The Feds Let "Whitey" Get Away with Murder - A racially inflammatory headline?

reply to post by grandmakdw


Actually, in all honesty, no I would not. Mostly because I would have probably already been following the story. Plus, the media would never get away with that. Even if that was his nickname.

Originally posted by Junkheap
When I was a kid I had a toy orange stuffed dog that I named "Orangey". I guess that makes me a racist too.

Ha ha

Orangey is not a current racist term used by a large number of people to describe a person in a negative and derogatory way.

Blackie AND Whitey are very very racist terms in this day and age.

When I was a child Whitey was not a racist term, however it IS now.

Just out of curiosity does anybody even know how he got the nickname Whitey?

Whitey Bulger was born James Joseph Bulger Jr. on September 3, 1929, in Dorchester, Massachusetts. One of six children born to Roman Catholic Irish-American parents, Whitey—a moniker he was given for his white-blond hair—grew up in a South Boston public-housing project.

Source

Originally posted by ratcals
reply to post by grandmakdw

 

Actually, in all honesty, no I would not. Mostly because I would have probably already been following the story. Plus, the media would never get away with that. Even if that was his nickname.

Exactly my point.

The media would never get away with:
The Feds let Blackie get away with murder.
They would be hounded and hounded for being racist.

Whitey in this day and age is an equally racist term and the media SHOULD be blasted for it.

This is clearly a case of the media being deliberately provocative. Anyone who says it's anything else is showing their true colors in being deliberately obtuse.

Originally posted by ratcals
Just out of curiosity does anybody even know how he got the nickname Whitey?

Because of his very light blonde hair. I'll go dig up links for that, I've read it before.

And this is still a crappy excuse to pull the racism card, OP.

There you go:
blogs.villagevoice.com...

5. Boston cops nicknamed the notorious James Bulger "Whitey" because of his lightning-blond hair. He hated the nickname and insisted that his associates (anyone who didn't want to die) call him Jimmy.

Originally posted by ratcals
Just out of curiosity does anybody even know how he got the nickname Whitey?

Have you seen a picture of him? He is white as the fallen snow with white hair and a white beard, that were probably light blonde in his early youth, based on how much of the color white he is in pictures.

It is clearly a racial identifier that was popular in his early youth.

reply to post by grandmakdw


Well the litmus test here is whether the greatest racists of all time, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, weigh in on the headline.

Originally posted by Nyiah

Originally posted by ratcals
Just out of curiosity does anybody even know how he got the nickname Whitey?

Because of his very light blonde hair. I'll go dig up links for that, I've read it before.

And this is still a crappy excuse to pull the racism card, OP.

This is not a racism card

It is an AWARENESS card

Everyone should avoid racist language and the implication of racist language. It doesn't just apply to one race or one religion.

Originally posted by grandmakdw

Originally posted by Nyiah

Originally posted by ratcals
Just out of curiosity does anybody even know how he got the nickname Whitey?

Because of his very light blonde hair. I'll go dig up links for that, I've read it before.

And this is still a crappy excuse to pull the racism card, OP.

This is not a racism card

It is an AWARENESS card

Everyone should avoid racist language and the implication of racist language. It doesn't just apply to one race or one religion.

No, this is more like a Political Correctness card. Which is precisely why this is a problem in the first place. Stop being so sensitive.

Originally posted by grandmakdw
reply to post by grandmakdw

 

Ok, lets pretend there is a Black Panther famous leader known as "Blackie" Jones.

If you saw the headline:

The feds let 'Blackie" get away with murder.

Would you consider that a racist headline?

Whitey is now a derogatory term for White person, a currently quite racist term. The same as blackie is a very racist term.

Did not the author of the headline at a magazine at Time not know this was a racist and currently inflammatory word? The headline DOES come across as blatantly racist.

Hey, here's an idea. Since this record label's CEO happens to actually be a man by the name of Blackie Jones, maybe that question would be better asked of him. I bet he says no.

I grew up not knowing one of my uncles because he got thrown in the slammer for working with this scumbag . It wasnt until he died in prison that my parents told me about him . I also found out after whitey was arrested that my best friends dad(who was billy bulgers secretary) was using his house as a secure location to take and make calls for whitey . On top of that, i went to school with whiteys hit man's son . I live in this area so i've always know him as whitey , however if i didnt grow up in the area i might not have as much knowledge on the case as i do. I can see where you are coming from as the headline may come off as racially charged . It's also worth noting that he was listed on the fbi's most wanted list at #2 under bin laden, and im pretty sure he was listed on there as Whitey Bulger

Originally posted by suz62
This is clearly a case of the media being deliberately provocative. Anyone who says it's anything else is showing their true colors in being deliberately obtuse.

Provocative towards what audience? Let me see if I understand your argument here. The term ‘whitey’ is a derogatory term for labeling white people. So, at the risk of sounding obtuse, all white people should be offended by that headline. Correct? Well, I am white, and I am in no way offended. You know why? Because I am informed enough to know Whitey is the man’s nickname. Stop trying to make everything a racist issue. I’d be interested to know if there are any non-white people on this board who are offended by the headline.

reply to post by grandmakdw

Do you think headlines like this incite racism and the beatings of innocent white victims at the hands of black mobs acting like the KKK of the past?

The only people this would incite are those who would read the title and stop right there. A lot of people with short attention spans like that tend to be racist.

But yeah, it was probably worded as such to conjure up images of the derogatory implications of "whitey"

But... regardless of skin color, I haven't seen many headlines alone instigating violence, at least not in the West. To be clear, I don't think the black community would be any more inclined to violence over this headline as would the white community if it were inverted.

Granted, I wouldn't at all be surprised if someone tried to use it as justification for their racist actions, but I don't see it being a cause or a serious sparking point.

I agree, it might as well read another cracker got away with murder.

This is the biggest problem in America when dealing with Race. Blacks can say Whitey, Cracker, etc,and not be racist, if a white person say's the N word it is racist, That too me is BS.

www.addictinginfo.org...

reply to post by Nyiah

Nobody's fanning any racism flames, don't be a nitwit. The guy's nickname is Whitey, and that's what he's known by. If no one's heard of Whitey Bulger by now they're living their lives under a rock, hands down. If anyone's fanning racism flames, it's you by trying to say someone is.

Then why do they not call him by his last name like they do with almost all court cases ike this? I bet if the guys nickname was "broccoli"" they would not have used it ike that.

Its all just a dog and pony show because they know thy have to keep racism alive to help them keep people fighting with each other. Don't think for a second that its not intentional.

So to stand outside the courthouse and yell, "DOWN WITH WHITEY!!!".....?

Originally posted by grandmakdw

Originally posted by Nyiah
Nobody's fanning any racism flames, don't be a nitwit. The guy's nickname is Whitey, and that's what he's known by. If no one's heard of Whitey Bulger by now they're living their lives under a rock, hands down.

If anyone's fanning racism flames, it's you by trying to say someone is.

I disagree.

Mr. Bulger is a local story, not a national one. I read national news regularly and have/had no idea who he was. I don't live in an area with the type of Mob that he is associated with.

The headline can easily be misinterpreted by anyone outside of the influence of Mr. Bulger's Mob, as saying a white person got away with murder.

I had to chuckle at 'local story'. There was even a thread here a couple of weeks ago that the FBI were implicated in arms dealing with the IRA, though Bulger.

FBI agent gave Whitey Bulger explosives to send to IRA

...so It's a pretty international story...not just a local one.

Also from the BBC, the verdict...

James 'Whitey' Bulger: Notorious US mob boss found guilty

The thing about the 'Whitey' thing is that the media love gangsters...really love them. And also the fact that they all have nicknames, which they absolutely always have to put in quotes.

It's a much better headline than simply using 'James Bulger'.

Originally posted by grandmakdw
The headline can easily be misinterpreted by anyone outside of the influence of Mr. Bulger's Mob, as saying a white person got away with murder.

Sure-- that's realistic. Because news agencies print headlines like "Whitey Murdered by Darkey (Some Browns Sought in Questioning-- Crackers urged to stay indoors)" all the time.


What paper are you reading-- The Klan Times?

reply to post by grandmakdw


...Uh....what did whitey do now???