if they have the resources to drop loot on g-unit gear and rare dj screw and 45 king b-sides, then they have the resources to learn the bare bone basics of the culture they so fetishize.
just like how you assumed the taiwanese fetishize the same things the japanese collectros do? Instead of bothering to "learn"?
Point being, folks can't know everything under the sun. Just like you can't.
That store is just a business, they're just selling clothing. They misapproriated terminology they identified as hiphop. They fucked up because of a cultural divide. It happens.
Of course it's not right, but my point is, shit happens in life. Just fix it and move on, learn from your mistakes.
[young_phon]I can't believe people are defending this[/young_phon]
if they have the resources to drop loot on g-unit gear and rare dj screw and 45 king b-sides, then they have the resources to learn the bare bone basics of the culture they so fetishize.
Call me dangerous mindz, but that is the whole paradigm of fetishizing; you seemingly objectify inobejectifiable things in order that you might posess your desire to be, or possess, what that object signifies. The idea of fetishizing people--in a Marxian context, which I'm pretty sure is where the word comes from in this regard--means that you are operating with a violent ignorance to the fact that the objects of your fetishization are human beings. You fetishize because it doesn't occur to you to learn because objects don't have the currency of humans.
But, that's just my take on it. Notedly I am not well-read when it comes to Marx.
YEAH!! THOSE TAIWAINESE SHOULD BE LEARNING VIETNAMESE AND THEN FROM THERE THEY CAN LEARN ENGLISH AND THE HIP HOP SLANG FROM THEIR KNOWLEDGE OF VIETNAMESE!!
I bet money on n****r not being in that dictionary though,
I'm sure there's some kind of urban dictionary,
But all in all, we're safe to assume that a hip hop head from taiwan would understand the rammifications of having a store called "n****r king", however, a hip hop head would not of opened this store, some sleazy business man who uses this store as a front to sell some good drugs, would of opened this store with very little knowledge of hip hop or black culture because he saw it as a quick way to make a buck selling cheap clothes all the kids wanted which cost him two bucks a pop because he's got a whole factory full of 8 year olds making this shit with their bare hands.
Here is a picture from the front of a store that sells "hip-hop" (gunit) gear in Taiwan...
not a good look... they have business cards and all that shit...
peace.
With the signage is English as opposed to Chinese characters, you think it's directed at a specific demographic? English-speaking Taiwanese, English-speaking tourists, WTF?
Does the spot have a corresponding Mandarin sign too?
That's a trip, I move to Taiwan in a few weeks to get a teaching job...
Asians and Europeans are a bit more oblivious about the state of racial matters in the states. That's all.
Um - "NI**ER" is hardly a slur exclusive to the United States.
Why the Japanese get some sort of cultural pass for their racist views of blacks is beyond me ... from "Darkie Toothpaste" to "NI**ER KING" I seem to always hear excuses that it's "not the same."
Taiwan and Japan are not the same dude.
But anyway, I wasn't trying to defend this shit. You can call them straight up racists or completely ignorant. The truth of the matter is, in stark contrast to the U.S., in places like Taiwan or Japan, the majority are just that, Taiwanese and Japanese. Are people gonna be culturally/racially insensitive? Sure. That's why in Japan, they have the word "gai-jin" which means "outsider". For instance, no one in Japan's gonna care how the next person perceives Blacks or Whites or Chinese or Koreans, nawmean? I am largely generalizing by saying, "Asians and Europeans", but I think it's true to an extent.
Hell, I was shocked when the Italians won the World Cup and they were jumping up on the tables at ESPN Zone in Chicago, and this one dude was yelling "Germany, go back home!" and shit like that. Try switching that with a white dude yelling out "Koreans go home!" or some shit like that in a similar situation.
okay, i'm sleepy, i'm sure when I wake up tomorrow, half of this won't make sense.
haha... I think that's really funny. Don't understand why people get upset about this. Kinda reminds me of western idiots with Asian tattoos ("this is chinese for respect" when in fact it says "chicken soup") Just a few days ago, on the streets of Freetown, a local sitting at the side of the road greeted me with "what's up my nigger". I damn nearly pissed my pants. On my first visit to Freetown, I saw (african) dudes in a big white pick-up that had a huge decal reading "B??HSE ONKELZ" (german nazi rock band) on the rear window. In Conakry (french speaking, hardly anybody understands a word of english) I saw a mamber of the BAC (Brigade Anti Criminel), the meanest brand of local cops who wear black uniforms who had replaced his probably worn out uniform shirt with a black T-Shirt that said "ON DRUGS".
How do you call this shit? "crosscultural accidents"
Few years ago I agreed to take a Russian student round London for the day on behalf of my friend who was teaching him English. He wanted to buy some reggae so I took him to Dub Vendor where he greeted the guy behind the counter with a Westside sign and the immortal words "Yo, nigga." After I bundled him out of the shop he asked innocently asked whether he should have called him "Mr Nigga".
That store is just a business, they're just selling clothing. They misapproriated terminology they identified as hiphop. They fucked up because of a cultural divide. It happens.
Of course it's not right, but my point is, shit happens in life. Just fix it and move on, learn from your mistakes.
Its not really suprising. We release product on the world without the social implications that come with it.
If we are exporting rap CDs with "nigger" all over it, without a brochure attached entitled "By the way, Here are a few reasons why YOU shouldn't be using the word Nigger" then what do you expect? How the hell would they know?
Reminds me of when I was in Taiwan, this one dude I was talking to was very suprised at all the chinese character tattoos he saw when he was in the states. He couldn't understand why we would do it when we aren't chinese. I told him I guess some people thought it looked "cool". He said he saw some girl in LA with the chinese word for "prostitute" tattooed on her. He asked why she would get that, and I told him that they probably told her that shit meant "peace" or "tranquility" or some bullshit like that.
So we are just as guilty as they are. We adapt the part of other cultures that we think are "cool" without bothering to learn what it really means. Why? because we don't really care. Who cares what that shit on my Korean lamp says? It looks cool. Think about how we throw the words "zen" and "feng shui" around like we know what that shit means.
So, is NIGGER KING offensive? Fuck yeah it is! Should they have known better? Maybe...
Its not really suprising. We release product on the world without the social implications that come with it.
If we are exporting rap CDs with "nigger" all over it, without a brochure attached entitled "By the way, Here are a few reasons why YOU shouldn't be using the word Nigger" then what do you expect? How the hell would they know?
Reminds me of when I was in Taiwan, this one dude I was talking to was very suprised at all the chinese character tattoos he saw when he was in the states. He couldn't understand why we would do it when we aren't chinese. I told him I guess some people thought it looked "cool". He said he saw some girl in LA with the chinese word for "prostitute" tattooed on her. He asked why she would get that, and I told him that they probably told her that shit meant "peace" or "tranquility" or some bullshit like that.
So we are just as guilty as they are. We adapt the part of other cultures that we think are "cool" without bothering to learn what it really means. Why? because we don't really care. Who cares what that shit on my Korean lamp says? It looks cool. Think about how we throw the words "zen" and "feng shui" around like we know what that shit means.
So, is NIGGER KING offensive? Fuck yeah it is! Should they have known better? Maybe...
To say the sign is not offensive or is funny is admitting you don't have a problem with the word ....If Hip Hop had such a big influence, why didn't Hip Hop influence the spelling ? You don't know the perspective of the people who own the store...You dont know what specifically is in the store ....yet seeing the word Nigger King in neon on a building is funny and hilarious ......If you say the ignorance behind it is funny then the arguments made for their ignorance have been weak ...Far as i can see these "store owners" haven't had to defend or explain shit before they are quick to be defended by people miles away
To say the sign is not offensive or is funny is admitting you don't have a problem with the word ....If Hip Hop had such a big influence, why didn't Hip Hop influence the spelling ? You don't know the perspective of the people who own the store...You dont know what specifically is in the store ....yet seeing the word Nigger King in neon on a building is funny and hilarious ......If you say the ignorance behind it is funny then the arguments made for their ignorance have been weak ...Far as i can see these "store owners" haven't had to defend or explain shit before they are quick to be defended by people miles away
Comments
just like how you assumed the taiwanese fetishize the same things the japanese collectros do? Instead of bothering to "learn"?
Point being, folks can't know everything under the sun. Just like you can't.
That store is just a business, they're just selling clothing. They misapproriated terminology they identified as hiphop. They fucked up because of a cultural divide. It happens.
Of course it's not right, but my point is, shit happens in life. Just fix it and move on, learn from your mistakes.
Call me dangerous mindz, but that is the whole paradigm of fetishizing; you seemingly objectify inobejectifiable things in order that you might posess your desire to be, or possess, what that object signifies. The idea of fetishizing people--in a Marxian context, which I'm pretty sure is where the word comes from in this regard--means that you are operating with a violent ignorance to the fact that the objects of your fetishization are human beings. You fetishize because it doesn't occur to you to learn because objects don't have the currency of humans.
But, that's just my take on it. Notedly I am not well-read when it comes to Marx.
YEAH!! THOSE TAIWAINESE SHOULD BE LEARNING VIETNAMESE AND THEN FROM THERE THEY CAN LEARN ENGLISH AND THE HIP HOP SLANG FROM THEIR KNOWLEDGE OF VIETNAMESE!!
ASIAN RACISTS GO HOME!
I'm sure there's some kind of urban dictionary,
But all in all, we're safe to assume that a hip hop head from taiwan would understand the rammifications of having a store called "n****r king", however, a hip hop head would not of opened this store, some sleazy business man who uses this store as a front to sell some good drugs, would of opened this store with very little knowledge of hip hop or black culture because he saw it as a quick way to make a buck selling cheap clothes all the kids wanted which cost him two bucks a pop because he's got a whole factory full of 8 year olds making this shit with their bare hands.
fair assumption?
(this is a reply to a post that was deleted)
Meaning "NOT COOL"
With the signage is English as opposed to Chinese characters, you think it's directed at a specific demographic? English-speaking Taiwanese, English-speaking tourists, WTF?
Does the spot have a corresponding Mandarin sign too?
That's a trip, I move to Taiwan in a few weeks to get a teaching job...
Bingo.
Taiwan and Japan are not the same dude.
But anyway, I wasn't trying to defend this shit. You can call them straight up racists or completely ignorant. The truth of the matter is, in stark contrast to the U.S., in places like Taiwan or Japan, the majority are just that, Taiwanese and Japanese. Are people gonna be culturally/racially insensitive? Sure. That's why in Japan, they have the word "gai-jin" which means "outsider". For instance, no one in Japan's gonna care how the next person perceives Blacks or Whites or Chinese or Koreans, nawmean? I am largely generalizing by saying, "Asians and Europeans", but I think it's true to an extent.
Hell, I was shocked when the Italians won the World Cup and they were jumping up on the tables at ESPN Zone in Chicago, and this one dude was yelling "Germany, go back home!" and shit like that. Try switching that with a white dude yelling out "Koreans go home!" or some shit like that in a similar situation.
okay, i'm sleepy, i'm sure when I wake up tomorrow, half of this won't make sense.
Peace.
I think that's really funny.
Don't understand why people get upset about this.
Kinda reminds me of western idiots with Asian tattoos ("this is chinese for respect" when in fact it says "chicken soup")
Just a few days ago, on the streets of Freetown, a local sitting at the side of the road greeted me with "what's up my nigger". I damn nearly pissed my pants.
On my first visit to Freetown, I saw (african) dudes in a big white pick-up that had a huge decal reading "B??HSE ONKELZ" (german nazi rock band) on the rear window.
In Conakry (french speaking, hardly anybody understands a word of english) I saw a mamber of the BAC (Brigade Anti Criminel), the meanest brand of local cops who wear black uniforms who had replaced his probably worn out uniform shirt with a black T-Shirt that said "ON DRUGS".
How do you call this shit? "crosscultural accidents"
I liked this taiwanese ad campaign a few years back...
What do u mean by like?
I thought it was funny.
same as I find that storefront funny.
I mean, who can take any shit like that serious?
I often find it funny when people do very wrong things,
especialy when they don't even realize it... sorry.
you asian?
you white?
....just kidding. Carry on.
THats just hilarious.
If we are exporting rap CDs with "nigger" all over it, without a brochure attached entitled "By the way, Here are a few reasons why YOU shouldn't be using the word Nigger" then what do you expect? How the hell would they know?
Reminds me of when I was in Taiwan, this one dude I was talking to was very suprised at all the chinese character tattoos he saw when he was in the states. He couldn't understand why we would do it when we aren't chinese. I told him I guess some people thought it looked "cool". He said he saw some girl in LA with the chinese word for "prostitute" tattooed on her. He asked why she would get that, and I told him that they probably told her that shit meant "peace" or "tranquility" or some bullshit like that.
So we are just as guilty as they are. We adapt the part of other cultures that we think are "cool" without bothering to learn what it really means. Why? because we don't really care. Who cares what that shit on my Korean lamp says? It looks cool. Think about how we throw the words "zen" and "feng shui" around like we know what that shit means.
So, is NIGGER KING offensive? Fuck yeah it is! Should they have known better? Maybe...
They spelled it right.
You sound angry.
get the fuck out of here with that bullshit.