where she really belongs, in the lower class with the other black students), but because her teacher, she informed me, owns a dog. Meaning, a dog’s hair gives the teacher less problems than my daughter’s human but curly hair. Most white people do not have to deal with shit like this. Shit that if not checked and confronted will have permanent consequences for the child.
Over the weekend, KIRO-TV ran a story on its evening newscast about the situation. The news segment showed the hair product that my daughter used, Olive Oil Moisturizing Hair Lotion, and brief interviews with her mother and lawyer. The lawyer smelled the hair product and claimed it was harmless; her mother expressed distress about the whole situation. The story wrapped up with a reporter standing outside of my daughter’s school in the Central District, explaining that he could not get a response from the teacher or the school’s principal because the school was closed for the long weekend. That was all you learned from the KIRO story.
What was significantly missing from this report is that my daughter is black American (the only black student in that teacher’s class) and the teacher who forced her out of the classroom is white American. The reason why this racial dimension was not exposed or addressed in the KIRO report is understandable: My daughter and her teacher were not interviewed. But my wife was interviewed—and she is white. So it follows that viewers would assume that her daughter is also white. But if the public had seen that the little girl has brown skin and curly hair, and her teacher has white skin and straight hair, then it would have been impossible to exclude race from this story.
If a white teacher—a person who is supposed to have a certain amount of education and knowledge of American history, and who teaches at a school named after the man who successfully argued before the court in Brown v. Board of Education for equal opportunities for racial minorities in public schools and went on to become the first African-American Supreme Court justice—removes a black student from a predominantly white class because of her hair, it is almost impossible not read the action as either racist or expressive of racial insensitivity, which amounts to the same thing for someone in that teacher’s position.
When we, her parents, were later informed of this incident, we also learned that once my daughter was removed from the class, the teacher felt much better. We were also told that the teacher had experienced something like a fainting spell because of our daughter’s hair. Feeling the seriousness of this situation, we decided not to send our daughter to school until the teacher had medical proof that our daughter’s hair or something in her hair was to blame for the nausea. (The last thing you want to happen to your daughter is for a teacher to faint or vomit at the mere sight of her.)
Days passed and the school took no action. This unresponsiveness left us with no other choice than to turn to a lawyer. The whole thing is a mess. Getting entangled in a racial dilemma is something most black parents do not want for their children. It’s just not worth the trouble. Then again, like I said, if not checked and confronted, the incident will have permanent consequences for my child.
So, yes, I have a very good reason to be sensitive to the image of a Chinese girl carrying a blond doll. Not to have that kind of sensitivity would in my case be a form of parental neglect.
Seattle Public Schools declined an interview request from Charles Mudede because he is the father of the student in question, but a school-district spokesperson agreed to be interviewed by The Stranger‘s news editor, Dominic Holden, just as this issue was going to press. Click here to read their response. 
The school’s lack of response and this teacher’s reaction is uncalled for. When I was in school kids would douse themselves with heavily scented perfume even though it was banned and others were allergic and no one was ever kicked out of class–I have trouble believing your daughter’s hair product is so strong smelling that it made that teacher physically ill.
In relation to the Chinese girl with the blonde doll–another example would be in the Sex and the City movie when Charlotte’s adopted Chinese daughter dresses as Cinderella for Halloween complete with a mask of a white face with blonde hair. I was so disturbed by this image that I felt sick throughout the rest of the movie.
Re the embalming: from what I remember when my son was in that class, they mummified Cornish game hens with salt. See http://www.mummytombs.com/mummymaking/mu… for a similar project. I don’t remember them using anything resembling embalming fluid at all, and I would be very surprised if it were allowed for third graders. (While the hens aren’t supposed to smell if you do it right, generally someone doesn’t, and I remember them getting a bit whiffy.)
Incidentally, while I believe the teacher did have an acute reaction to *something*, and I don’t think it’s actually *impossible* for it to have been an ingredient in the hair lotion to which she had somehow recently become sensitized, I really cannot picture how she could know for sure what it was that caused her reaction. I get rhinitis from allergies, and I sure don’t always know whether it was from dust or pollen, for instance. But it isn’t usually important to me to know which.
It seems pretty clear that if this whole situation was an honest mistake the school and the teacher would be falling all over themselves to apologize–that’s how sincere people handle it when they’ve accidentally caused someone pain. And I’ve done some teaching, too–if I knew had made one of my students feel like I was picking her out for her race, I would feel terrible and would want to fix it as much as I could.
Obviously, there’s a lot to this situation–how genuine are the teacher’s chemical sensitivities? How much effort should be expected of parents? How much effort should the school put into communicating this kind of thing? But someone who actually wants not to be racially insensitive steps ups and apologizes–that’s the proof.
Also, where the heck are the mods on this site? I co-moderate a news site and garbage about “oh, are black people really as intelligent as whites?” like what’s above would be so gone so fast…We’d have the poster’s IP and it would be a cold day in hell before that person was commenting on our site again. If Seattle really doesn’t want to be a white supremacist town, you’ve got to stop making space for these maggots. They bring nothing to the table and their repulsive comments drive good people away.
I don’t get it. Isn’t an easy way to test the whole theory to just switch the conditioner without telling the teacher? That way, if the teacher is still disgusted, you know it’s actually racism. If the teacher is fine with it, you know it was never racism in the first place. Why make a huge deal out of it with an article and attorneys without first testing the basic theory of racism? Did you even bother consulting with the teacher before undertaking any of this stuff?
You brought up the fact that the teacher owns a dog as part of the offense- “Meaning a dog’s hair gives the teacher less problems than my daughter’s human but curly hair.”
Um, it’s not your daughter’s HAIR that is causing the problems but the PERFUME in her HAIR PRODUCT. Yes, it is possible your teacher has a chemical sensitivity problem but not an allergy to dog hair. It’s not as ironic or suspect as you are trying to make it
“the support for this teacher’s sensitive to smells is matched by a complete indifference to cultural sensitivity.”
“so fuck you and others who think this is really about chemicals and not culture.”
(both quotes from Charles. Um, ok, Charles. The woman has severe allergies that make her pass out but enough about that… let’s talk about culture! Typical. I wonder how you would feel if people refused to accomodate your health needs because they felt this was “culturally insensitive”. You make it sound like this woman is a primadonna. Her ability to function is at stake and you want to debate the cultural sensitivity aspects to her needs. YOU are the one that is rude
“It seems pretty clear that if this whole situation was an honest mistake the school and the teacher would be falling all over themselves to apologize–that’s how sincere people handle it when they’ve accidentally caused someone pain.”
Actually, no. I mean, you’re right about sincere people in general, but the policy at schools is very often to start stonewalling as soon as there’s a whiff of a problem. I’ve had trouble getting teachers or administrators to even answer my email or phone messages when I had a problem to talk about. Not every time there was a problem, thank goodness (and I have known several teachers and administrators who were quite the opposite and very proactive communicators), but it’s certainly happened.
All I can say is that after working on a large display project with spray adhesives, I developed several immediate health problems – migraines, feeling sick and lightheaded.. even though I was in a ventilated area. To this day, I have a heightened sensitivity to chemicals, fragrances and vapors. I’ve also discovered I have a heightened sense of smell – to certain smells that do not affect others. By looking at the ingredients in this product I know it would have serious effects for me and I could not be around it. Given the statement above about the teacher’s reaction to recent construction work and letters that went out to parents (which you didn’t get or chose to ignore)- I totally understand that it was not racially motivated. Don’t be so quick to blame it all on race.. and the Chinese girl with a blond doll? Are you kidding me? I have dark hair… I have had blonde and red headed dolls… maybe she has an Anglo parent.. or just liked the doll. Did it ever occur to you that perhaps this girl actually picked out the doll herself. Perhaps you are the racist. You are blinded by your own tunnel vision. Get over yourself.
@237 – AMEN! Thank you!
The teacher was insensitive in the way that she thought of her own needs without considering the impact her actions might have upon Mudede’s daughter. Singling a child out and placing her in another classroom without adequate and kind explanation as to why was inappropriate. And unfortunately because of the axe her father has to grind, the interpretation that Mudede’s daughter will take out of this situation will do her more harm than finding another hair product and continuing her education would have.
Mudede was and is being rather insensitive by immediately determining that the only possible reason that his daughter was removed was because of the color of her skin. His daughter has had an entire years worth of education under this woman. Surely her hatred of brown skinned peoples would have been apparent before! Surely he would have countless examples of how she has mistreated his daughter. But if we asked Mudede’s daughter about her teacher, what would she say? Would she remember cold shoulders, smoldering glances, and inexplicably marked down grades? Or would she tell us about a kind woman who didn’t treat her any differently from the other kids, who listened attentively, and who had difficulties concentrating on being the best teacher she could be because of her sensitivity to certain chemicals? Characterizing this woman in a city wide rag as being racist due to one incident is cruel. Just as she should have been more sensitive about the unique experience Mudede’s daughter went through because of the context her skin tone places upon the situation, Mudede should also be considerate of the teacher’s own unique experience and her need for a fragrance free environment and he clearly is not.
It would have been incredibly simple to determine the teacher’s intentions: the next day, have your daughter refrain from using the hair lotion. If the teacher continues to have an issue with your daughter, then you can interpret her action as having hidden motivations. But if you force a conflict by sending your daughter to school the next day wearing the same problematic lotion out of defiance then it is you, Mudede, who has created a racially charged situation.
The teacher was insensitive in the way that she thought of her own needs without considering the impact her actions might have upon Mudede’s daughter. Singling a child out and placing her in another classroom without adequate and kind explanation as to why was inappropriate. And unfortunately because of the axe her father has to grind, the interpretation that Mudede’s daughter will take out of this situation will do her more harm than finding another hair product and continuing her education would have.
Mudede was and is being rather insensitive by immediately determining that the only possible reason that his daughter was removed was because of the color of her skin. His daughter has had an entire years worth of education under this woman. Surely her hatred of brown skinned peoples would have been apparent before! Surely he would have countless examples of how she has mistreated his daughter. But if we asked Mudede’s daughter about her teacher, what would she say? Would she remember cold shoulders, smoldering glances, and inexplicably marked down grades? Or would she tell us about a kind woman who didn’t treat her any differently from the other kids, who listened attentively, and who had difficulties concentrating on being the best teacher she could be because of her sensitivity to certain chemicals? Characterizing this woman in a city wide rag as being racist due to one incident is cruel. Just as she should have been more sensitive about the unique experience Mudede’s daughter went through because of the context her skin tone places upon the situation, Mudede should also be considerate of the teacher’s own unique experience and her need for a fragrance free environment and he clearly is not.
It would have been incredibly simple to determine the teacher’s intentions: the next day, have your daughter refrain from using the hair lotion. If the teacher continues to have an issue with your daughter, then you can interpret her action as having hidden motivations. But if you force a conflict by sending your daughter to school the next day wearing the same problematic lotion out of defiance then it is you, Mudede, who has created a racially charged situation.
@257 “When I was in school”
A lot has changed since then. We’ve been bombarded with an increasing array and quantity of chemicals in the last several decades and sensitivities which were previously unheard of or very rare are becoming increasingly common. Reactions can be severe enough to be extremely debilitating or even fatal. Schools have taken steps to protect students with peanut allergies, so why not protect their teachers and students from other similar issues as well?
Now I understand.
This isn’t about smell. Actually it never was. All of the people writing about smell just aren’t paying attention. The teacher didn’t react to the smell; the teacher had an allergic reaction to a chemical in the hair treatment. That’s not really in dispute.
Funny thing, this isn’t about the teacher’s allergic reaction either. I get that now.
This is really about three other things:
1) It’s about a teacher or school taking an action in a child’s education (in this case having the student in another class for a day and a half) without informing the student’s family about that change. That’s something that would upset anyone. You want to know what’s going on with your child’s schooling.
2) It’s about Mr. Mudede’s report that his daughter was shamed by the episode. Again, this is something that would upset any student’s family.
3) It’s about Mr. Mudede’s contention that his daughter was singled out specifically due to her African heritage. This is the element of Mr. Mudede’s complaint which is both the greatest concern to him and point of greatest contention. It presumes a motive for the teacher that is not only not in evidence, but essentially impossible to prove. Near as I can tell, Mr. Mudede bases this belief on the fact that the offending chemical was in a product specifically designed to meet the needs of Black hair.
I am with Mr. Mudede on the first point. As a parent of school-age children I want to be advised of decisions made about my childrens’ education. I don’t know to what extent it is practical for the school or the teacher to advise families of these sorts of things or how promptly the families should expect to be informed, but I would think that this situation would rise to that level. I understand that the teacher might not have been able to make the call home the first night, but surely it could have been done after the second day.
Are we to understand that no one from the school made any effort at any time to contact the Mudede family about these events? That’s not good and some sort of procedure change is definitely called for.
As for the second point, none of us who were not there can say if the teacher was cruel or kind. The child can feel shamed either way. We can’t make conjecture about this. It could be that the teacher said or did things in a hurtful way. It could be that the teacher said or did things in a sensitive way but the child felt shamed nonetheless. We weren’t there; we don’t know. Nonetheless, if the child felt shamed then some action needs to be taken. Legal action probably isn’t called for. A talk from the teacher explaining that she does not feel revulsion towards the child but an allergic reaction to a chemical in her hair product would be more helpful.
The third point feels like a stretch. Culture permeates everything in people’s lives. Consequently, almost everything that we say or do can be attributed to culture and any negative reaction to something about ourselves can be perceived as a negative reaction to our culture. The option is always there. For example, I’m sure that there are people right now reading these words and reacting negatively. If I were to say that writing like this is my people’s way, would we then conclude that their negative reaction is culturally insensitive? Are all negative reactions evidence of cultural insensitivity? In particular, can an allergic reaction to a chemical be perceived as cultural insensitivity?
Here’s where I part ways with Mr. Mudede. It is enough for him to complain that he was not contacted about a change in his daughter’s schooling and to complain that his daughter was shamed. His claim of racism, however, is unnecessary, unproven, and unsupportable. That part is much more credibly about chemicals and allergies than about culture and racism.
I have a question about the warnings that karma will somehow set things right; that karma will “get” the teacher. What did Charles’s daughter do wrong to deserve such an awful experience? This idea of “instant karma” (which is different from the original ideas about karma) is that bad things will happen to bad people. What does that say about people who suffer? That they somehow deserve it? If you want good or bad things to happen, you need to take care of that yourself, instead of waiting for karma- whatever that even means- to do it for you.
Mr.Mudede you disgust me. I am so tired of hearing BLACKS pull the race card every time things don’t go there way.If anything you and many many but not all blacks are racist I know you have a white wife but that does not mean that you are not a racist there are people who are racist but tolerant some white people.
For example to my point of how blacks are also racist. Me and my boyfriend are on the metro sitting all the way in the back, my boyfriend is six foot five inches in height he can not comfortably sit anywhere else on the bus. So we are sitting on the #43 route in the back I am reading a book we are both minding are own business. There is only about four other people on the bus and this kid who is Black probably about fourteen fifteen gets on walks all the way to the back sits down looks at us and says ” I hate white people I wish Obama would hang you all from a tree” I got up told the bus driver who is also a black man he does absolutely nothing about this.
Example number two again me and my boyfriend again are on the #49 at the back of the bus like usual a group of kids gets on the bus and this black kid has his cell phone music on and it is blaring in our ears and we ask him to please turn the music off we remind him of the rules on the bus about music devices must have head phones again we are accused of being racist.
I would also like to bring this up remember a few months back there was an incident in the Metro bus tunnel with a group of kids all who were black beating up a single black girl in an extremely violent manner.So I ask you this Charles Mudede do you know why the security guards did not stop it because the girl was a black minor they were afraid of getting sued by the parents of the girl who was assaulting the other girl. It was because the person doing the fucked up thing was black and most every time a black person is asked to do something they pull the race card as the reason they are being asked to do the same things as anybody else.
Also I would like to mention I am white my hair is also really thick I also put oils and conditioners in my hair, the teacher would have done the same if the little girl was an alien,white ,black ,Asian that was irrelevant.
I’d also like to mention how much I hate certain smells and yes sometimes its odd like patchouli oil I can’t stand the shit I am not allergic to it but yes I have thrown up because of the smell. I also cannot stand baby diapers clean or dirty, Dr. Pepper witch reminds me of diapers, Axe body spray, pretty much any perfume that people seem to drown themselves in now days.
Charles you are no different than the black KIDS and I really stress the word KIDS because you act just like them on the bus who call me racist because I as a HUMAN have a right not to have to listen to other peoples idea of music (I DO HATE RAP)let alone what they think smells good to them but may not to me. When people put that much fragrance on I think they are trying to cover up an even fouler odor witch is a sign of an under lining health problem. And yes Charles I also have a right to stay away from people who may be sick with something that could make me ill too.
And last but not least when I started middle school I moved here to Seattle I was sexually assaulted by an eighth grade black student on my school bus. He grabbed my head and pushed his groin in my fucking face. I did the right thing by going to the office and telling an adult they had me go to the vice Principal of Denny middle school ( Mrs.Guilorry) who was yes of course also black she called the boy and his friend into the office while I had to sit there and listen to them tell her that I was lying right in front of me. This was after they had just started putting cameras on the bus so I begged Mrs.Guillorry ( that fucking bitch) to look at the recording of that day on the bus. You want to guess what happened Charles she told me to quote ” Quite crying crocodile tears” and that if I lied again about something like this I ” WILL BE SUSPENDED”
If I would have been black and the boy was white that kid would still be in trouble because now he would be a sex offender.I know this for a fact because later on that year at Denny our white male gym teacher was caught molesting a black female student and that guy had the book thrown at him ( this would be appropriate no matter what color you are ) How’s that for racism CHARLES I really think you need to redefine your definition of racism and shame on the Stranger for hiring you the first rule of journalism is to be completely bias like if I was a journalist I would not put what I just wrote to you as my article about racism. You should not shit where you eat Charles I really hope they fire you and I will never read another article with you as it’s author.
I am so curious as to what the school’s position is on this. That, is absolute nonsense. Unless the teacher can prove that a)she has allergies and b)has allergies to the ingredients in the oil you use on her hair this is all about racism. And she needs to go. And the school owes your daughter an apology, a public apology. This is not the 1950s.
I have a work colleague who had some sort of allergic reaction to some body spray I was wearing. She kindly explained the situation to me and I never wore that or any body spray again. I even purchased unscented lotion to wear. The reason I did this, is that she was kind in her explanation. That’s all the teacher and the school had to do – call the parents and let them know that the teacher had an allergic reaction to their daughter’s hair product and ask them to kindly use another product. Sometimes all we have to do is be nice to one another and most things work out fine.
Wow, this whole thing makes me so sad. I mean, one guy mentioned long ago that plenty of white people have kinky hair.
So what makes this a race issue, exactly?
This is a story of a sick teacher who sent out a message to her class’ parents to communicate her needs so she could stay at a job she probably loved but clearly wasn’t capable of doing… and a man who did not think the mass email or general comment about allergens applied to him. Certainly the school could have been better at communicating, but so could have Charles. Just WALK INTO THE SCHOOL and talk to them.
No lawsuits necessary. Certainly no Stranger article necessary. WTF.
Uhhhh I apologize for the horrific white privilege running throughout this thread.
Mr. Mudede, good luck. I wish you and you’re daughter all the best. I hope this doesn’t hurt her in the long run–I hope she knows she’s brave for dealing with all this and that her hair is beautiful!
Misty moans @ 270 Bravo, well said. The black race for far too long has been allowed to play the race card with impunity. They also have no honor and will lie for each other or ignore what another black person is doing to another race. The black beasts that have any kind of power use it to promote the hate whitey culture. All though if we say hate the black race we are subject to arrest and punishment of some kind. I agree about rap, I am curious how many white people have listened to the lyrics of the rap music. The lyrics are such as overthrow the government, kill whitey till they are all dead with no mercy. I challenge anyone who doubts this to listen to the lyrics, because we all know what would happen to a white man if he wrote those kind of lyrics, but replace whitey with nigger. He would probably go to jail, but what happens to the black rapper, (if he is not murdered by his own kind) he gets million of dollars. All for promoting violence against white people. But there are no black racist’s right?
Adian @ 274 If you want to apologize for anything posted here apologize for yourself only, do not presumed to apologize for any of my post as I have a right to my beliefs and to post such. If you do not like them, too bad! I guess we will have to agree to disagree. Also for your own well being and others around you stop enabling them and making excuses for their behavior, as they will turn on you as soon as you are no longer any use to them.
“…and also listen to your self here: “They didn’t report that the girl wasn’t “kicked out” or told to sit in the hall but that the teacher next door, coming to the aid of the teacher with the allergic reaction, had the girl join her class for the rest of the afternoon”
so my daughter stank the school up so much that the teacher from another class, without notice or call for help but just by smell and smell alone,…”
How on Earth do you get the above to equate? “Smell alone?” It just said she came to help your child’s teacher. It said nothing about what caused her to do so.
“nor did she ever write and say directly”
Were you ever contacted indirectly?
@ReachAroundPuke
That Johnny-come-lately neo-fascists like you embrace Adolf Hitler as your ideal is a gut-busting gift that keeps on giving.
Adolf Hitler was neither Aryan nor supreme. Oh he talked a good talk, but at his core he was an insecure, germophobic little bitch. He could not live up to his own standards, because he was a whore-fucking, closeted Jew.
This much is clear: no amount of suspenders and boot polish will save your kind from the brown tide that’s steadily scrubbing you from this Earth. Even if you fucks could manage your finances to the point where you could sufficiently arm yourselves (you can’t, and won’t hire Jews to do it for you), you don’t have nearly enough frail white fingers to pull the number of triggers required to save your asses.
So go down bitching, wee Hitler, cuz you aren’t going down fighting.
@270 Your boyfriend can’t handle a 14 year-old kid? You’re not dating a man, you’re dating a 6’5″ clit. Go tell your sob stories to a therapist.
Keep your head up, Charles. I’m not crazy about you(‘r writing) when you put naked women up on slog, or try and put too much in a marxist blender; but you’re the reason a lot of people who arent seattle hipsters still read the stranger. And never even think of apologizing for being vigilant for your daughter.
I fear there will be few people left who will take Charles seriously after his bizarre race-baiting screed here. It is so aggressively hate-filled and intolerant it does nothing more than widen or encourage a divide between races.
To promote such divisiveness may aid Charles’ cause but it is harmful to society as a whole. Dang.
@ 278 Black Rommel, you have just proved your ignorance of National Socialism. Your rant and misinformation is astounding. Thank you for proving my point about people with no argument, call names and spread lies. I also find amusing the screen name you use, Black Rommel, as if you were anywhere near the man Rommel was. You have proven you lack of understanding and ignorance. You had better get use to saying would you like fries with that, or do you go around begging saying gibs me a dollar. There the black beast goes again promoting violence against the white man. There are no plans for any kind of armed resistance, although we would have the money and manpower if we decided to do so. Our is a resistance of waiting because we are confident that people will wake up to the truth about your kind, and your brown tide and the implications of what that means to them. Faced with those facts the will resist you and take appropriate actions. I try not to call names or anything like that, because it is not part of a constructive discussion or debate, however in light of your comments, you are an ignorant dumb ass fucker, but what is one to expect from a black beast.
Black Rommel, if her boyfriend was to do anything to the 14 year black boy he would go to jail cause he b raycist, you are A stupid moronic black beast and prove it every time you open those flapping lips of yours.
Sorry Charles. Kicking a student out of class for her ethnic hair products is unacceptable. I don’t need to have kinky hair to know that.
A Chinese girl carrying a white doll is acceptable. Should she also be able to carry a Chinese-looking doll? But of course.
In fact, it seems to me that suggesting that a Chinese girl should have to carry a Chinese doll is only slightly less racist than a school making a black girl sit in a predominantly black class because her teacher isn’t accustomed to her hair lotion.
Now I appreciate the Slog for it’s lack of censorship, I can say, for example, how I like to fuck donkey shit and the system isn’t going to flag me.
But I’m really tired of reading coolhandluke’s bullshit rants.
Now I don’t agree with Muldede, but there’s no need to spout obvious racist rants.
Yes, you have the right to believe whatever you want.
But we don’t want to hear it.
“its” lack of censorship. Sorry.
That’s interesting, one of my posts from last night didn’t seem to make it. At any rate…
Um, FoolBlandDupe, you’ve used plenty of insulting language and I’ll have to read more of your posts because your “arguments” I’ve seen so far aren’t so great. Much like Charles’ article, you seem to speak with agenda first and critical thinking second…my opinion, of course.
But coolhandluke46 is SO charming! And he’s teaching us such valuable and credible lessons! Let’s give him a hug.
Madcap said: “In fact, it seems to me that suggesting that a Chinese girl should have to carry a Chinese doll is only slightly less racist than a school making a black girl sit in a predominantly black class because her teacher isn’t accustomed to her hair lotion.”
Never mind that the latter portion seems to be a mischaracterization, according to a lot more people (apparently) than Charles, including other parents and other faculty. Never mind that he has not been concerned for any point of view other than his own and that he implied it was the school who prevented her from returning to class when that was his call.
He’s said he never received any direct contact, which implies to me he received indirect contact. Other parents assert they understood the situation regarding the teacher’s health and seem to suggest they disagree with Charles, even going so far as to express the hope for counter-suit. Having some contact with the school and hearing what I have heard, I would have to agree, though I have no idea about the laws that deal with these things.
I believe Charles is creating fuel for the coolhandlukes of this world and is more worried about being angry at a perceived biggotry than at respecting his own ignorance of what could have happened. And to what effect? That remains to be seen, but already it has created a lot more pressure on a group of people who already have a high-pressure job…which just also happens to provide the best free-ish childcare available.
Ok kerfuffle. Hugs are free I guess. I can spare only ONE! 😉
I don’t get why he didn’t just change the hair products, or maybe even pretend to change them if it’s so necessary for his daughter to have THAT particular olive oil moisturizer. No reason for a little girl to be wrapped up in an adults battle, and especially a battle that never needed to be fought in the first place.
Charles…come out, come out wherever you are…….:)
City gal @285 Just to set the record straight I am not a racist I am a realist, and firmly believe in the truth because the truth will set you free, but at first it hurts. I also have noticed how you have ignored BlackRommels comments and how he advocates Violence against White people, why so silent on that? I have never advocated violence against any human or beast; however I do advocate separation for the protection of all. I guess it alright in your mind to advocate violence but not to tell the truth. Also kerfuffle @288 I appreciate the sediment of a hug for me but based on peoples reaction to the truth including yours, I would take you up on that if I was not so worried that you may have a knife in your hand so you could stab me in the back as you hugged me.
Even though I am white person who was raised in the central district and as a minority all through grade school, it took me a long time to come to the point of acknowledging racism in this form. I believe Charles is correct, and I feel terrible that I have spent much of my life not legitimizing claims like this.
Please, everyone, watch a video called The Color of Fear. Here’s an excerpt.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vAbpJW_x…
Wow… Suddenly I feel like I am back in GA again. Oh gee golly how fun. While it seems that this teachers response was pretty fucked up and quite possibly fueled by racism, it also seems that you are trying your hardest to use the race card yourself. I spent most of my life in the south and if there is anything I am sick of is race dilemmas, most of which in my experience has actually been reverse. Example? How is it that a black girl can punch a white girl in the heard on a public school bus, but suffer no consequence? Because the school system is worried about it becoming a race issue, yet if the tables were turned there would be hell on earth. I can name MANY similar situations. How is it, that it is only whites seen as racist? Everyone on earth has suffered due to ignorance or some sort of prejudice, Asians, Jews, American Indians…the list can go on. The difference is they don’t dwell on it like you, they suck it up, realize this person is an ignorant POS, and move on. That being said, it’s horrifying that your daughter has to be involved, things like that can have a negative effect on someone so young. I just hope that she doesn’t become as hostile about it as you.
Oh, also, I have used the mentioned product on clients when I was in cosmetology school and the smell did make feel sick as well as give me hives when it got on me. Allergies DO exist, and there are many products out there now catering to courser, curlier hair. Keep that in consideration before you shout RACIST and save this community the ear-ache.
Please also watch this:
Good doll/bad doll: why black girls prefer white dolls
http://www.komonews.com/home/video/50018…
This teacher was trained to be a professional. When dealing with peoples feelings, especially children, there are better way of dealing with a problem rather than embarassing them in front of others. I think the parents are right in dealing with it this way so that the child will not have a problem with her heritage like so many others do. It seems if the product smelled, the teacher should have talked to the parents like an adult first. So many Blacks are lost and feel they have to act, talk, and do like white people in order to be a decent person. All races have different things we do for good hygiene and that should be accepted.
in the film ‘cool hand luke’ the protagonist was arrested for breaking parking meters.
today in the united states of america, we have many prison inmates who are arrested for simply being non-white.
THIS is why I’m so happy to have left Seattle forever. I can’t believe most of you are actually feeding into this crap! Take a trip to New York and realize that Seattle is pretty much a racist little town. The worst racist here, however, is the writer of this article. He NOTICED a Chinese girl with a white doll? Um, not racist? Seeing any kid with any color/race doll shouldn’t faze anyone in this day and age. HE is scarring his poor daughter for life, not the teacher. Plus he is a non-present dad, (until something comes up where he can vent in his semi-‘famous’ articles and feel superior, as well as getting people to chime in ‘Yeah! Right on, brother! Power!’ that just feeds into the problem as a whole) What does he get out of this? I feel so sorry for the child – to have a dad like him. I also feel bad for the teacher; she has an allergic reaction to a product (that I get sick of myself) and now her career is over. Didn’t she send out a notice about wearing strong odors in class? YES, she did. Oh, that’s right. Most non-present dads don’t read the memos from school.
This is not a racist act. It’s fucking JUNE! Don’t you think that if she had racial issues it would have come out a tad bit earlier??? Yeah. I think so. Kids have been sent out of class millions of times for many things and now (because of one black racist’s article, used to blow off some steam because he has guilt about only sleeping with white woman (i know people who know him personally and say this is true – I mean what’s that about? Issues? Think about it.) what teacher can ever send ANY kid out of class without consequence now? And, how can Seattle ever get out of this trap?! Can’t you find something REAL to bitch about, writer? I don’t even want to give him the credit to utter his name – plus, my gag reflex kicks in. People, the product has a WARNING sign on the label, meaning; DON’T WEAR THIS AROUND SENSITIVE, ALLERGIC PEOPLE. What’s-his-name is a dick. (just had to throw that in). OH, and a little personal note – My daughter is mixed, most people do not think she is even partially white. She’s ‘African American’ and ‘Caucasian’ (said with a sort of snide, polite, kind-o-fake accent) dare I say ‘Black and White’ in your politically correct world? Shame, shame, shame. Go back to where you belong, writer, and stop causing more problems in an already difficult area. In closing, I’m so happy to be out of there.
On the lake @296 you are so full of shit, any black beast that’s in jail is in there because he broke the law. Probably for doing more than vandalizing a parking meter. Have you watched the movie Cool hand Luke, I do not recall seeing any black people in that prison. I wonder where they all where if they go to jail for the simple fact of not being white. Your ignorance is only surpassed by your flapping lips.
B ro @ 294 and 296 that is some interesting propaganda you have there. Maybe you should check out these videos of the unreported crimes that happen in the real world. You may also want to check out the video of Jeremiah Wright. Maybe you should try and get your information from sources other than the liberal controlled media such as ABC, CBS, NBC or CNBC; all they do is promote the elitist liberal agenda which will be the destruction of western civilization.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_qROcVAZow&feature=related or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpHWMLeRI… and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc2FCJ7zW…
“stop causing more problems in an already difficult area” @299
you mean we should stop denouncing injustice?
Princess of politically correct, I usually dont feed the trolls here but you are
A: pathologically sensitive about race( Charles explained the dynamic in great detail
B: Are sick of your “mixed” daughters hair cair products.
C: Have a “mixed” child.
I say this in all seriousness, and as a “mixed” child myself. If you love your daughter, give her up for adoption instead of having her endure years and years of torture from a passive aggressive bigot.
A point I am compelled to make to all of those who have decried insensitivity to the teachers sensitivity and, moreso, to the people who have blatantly accused everyone who’s ever worn a perfumed product of being an “asshole”:
I *totally* understand MCS. I do not diminish it’s severity for those who suffer it.
I also totally get that the MCS-afflicted population is a MINORITY.
It’s not fair. MCS’ers, you should totally stomp your feet and shout epithets to your god and the makers of fragrance. But what you SHOULD NOT do is expect the MAJORITY population of non MCS sufferers to bend to YOUR needs. On what planet does the minority get to put restrictions on the majority?
That the students and their parents needed to be sensitive to a pre-delivered declaration and request is obvious. They’re trapped in a little room, and all parties should make efforts to make that as productive and painless a situation as possible. But to insist that everyone just use bobby pins and elastics because they have no right to deal with their hair as they see fit is just as flawed as the presumption that a student has the right to wear heavily scented products in an environment where doing so is a known problem.
White privilege is invisible to whites.
Example: I ride the bus every day and I usually am carrying a piece of toast I can eat on the bus. I have never encountered an issue, and didn’t realize there could be one- UNTIL a black woman (another frequent rider) was chastised by the SAME driver who smiled and said hello to me each morning, toast and all. He yelled at her, “No eating on the bus!” She said, “you’re a racist motherfucker, aren’t you?”
And then he kicked her off.
THAT is an example of white privilege- one that I was absolutely unaware of before this woman was humiliated.
It seems unlikely that anyone could be allergic to the smell of an olive oil product. Olive oil is used in a great many foods, and I’ve never heard of anyone being allergic to olive oil in foods, whereas we’ve all heard of people being allergic to mushrooms or peanuts. I think requesting that the teacher provide medical documentation of this bizarre supposed-allergy is not too much to ask. The fact that she hasn’t done so seems suspicious since olive oil would be hard to avoid.