I just received a message from the CEO of PetSmart, which inspires this project: I ask any and all Ethics Alarms readers to send in, as comments to this post, other virtue-signaling screeds from businesses and organizations on the topic of race. Once we have a sizable collection, Ethics Alarms will hand out some awards—Most Sincere, Most Offensive; Most Ridiculous; Most Hypocritical; Most Substantive, even Most Useful, if there is such a message. Perhaps I will put these up for a vote.
Here’s the PetSmart letter; I’ll have some comments at the end.
Dear PetSmart Family,
This is a pivotal moment in our country. It is a time to come together in support of basic human and civil rights and to love one another unconditionally.
The belief in unconditional love, that very important lesson we learn every day from our pets, is the heart of PetSmart. We promote belonging and inclusiveness in an environment where individuals with diverse backgrounds and talents can excel.
But we can ‐ and must ‐ do better.
It isn’t enough to say that we value diversity or to speak about inclusion in general terms. Now is the time to listen attentively and to be clear in our words and our actions. Now is the time to state plainly and unequivocally that Black Lives Matter and to do our part to ensure that this is our truth.
Right now, we are working on actions including:
- $1 Million scholarship fund to support all associates of color to advance their educational aspirations.
- Grants from PetSmart Charities support pets and pet parents in under-represented communities.
- Enhanced development and recruiting to improve black representation at PetSmart.
At PetSmart, we believe pets make us better people, but we know that conscious actions lead to real progress. That is why we must all commit to standing with our Black communities, to taking meaningful action, to being held accountable, and to saying what we must until it is no longer necessary: Black Lives Matter.
Sincerely,
J.K. Symancyk
CEO, PetSmart
Observations:
- Get the pet tie-in? “Unconditional love.” If there is one concept that the George Floyd protests and riots did not communicate, it is unconditional love. “Do as we say and what we want or else” is not an expression of unconditional love.
- Who is PetSmart to assume that merely by buying some dog food, chewies and dog toys I invited its executives (or PR department) to lecture me about race in America? That’s both presumptuous and obnoxious.
- How do you “state plainly and unequivocally that Black Lives Matter” without stating what the slogan means? To me, it means that someone is accusing me and lots of other non-black Americans of believing that black lives don’t matter, because of my skin color and heritage. Well, that’s racism in my dictionary, toward whites.
- “Taking meaningful action, to being held accountable, and to saying what we must until it is no longer necessary.” The rhetoric around the current “movement’ is redolent of the old Hunger Project scam, which extolled meaningful action to end hunger, but never specified any measures at all, though they did take contributions. Not to be a broken record, but advocating taking meaningful action is not meaningful. Being held accountable means nothing without tangible bench marks that one can be held accountable for. And nobody tells me what I “must” say, especially when saying things is distinct from doing anything, and when there’s no substance behind talk, talk is all you are going to get. What is the indicia that will prove that such talk is “no longer necessary”? I doubt that J.K. has a clue. If he did, wouldn’t he tell us?
- Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t that “$1 Million scholarship fund to support all associates of color to advance their educational aspirations” racially discriminatory? No white associates need help advancing their educational aspirations? How does discriminating against employees—withholding benefits based on color is the essence of workplace discrimination—advance the mission of “inclusion”?
- If PetSmart is being “clear in its words and our actions,” isn’t only giving financial assistance to non-white employees clearly a statement that black lives matter more to the company than white lives? What else could it mean?
- I have no idea what “Grants from PetSmart Charities to support pets and pet parents in under-represented communities” means, put I’m pretty sure it will do nothing to keep a sick cop from kneeling on anyone’s neck.
- I wonder if Black Lives Matter is aware of the fact that its name and hashtag are in danger of becoming a meaningless mantra or talisman, waved in the air and mouthed to show compliance with mandatory politically correct sympathies, but ultimately signifying nothing. It may be fated to end up as a fitting addition to Homer Simpson’s immortal line, “It doesn’t mean anything. It’s like Rama-Lama-Ding-Dong or “Give Peace a Chance.”
Ethics Alarms 
Boy, am I ever glad Mrs. OB and I are currently petless.
A “pivotal moment in our country?”
Where’d you get the photo of J.K. He’s much smarter looking than his letter makes him sound.
There is always Petco and Chewy. I think that without my furry family members I might go nuts in this world.
Ummmm. Chewy is owned by Petsmart.
Did not know that. I will stop ordering meds there
The United Daughters of the Confederacy has a small on-line pet supply store.
I do most of my pet supply shopping at the local supermarket and dollar store, but I might try Chewy for anything I can’t get in town, assuming they’re not making a big fuss one way or the other about BLM.
I’ll also have to check the websites of the rural supply stores in my area (Farm & Fleet, Stock & Field, and especially Tractor Supply Co., which will be opening a store in my town (hopefully) this fall). They seem to be well-stocked with pet supplies, and hopefully at most only believe that “black animal lives matter.” (I remember hearing somewhere that black cats tend to be harder to get adopted from rescue organizations than cats of other colors – maybe due to old superstitions about black cats being a sign of bad luck?)
Black dogs and cats are thought to photograph poorly, so don’t “pop” in website photos. They put colorful bandanas and things on them to make the pet look less like a formless black mass.
These screeds are from CEO’s who talk at length about “leadership”.
If we are being taught that self flagellation is a mark if an effective leader then we are being set up to be an endangered species.
I want these CEO’s to tell me what metrics they will use to measure their success and the time necessary to achieve that success. If they cannot tell me that, no mid level manager can ever again be held accountable for failing to meet corporate goals in his or her SBU.
I got it, too. Unsubscribed from their email.
One of the top-of-the-homepage ads at Amazon.com links to this post on their blog, describing how Amazon is supporting BLM.
https://blog.aboutamazon.com/policy/amazon-donates-10-million-to-organizations-supporting-justice-and-equity?token=GW&utm_content=blm&utm_medium=hero&utm_source=gateway&utm_term=gw06032020
The Pan-African flag at Amazon’s Seattle offices featured at the top of the blog post, though, is a photo from “earlier this year,” I assume probably from Black History Month back in February.
My online shopping is choices are decreasing as I unsubscribe to many vendors who are busy virtual signaling.
I started ordering yarn for my crocheting from foreign vendors this spring, because so many US craft supply vendors had closed their warehouses; I may continue shopping with those foreign yarn vendors this summer, since they all seem to be in countries where “Black Lives Matter” isn’t a relevant issue.
I haven’t seen any manifestos from Aliexpress vendors.
My online shopping is choices are decreasing as I unsubscribe to many vendors who are busy virtual signaling.
It is more, much more, than ‘virtue signalling’ alone. I would suggest that this is all a series of managed crises through a concerted effort. This is no ‘spontaneous’. It is directed. I suspect that this is the case but I cannot present *sources*. But here is the declaration from the National Security Branch of the FBI:
It seems at least somewhat plain that the larger issue here is not what kinds of snacks your dog will eventually eat, but that the presidency of Donald Trump, for reasons I do not fully grasp (yet many opinions have been offered) represents a threat to the established liberal economic and governing order. If there is a Deep State I would suggest that it is the American intelligence apparatus. Now, if you are concerned that a pet supply store is ‘virtue signalling’ I would suggest that the real concern is much much larger. It has to do with managing a new demographic reality in the US. A new, rising power-grouping. It seems to me that decisions have been made that at any cost Donald Trump must be discredited, but behind that discreditation is a massive threat of general destruction. What this means, what it is, is the threat of violence and the use of the state’s power, and its intelligence operatives, to achieve a new order. It seems that this has been decided as the best route for so-called American Democracy to take.
This writer in the Times says: “America, this is your chance: We must get it right this time or we risk losing our democracy forever’.
And to be honest she is substantially right. That is to say that when the demographic numbers shift to be fully in *their* favor, not only will you get letters from the CEOs of those who manufacture your pet treats (this sound so pathetic to me), the vice will be tightened as it has already for many on the Dissident Right and you will be shut out of the system.
You could hardly have imagined this would happen a year or so ago. But you did not foresee, and you could not have imagined, how deadly serious is the geo-political game being played.
Michelle Alexander — there are dozens and dozens of hers — puts it like this:
Too many citizens prefer to cling to brutal and unjust systems than to give up political power, the perceived benefits of white supremacy and an exploitative economic system. If we do not learn the lessons of history and choose a radically different path forward, we may lose our last chance at creating a truly inclusive, egalitarian democracy.
A housewife in Kansas concerned about her pet snacks is one thing, as is someone concerned about her knitting supplies — and I offer my profoundest empathy in this difficult time! — yet I think that what is required here is a larger consciousness about what is going on and why, and where this will lead and is leading.
The question seems to be: How will we organize against this? Is it even possible? And how will that opposition be expressed? This is the supreme problem. The terms of American Deomcracy, the discourse and rhetoric of it, are now in the hands of people who weild it against you. You are the object of their activism. You will be eliminated ideologically — made to confess to them and kneel beofre them — or you will be . . . what? driven out of the economy? Have your house be burned down? Will you be doxxed and have your name appear on lists?
Said Jonathan Bowden:
“In part, we find ourselves here for the same reasons a civil war tore our nation apart more than 200 years ago”
Hmmm……not sure whether they are talking about the War of 1812 or the Revolutionary War here.
Granted the 1812 war was extremely unpopular in New England, but I don’t think it came to actually fighting amongst ourselves.
Must be talking about the Revolution, and yeah Great Britain, given its druthers could be fairly brutal and unjust — especially its army — if we want to talk about police brutality, we can just look at the New England towns where they looted, pillaged, and raped. Is that now politically correct?
So is the answer to just go back to being a colony of the British Empire? That might be a bit tough to accomplish.
I just checked: it was a mistake or a typo and was corrected. It now reads:
“Trump’s leadership has been disastrous. But it would be a mistake to place the blame on him alone. In part, we find ourselves here for the same reasons a civil war tore our nation apart more than 100 years ago:”
The American Civil War of course is what she refers to. I am right now munching a Grreat Choice® Sweet Potato & Chicken Wrap Dog Treat and thinking things over.
What are your favorite Doggy Treats and what action will you be taking to decry the recent Ideological Letters that some of America’s favorite companies have been sending us?
How can PetSmart believe they are not being racist, when in fact they are demonstrating strongly being racist by their actions against anyone who is white?
Pet Smart’s Twitter account is blowing up.
The fastest way to alienate whites is to keep badgering them about something they have no control over.
If these CEO’s feel they have been discriminating against blacks they should all submit their resignations. They led the firm. They set the culture. Every dime they donate to signal their virtue is at the expense of the customer or employee. When CEO’s give up their bonuses to fund these social justice initiatives instead of taking from someone else I might begin to believe they truly mean what they say.
Exactly. If their leadership contributes to the problem, why are they still there?
This is truly our “Lord of the Flies” moment. Minneapolis looks like the first city to truly go all-in LotF. There will be blood.
Boy, is PetSmart going to pay the price or what!
Have you decided yet who will fulfill your dog & cat needs in the coming months and years? It is a tough decision, given the hidden hand of market forces and that the buying public will ultimately determine who survives the controversy and who will be given a *thumbs down*.
Is it racist to hold the black community accountable for taking all available steps to improve themselves and their communities that focus on their actions and not on what others must do for them?
No it is not. I will give all this hoopla some serious consideration when I see evidence that the black community gives a damn about black lives. A large percentage of black murder victims are killed by blacks; most young black burglars do not stray far from home to find victims in their own neighborhoods. I could go on. Also, it is black neighborhoods that practice the “don’t snitch” policy that leaves known criminals, many who are murderers, free to continue their killing. Call it “physician heal thyself” or “the mote in your neighbor’s eye while ignoring the log in your own”, or whatever. Its an internal problem for the black population.
The race issue will be put behind us when a black person can be criticized for what he does without the response being some version “you’re racist”. Until then its “Black Lies Matter” to me.
Needed some work shirts so I went to the Dickies website and was greeted with a written lecture on ‘getting to work on ending racism’ or some nonsense. I did not buy any shirts there.
Wow, that one’s bad.
https://www.dickies.com/home?cm_mmc=GOOGLE-_-SEM-_-General-_-dickies&utm_id=google_167769616_1718284846_439414353812_aud-395161807659:kwd-15002600_c&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIydfalZLx6QIVkIzICh3FRQxiEAAYASAAEgL1uPD_BwE
Did you notice the color of all those modeling Dickies work garments. Are they implicitly saying POC are lazy and don’t work.
How ironic.
A friend of mine put it best “Oh, I thought it was ‘Black Labs Matter’ just before deleting it.”
Here’s Yelp and 23andme:
Yelp Logo
We see you. We support you.
Our country has a long and fraught history of systemic oppression and anti-Black racism that we have shamefully not yet come close to overcoming. Recent events, starting with the brutal murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, have made racial injustice something that we must deal with immediately as a society.
We have a lot of work to do, and it’s on all of us to do that work. As an organization with diverse employees, users, and customers, Yelp is committed to supporting our Black colleagues, standing against racism and injustice in our communities, and laying the groundwork for change that is long overdue.
To start, the Yelp Foundation is donating $500,000 to the Equal Justice Initiative and NAACP Legal Defense Fund—two organizations whose work is uplifting and empowering Black communities across the country.
Over the coming weeks, we will launch a new, free, searchable attribute that will give businesses a way to identify themselves as Black-owned, and make it easy for users to find and support Black-owned businesses on Yelp.
These steps are just the starting point as we continue to work toward longer term changes—the lasting impact of which we hope will inspire and reshape how we support Black communities moving forward. To stop the injustice, all of us need to commit to change.
Jeremy
Co-founder and CEO, Yelp
23andme
For those in the black community, we know you carry an extra burden right now and 23andMe stands in solidarity with you.
Our company is based on the foundation that all of us are linked by a shared thread – DNA – that we are genetically 99.5% the same. We share so much in common, yet black and brown skin means you will disproportionately experience injustices and prejudice that can put lives on completely different trajectories.
I feel awful and overwhelmed by the events going on. Hashtag after hashtag, there is little meaningful change. How can we break the cycle? The world is filled with people who, I believe, genuinely want to create an equitable society but are unsure how to take the first step to make that happen. We all have habits we need to break, biases we need to actively fight and silence we need to end.
As a leader who really cares, I feel the responsibility to not just talk about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, but to make meaningful changes and contributions through my own actions and how we operate at 23andMe. Our management team, Board and employee base must have greater diversity. I am ashamed to say I do not have a single black employee who is at Director level or above. Our product is euro-centric but must expand to be inclusive and equitable. We absolutely have the potential to be better. Despite our efforts, I have to honestly say that we are also part of the problem.
I’m holding myself accountable. I’m holding 23andMe accountable. And I’m asking that our customers hold us accountable. This will include making sure that we change our hiring practices, that we make sure we give greater promotional opportunities within the company, that we dedicate resources to evolve our product to better represent all communities and that my management team and Board have more inclusive representation.
George Floyd and many others in the black community died an unjust and tragic death. I send my deepest sympathy to the families, friends and communities that are grieving. We regrettably cannot change the past but I can certainly learn from this and will do everything I can to be part of changing the future.
Anne Wojcicki
CEO and Co-founder, 23andMe
You are receiving this email because you are a customer of 23andMe.
© 2007-2020 23andMe, Inc.
23andMe, Inc., 223 N. Mathilda Ave. Sunnyvale, CA 94086, USA
Will your list match any on this list?
https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-companies-with-the-most-hypocritical-black-lives-matter-messaging-from-fox-to-facebook
Our cat wants to know; he’s gray, and very confused right now.
The Popeyes tweet is a classic!
When I look at these, I’m becoming increasingly unable to see any message but TRUMP 2020 !
Can you add an awards category for “Most Likely to Aid the Re-election of the President”?
I’d put “Defund the Police” in that category.
This is from ConCarolinas — a science fiction convention here in North Carolina, and a follow-up.
ConCarolinas Statement on the Murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many others and the Nationwide Demonstrations Protesting Police Brutality.
Black Lives Matter.
In a perfect world, this statement would end there. In a perfect world, it wouldn’t need to be said at all, because it would be obvious and everyone would live by that statement. But this is not a perfect world, as can be seen by people rising up in all fifty states and many countries around the world to speak out against systemic racism and excessive use of force by American police departments. ConCarolinas wants to make it abundantly clear that we stand with our African-American fans, guests, volunteers, and humans. You matter. We see you.
And we see ourselves. We as a nation are not perfect, and we are not where we need to be. We as a convention are not where we need to be. We have made mistakes in the past, and our representation by attendees, volunteers, and guests of color is inadequate. We are working to improve.
Our Con Committee and Track Directors are actively working to add more diverse programming and guests to our convention, and we are creating new initiatives to increase attendance by African-American fans and fans in other underrepresented segments of our population. We will talk more about those initiatives in the coming weeks and months. We will post those initiatives both to the ConCarolinas website, and to our social media pages. This is a time to say that we stand with you, and we will do and be better in our actions. Words are too often empty; it is actions that matter.
Fandom is for everyone. ConCarolinas is for everyone. You are welcome here. We see you. We support you.
===========
That was from their Facebook account. The next Facebook post, or really soon thereafter was this:
We at ConCarolinas are aware of a social media post made by an individual formerly associated with ConCarolinas, and is currently associated with one of our affiliates, that contains inflammatory language. ConCarolinas strongly condemns this language and post, as well as any language or post that advocates or promotes violence. This language and post does not align with or reflect the core values and mission of the organization. ConCarolinas has severed ties with the individual. Thank you for your continued support, and your patience in this matter.
===========
Guess even though ConCarolinas is for everyone, they are making an exception for whoever this is. One can only speculate, what he might have said.
This same con a couple years ago invited a science fiction author, John Ringo, to be one of their Guests of Honor. He is a target of various SJWs, who raised a big stink about it and ConCarolinas disinvited him, earning the opprobrium of the rest of us. I know the con attendance suffered from that and we as a book vendor suffered as well. It probably had an influence on the fact that they were unable to secure a first tier author guest of honor this year (although the con was cancelled because of the lockdown). Blechh.
With all the crowdfunding for bail, I’d like to see huge crowdfunding for businesses and homes damaged or destroyed by ‘peaceful’ riots.
Uncle Hugos SF bookstore destination in Minneapolis was burnt to the ground and there were bunches of comic stores damaged in one report about last weekend. One owner said insurance won’t cover civil insurrection. How many other businesses are in the same boat in riot areas? That’s why that woman teacher dismissing costs is so full of it, How many mom and pops will close, leaving corporations that send profits into the ether and tax shelters?
Even IF the business is insured, what about the stress and pain of rebuilding, insurance doesn’t do the work. replace one of a kind first editions of “The Invisible Man.” First appearance of Storm or John Stewart? Destruction is easy,blowing off steam about racism and covid restrictions is easy, but tomorrow or the day after or next year when all those businesses don’t return or all you have are overpriced convenience stores instead or grocery stores or fun social businesses like books or comics you will complain about no place to shop. But I guess the loss of paying jobs where no one is a number isn’t as important as eliminating those small business owners regardless of their stripe.
What about losses to insurance companies? Do insurance companies just print money? Maybe Jake at State Farm will lose his job?
Not since he turned Black, he won’t.
There is some good news with Uncle Hugo’s. He did have insurance and it will cover pretty much the wholesale cost of his inventory (he doesn’t know yet about the building itself). That’s good, but as you mention, there are many books that are one of a kind, irreplaceable. Even if you can replace your stock (and replacement costs would likely be more than the original stock), it is a massive effort to find it. Quality used books are not something you get at the dollar store — you pick them up one by one, in his case over decades.
There is a GOFundMe underway that is already into 6 figures, which is heartening. Still, it is pretty uncertain whether the brick and mortar shop will reopen or just move online (and how many jobs would be lost in that case?). We’ll see what happens.
I keep seeing Facebook posts about how insurance will make sure the destroyed business owners are compensated as if there won’t be a drawback to insurance.
How many businesses are able to take out insurance that covers riot damage? How many insurers will want to continue to insure businesses in riot damaged areas?
You make good points about losses that are irreplaceable; however, the lack of understanding on the part of these riot-rationalizers about the economics of insurance is astounding.
Here’s one I got a few days ago from Betterment:
“Black Lives Matter
A note from CEO & Founder Jon Stein
Like so many Americans, I am haunted and angered by the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery—three of the latest of many lives that have been taken because they were Black. These and other recent demonstrations of police violence, racism, and inequality in America provide fresh evidence that we have a long way to go on the road to equality.
Betterment will not stand for the unequal treatment of people of color in our company, in our communities, or in our country. We will advocate for our Black colleagues, friends, and fellow citizens and work harder to build a nation that’s just for all, where we all can pursue happiness, without fear, oppression, or unequal treatment.
We all are accountable for the state of our country, and it’s our responsibility to acknowledge and address pervasive racism. My ask, particularly of those of us who are white and exist in a place of privilege: Pay attention to the significant events going on now. Educate yourself and others. Show your support for equality. Take action.
We as a country and community need not be afraid of challenging the status quo or changing the system if it’s not working for people. We should lean into it. I am. And so is Betterment. We live in a society that benefits people unequally, where some live in fear, and others take their safety and security for granted. If we aren’t changing it, we’re perpetuating it.
Our team has been sharing ideas to support those who are looking to get involved. We’ve compiled a list of organizations and resources that support the fight against racial inequality—a few of which I’m sharing below—and we are encouraging employees to continue to add to that list. Betterment will be matching their donations. (For now, these are cash donations; we’re looking at whether we might be able to add some of these organizations to Betterment Charitable Giving and to make them available to all our customers.) Personally, I have contributed to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Color of Change, and the Equal Justice Initiative.
There’s much work to do. It’s time we make real progress. I hope you’ll join us.
Resources from the Betterment Team
Ways you can help: Petition, call, donate, and more
Black Lives Matter: Fund the Movement
ActBlue: Split a donation between 40 community bail funds
20 Actions White people and non-Black POCs can take to show up for Black People right now
Social Change: Everyone has a role to play (#useyourprivilege #unlearnracism)”
I got the PetSmart one, too.
Here’s Wal-Mart’s:
Changing the future, together
We know it takes more than talk—it takes action
The events surrounding the tragic, senseless death of George Floyd in Minneapolis have put a spotlight on the injustice that exists in our country. We know many of you are hurting, exhausted, angry, and discouraged right now—we are, too.
What is taking place is further proof we must stand together, push for change, and help build a more inclusive society. It’s not only what we believe, it’s also at the core of the most basic principles of human rights and justice.
We know that Walmart has a role to play in changing the future by making a positive impact on racial equity. We also know it takes more than talk—it takes action.
Inside the company, our work to recruit, develop, and support African Americans and other people of color will be even more of a priority. To influence and lead change in society more broadly, we are going to invest resources and develop plans to increase fairness, equity, and justice in aspects of everyday life. Specifically, we’re going to focus the power of Walmart on our nation’s financial, healthcare, education, and criminal justice systems. Building on what our business can do, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are also committing $100 million over five years through a new center for racial equity. The goal of the center will be to address racism in society head-on and accelerate change.
The doors of Walmart have always been open to everyone, and they always will be. A Walmart store isn’t just a place that’s in a community, it’s part of a community. It is representative of all America—and of all Americans. Our stores and clubs should be a place where every individual can feel welcome and know they will be treated with respect as they work or shop.
What our country is experiencing right now reminds us of the need for us to support each other and to come together. Until we, as a nation, address the hard realities of racial discrimination and injustice, we will never achieve the best of what we can be.
Doug McMillon, Chief Executive Officer
From Etsy, because I ordered a pendant for the lady I have my eye on there:
To the Etsy Community,
The past days and weeks have, once again, shone a spotlight on the tremendous injustices in our society. We stand in solidarity with our employees and communities who are voicing their anguish, anger, and deep frustration with systems that oppress and devalue Black lives.
We stand against police brutality in all forms.
We stand against a criminal justice system that disproportionately targets Black Americans.
We stand against the widespread disenfranchisement of Black and Brown communities whose voices are silenced at the polls.
Allyship with Black communities is as much a moral imperative as a requirement of our business.
We can’t fight for small businesses, if we don’t also fight for the empowerment of Black business owners.
We can’t hire and care for our Black employees, if we don’t also protect Black lives everywhere.
We can’t be there for women employees, if we aren’t also standing up specifically for Black women.
We can’t advocate for parents, if we aren’t standing with Black mothers and fathers who fear for their Black childrens’ lives.
Black Lives Matter is the civil rights movement of our time, because it addresses a fundamental inequality in our society: that Black lives are too often undervalued. This notion inspired Etsy’s own internal commitments from diversity and inclusion to economic empowerment.
We also believe that it’s critical to provide support to organizations working tirelessly for criminal justice reform and those that assist Black-led institutions. That’s why today we are announcing donations of $500,000 to the Equal Justice Initiative and $500,000 to Borealis Philanthropy’s Black-Led Movement Fund, as well as matching employee donations. We encourage our community to join us in supporting these important organizations.
Etsy is built on a belief that communities have the power to change the status quo. Change is hard-fought, and we are committed to this fight.
Right. The criminal justice system “targets” African Americans. The criminal justice system targets criminals, and always has. If a disproportionate number of African Americans are in prison, that’s primarily because a disproportionate number of African Americans are breaking laws.
I’m with you, Jack, but at this point you can’t say that without being accused of being a racist. The mayor of Newark is about to introduce an ordinance that will designate any hate group a terrorist and ban them from the city, provide that any employee who does or says anything vaguely racist will be immediately terminated, and also establish that any employee who witnesses another employee saying or doing anything vaguely racist will also be terminated. Essentially, all city employees have to report any fellow employee who does or says anything, on pain of losing their jobs if they don’t.
Anyone who is afraid of speaking the truth because of what he or she will be called isn’t fit to live in or participate in a democracy. Right now we are seeing mass cultural bullying and compelled speech. Naturally, corporations and entertainment companies are the most compliant, since they generally have no underlying principles except money That’s no excuse for anyone else. Yes, one needs to state the truth accurately and without being inflammatory. But you still have to speak the truth. Let’s see how serious Americans are about Democracy. Mostly, I think they need to have some help negotiating through the smoke screens.
For example, there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that George Floyd is dead because he is black. None. None has been found, and you know people have been looking. The proposition that any time a black citizen is abused by the police it is per se racism, that is, presumed racism, is logically and ethically absurd, and people should have the courage to say so. Some have opined that all things being equal, Floyd would have met the same fate if he were white. That’s not an unreasonable opinion, and it shouldn’t be unspeakable. If he had been white, there would have been no protests or riots, although the injustice and the misconduct would have been exactly the same.
Simple questions requiring straight answers can make the point: Why is Floyd’s death presumed to be based on racism?
I think I’ll finish this line of thought in a post.
I’ll go you one better. I think we are developing a culture of cowardice and not only learned, but preferred helplessness. When police officers are not just making sure protests don’t get out of hand, but kneeling on demand, when mayors take walks of shame before the mob, and when other mayors are telling armed business owners NOT to take action if they are attacked, it’s clear helplessness is preferred by the people up top. When signs are being posted telling neighbors not to call the police, lest they put the black and brown people in danger, and white people are told to shut up on pain of being accused of racism and damned, it’s clear helplessness and cowardice is preferred by the activists down below also. Both of those groups of folks want those of us in the middle to cower and just give them what they want. I’ll expand on this whole line of thought later, both here and over at Intellectual Conservative, where I have recently become a member.
BTW, a year or two ago I made reference on a cold day to it being “brass monkey weather.” This is a Britishism (I am a bit of an Anglophile) for very cold weather, the PG version of “cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.” A black secretary in the office, who was not the intended audience for my remarks, said she was looking that up, and if that was a racist term, which she thought it was, she was going to walk across the office and have me fired that day. I told her to go right ahead, and she found she didn’t have a leg to stand on, but I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t a little nerve-wracking. This is the same person who said to me once that all you white people are racist, some y’all just better at hiding it.
It was a fascinating, and somewhat scary, look into the way this person’s mind, and, presumably the minds of the like-minded, worked. To this person, I’m a racist because I’m white, I’m just good at covering it up. But one day I’m going to slip up, and that’s going to peek through the mask, and on that day, at that very moment, she’s going to have me plucked from my chair and frog-marched to the parking lot.
She will bide her time. And you will get yours. If not today, tomorrow. If not tommorow soon enough.
Once you understand — and you do not yet, not does Jack, nor anyone who will say so openly here — what all of this portends for you, your children, then you will be in a position to develop a plan. That is, a response. All the resources are there.
Right now: you and so many Americans are like scared deer frozen in the headlights. The car rushes at you. And you can only *complain*.
I say this not to be mean. I am waiting for the day — it will come — when you ‘wake up’.
Robin DiAngelo:
A complete essay:
https://libjournal.uncg.edu/ijcp/article/viewFile/249/116
Mentioning the ordinance caught my attention enough to consult Mr. Google.
The first search result linked to a Jersualem Post article with the following quote which I thought screamed irony in context of Planned Parenthood’s most notorious medical service.
“We will welcome challenges to the ordinance. You can’t enjoy free speech when you can’t breathe, and our first human right is to be able to live,” added Newark Corporation Counsel Kenyatta Stewart.
Bingo.
Advocating for “accountability” is the clever way of advocating for reform without endorsing vandalism and arson.
The benchmarks and indices still get to be vague, but both sides are now accountable for how they get there.
Airbnb also has the virtue signaling approval of BLM notice on it’s main page…Lego dropping ads for police and White House-themed sets. https://nypost.com/2020/06/04/lego-halts-promotion-of-police-white-house-sets-amid-protests/All are groveling –
but THIS is a head-exploder…De-Colonize your book shelves…. https://www.npr.org/2020/06/06/870910728/your-bookshelf-may-be-part-of-the-problem
Yeah, I saw that. The thing is that most mentally healthy people don’t pay much attention to what color the authors of the books they like are….and shouldn’t.
I am prejudiced towards books that entertain me.
Fortunately, as a bookseller I am less prejudiced and I list dull books as well as the exciting ones.