racism on highland mall
Well, nelson Lender and the knee-jerk reactionaries of the NAACP have done it again. They are only floundering for something to do and this is it. At the very least Highland mall practiced bad business. Blacks historically have gone to this mall and to shut it down during an event that a large number of blacks come to was not good business. Not good business is it? I mean who is really being racist here by even bringing race into this? I'll answer that "NAACP".... What is even more reactionary is that the "NAACP" is connecting some clubs downtown to Highland malls bad business practice. Even if Highland mall had racist intentions behind their closing you can't connect these two together. It irritates me to no end that guilty white people want to defend this shit.
When, the rally people (and fuck you if you think "rally people" is a euphemism for blacks) come downtown they just hang out and don't spend money downtown. I've witnessed this and most of the business' down there have confirmed it. Emo's decided to close. So, what that unlike Highland mall was probably a good business practice. Black people don't typically frequent Emo's even when the rally isn't in town. Are they Racist then? no. Granted Emo's could have maybe booked a show that would have catared to the demographic of the rally (black people=hip-hop) would that then have been racist? could be, I don't think so, but it is a stereotype. Would there be prejudice involved if Emo's booked, let's say NAS or some other popular act? probably not.
My point is all these are more questions that could have been asked and a public forum and dialogue have taken place instead of creating more fucking tension amongst the black and white communities in Austin and this country. I hate this argument, but, isn't our president black Nelson? I mean, isn't it supposed to be safe to have dialogue now? No, we just boycott. Just like your man-lover Jesse Jackson you keep on keepin on with the racism and looking in every corner for what keeps you employed. OH, yeah, people you didn't know? Nelson is making money when he can get the NAACP to bring attention to them. Yep, racism is a business.
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Sorry, I know it's relay not
Sorry, I know it's relay not rally. didn't mean to put that through the piece there.
"The only demand that property recognizes, is its own gluttonous appetite for greater wealth, because wealth means power; the power to subdue, to crush, to exploit, the power to enslave, to outrage, to degrade....turning the producer into a mere particle"
I fail to see how a boycott
I fail to see how a boycott of highland mall creates tension among the black and white communities in Austin. I'm not sure how a dialogue would make any difference.
Relay weekend is an event that is attended by a majority of black youth from all over the state. If you close your business on that weekend it seems racist. The mall argues that they could not afford security, and the police offered no extra help.
Plenty of nightclubs that are all-ages and don't necessarily cater to "urban" music where open.. Just empty. I thinks this speaks to the fear of black teenagers in Austin. Perhaps the motivation to close emo's and the flamingo cantina was a purely economic one, perhaps not.
As a mostly white person, I certainly don't feel guilty.
I agree that often the NAACP methodology is flawed and they sometimes make race an issue where it is not and the NAACP makes racism a business. I support the boycott regardless of where it comes from.
Maybe this is why they close
Maybe this is why they close down every year (as of last year they cut the hours also)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V048wGxae20
Notice also how many people are there yet you can't see anyone in the stores. Highland Mall becomes a ghetto daycare during Relay weekend and I certainly don't blame a business for shutting down when it costs them financially to hire extra security, repair vandalism and yet make less because actual customers avoid the mall on relay weekend. UT gets trashed every year and I don't know one employee that looks forward to it. Notice how when we have the biker weekend people put up signs that basically say things along the lines of "We Love Bikers!" Why? Because they spend a lot of money when they come. It is purely economic. NAACP does make racism a business. I am glad they exist but they can be kneejerk on their reactions to things sometimes.
I hope you didn't take my
I hope you didn't take my comment and reply directed at you Bullet. If you did, well, deflate your ego my friend. If you didn't well ok....
"The only demand that property recognizes, is its own gluttonous appetite for greater wealth, because wealth means power; the power to subdue, to crush, to exploit, the power to enslave, to outrage, to degrade....turning the producer into a mere particle"
uh no.. I didn't think that.
uh no.. I didn't think that. just adding my 2 cents.
I'm sorry forgot to say they
I'm sorry forgot to say they could have decided to close down because of this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJW2Scx_1ls&NR=1
and this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJombI6q_nk&feature=related
what Capital Plaza looked like at night during the relays this year:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOM7FpXYp0w
what sixth street looks like during relays:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5urYMRiSITQ
I don't blame anybody for deciding to take the weekend off during the relays. Anyone with half a brain stays home that weekend.
Sorry I won't be protesting that. All the fights and general craziness that goes on during the relays just sucks. It's like living in South Houston
for the weekend.
people act like Austin's
people act like Austin's downtown doesn't fill up in the streets with people and there are fights every night. WTF... Hey scared white people...BOO really, I mean when the college is in full effect or, New Years Eve, Halloween, or St. Patrick's Day is here does the city of Austin freak out? NO, not like this...Granted I defended Emo's closing on some level but, the videos I saw that "austinguy" posted. I felt like I was driving a cab again on any given Sat. night. The Texas Relay spends money in Austin just not in the bars that don't cater to blacks and there are not much that do. Austin is known for a city that tolerates people hanging out in the streets downtown but, when you get a bunch of black people there is a problem. Just be downtown on any given Sat. night and notice where the black people are and you will see more police and not because there is a problem. More violence is happening on campus than downtown yet, the police are focusing on one small demo of Austin culture. That is Racist and should be discussed but, the NAAcp would rather just boycott a mall.
I would like this somewhat of a discussion to continue. Has an update on this boycott been reported on? What are the repercussions on Emo's?
"The only demand that property recognizes, is its own gluttonous appetite for greater wealth, because wealth means power; the power to subdue, to crush, to exploit, the power to enslave, to outrage, to degrade....turning the producer into a mere particle"
http://www.austinchronicle.co
http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/column?oid=oid:767837
http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:764651
The Mall closed because they
The Mall closed because they did not make the money to justify staying open, if the cash was coming in, they would put up with anything. Boycotting the mall (what are the demands of the boycott?) is not going to get us any closer to dealing with racism in austin....maybe the first step is admitting that almost all white people (even those well intentioned, even those who have black friends, even those who have anti-racist politics) are not color blind, fear what they do not understand, and act out accordingly.
the following is really interesting and quite good, naming the racist inside each of us is a hard but necessary first step.
Barbara Trepagnier’s research shows that virtually all whites hold some negative stereotypes and assumptions about African Americans and other racial–ethnic minorities, what she calls silent racism. In her book, Silent Racism: How Well-Meaning White People Perpetuate the Racial Divide (2006), Trepagnier demonstrates how the negative stereotypes and assumptions of whites reproduce institutional racism, also known as systemic racism. She argues that the oppositional categories commonly used to think about racism—Racist and Not Racist—hide silent racism and other insidious forms such as color-blind racism. Replacing the outdated categories with a continuum labeled More Racist and Less Racist would expose these subtle forms of racism that are more closely linked to racial injustice than outright bigotry is.
http://www.txstate.edu/news/news_releases/news_archive/2007/06/SilentRac...
Obviiously the mall is
Obviiously the mall is motivated by money.
if you are against institutional rascism the closing of the mall seems like a good example of it.