By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
I never much liked Paula Deen’s cooking. Filled with butter and gravies and things like Krispy Creme Donuts for hamburger buns, Paula seemed too culinarily eccentric … to foodie excessive … too health oblivious even for a southern cook in 1813 much less 2013. Her story though, like her southern twang, had a certain charm to it: single mother of two left penniless makes ends meet by selling food-to-go out of her home kitchen and works her butt off until she reached the top of the sundae’s cherry with three shows on the Food Network and some spin off shows for her two sons.
That all ended Friday as a deposition of Ms. Deen was released. In that dep (in a case Lisa T. Jackson v. Paula Deen et al. involving a claim of racial and sexual discrimination by an employee of her restaurant, Uncle Bubba’s), Ms. Deen admitted to using the no-no of racial epithets in the past — the distant past, like 50 years ago. Here’s an excerpt from the transcript of Paula’s deposition to see just what I mean:
Q
Okay. Have you ever used the N word yourself?
A
Yes, of course.
Q
Okay. In what context?
A
Well, it was probably when a black man burst into the bank that I was working at and put a gun to my head.
Q
Okay. And what did you say?
A
Well, I don’t remember, but the gun was dancing all around my temple.
Q
Okay.
A
I didn’t — I didn’t feel real favorable towards him.
Q
Okay. Well, did you use the N word to him as he pointed a gun in your head at your face?
A
Absolutely not.
Q
Well, then, when did you use it?
A
Probably in telling my husband.
Q
Okay. Have you used it since then?
A
I’m sure I have, but it’s been a very long time.
Q
Can you remember the context in which you have used the N word?
A
No.
Q
Has it occurred with sufficient frequency that you cannot recall all of the various context in which you’ve used it?
A
No, no.
Q
Well, then tell me the other context in which you’ve used the N word?
A
I don’t know, maybe in repeating something that was said to me.
Q
Like a joke?
A
No, probably a conversation between blacks. I don’t — I don’t know.
Q
Okay.
A
But that’s just not a word that we use as time has gone on. Things have changed since the ’60s in the south. And my children and my brother object to that word being used in any cruel or mean behavior.
Q
Okay
Realizing perhaps too late, the Deen Food Empire (books, utensils, cutlery, you name it) sprung into action. First a very public apology for sins past, then a new revised one on YouTube, the town square of our age, where Paula looking quite shaken literally begs for forgiveness. PC gods served? You tell me:
On cable TV shows up and down the msnbc roster, Deen was decried as racist, uncaring, and calls for her banishment from polite society became overwhelming. So much so that the Food Network pulled the shows and consigned Deen to places we reserve for the likes of George Wallace and Sheriff Bull Connor. But is that fair?
Deen grew up in place far away –temporally and culturally — from most of her critics and, as one who grew up in the same locales, I can tell you that her sin was a popular one in the South in the 60’s . Everybody who wasn’t white and rich had a name: wops, pollaks, heebs, rednecks, pope lovers, crackers, and yes those christened with the “N” word. And each group used the words liberally to each other and even among each other. I never saw a fight over the name calling but there were some close calls.
Surely it wasn’t a very hospitable place for African-Americans who bore the brunt of discrimination, but neither was it a hospitable place if you were poor, or Catholic, or ethnic, or anything other than wealthy, white and Protestant. That didn’t mean people weren’t civil to one another. By and large they were, but there was a palpable feeling of place and hierarchy that was enforced with a rigid caste system administered by state and local governments. That sat pretty well with the white elite who ran things back then.
But you should know those in power considered folks like Paula Deen no better that the “n*iggers” they brought in to do their cooking and cleaning and to raise their kids. Those “people” were there and free only by fiat of the government in Wershington and, by god, if that was the case they were going to be useful, or so it was thought.
The South changed and evolved in the ’60s and ’70s with the Civil Rights Movement as Dr. King’s words touched hearts both white and black and brightened them all. For those who wouldn’t listen, scenes of pregnant women blasted with water cannons and vicious police dogs attacking kids was surely enough. White people who drove pickups and worked in plants and farms started to realize that the folks who lived across the railroad tracks and who drove older pickup trucks and worked in plants and farms weren’t really much different from themselves and they had the same lack of control over their lives. The wedges of words that the ruling élite had no interest in curtailing melted away and it is clearly true that the advent of political correctness shown a glaring light on those southern dinosaurs who couldn’t or wouldn’t change.
Which brings us back to Paula Deen. Paula likely grew up in one of those same southern small towns like I did. She also likely made a distinction between “black people” (as they were called then ), who worked hard and raised their families as best they could under grinding poverty, and “n*ggers” who were seen as lazy, irresponsible, thuggish and no account. She likely came to learn that names reflect stereotypes and they can be and are often wrong; that people don’t fit nicely into boxes; and that, as Edmund Burke so wisely reminds us, you can’t draw up an indictment against a whole people.
Paula evolved and the South evolved. But the question remains for Paula and those like her: When is the sentence for violating political correctness over? When can you freely admit a mistake made decades ago without fear of reprisal? Not the criminal kind administered by the state, but the reprisal from the overlords of decorum who sit in ivory towers or corporate boardrooms and wax philosophic on all manner of society’s ills and largely for their own benefit ? When will a society committed to free expression allow itself to deal honestly with its past and say publicly a two-syllable word that most find offensive?
In my view, you don’t need a word that no one can utter. You don’t need to continually explain and apologize for sins made years ago in a culture far, far away if you’ve done it once and sincerely. And perhaps most importantly, you don’t need to feel society’s wrath for simply telling the truth about that society.
Paula Deen is no hero, but she is certainly no villain for growing up as she did and living as she did. When we master that fact perhaps we can overcome the racism that divides us even as we accept that our differences spring largely from things over which we have little control, and that we can come together in spite of ourselves if we forgive as freely and as often as we decry.
Source: Huffington Post
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
On the whole, unless one was a mountain man, n*igger is a pejorative word, an ethnic term meant to disparage. That is why, even in the deep south, the term “Colored” was used on all the public signs and the NAACP wasn’t the NAANP
I can’t quite grasp this idea that those who used the word n*igger had no idea it wasn’t a term of endearment. (I know … double negatives all over the place but my back hurts!)
Bob,
Pray tell….when is it deemed acceptable and not racist to use the word “nigger” for effect in language?
Mike,
As far a being a good father…. I got the most wonderful cards from the children….. One went on to say how much better I am not only as a father but as a person….. That there is a remarkable difference since I’ve been doing the REBT stuff….. Like 180 degree turn…. It is nice…. But, I have not always been patience…. As much as I dislike pushy folks…..and manipulative people…. I recognized the dragon was within as well…. Life goes on…. Some never learn…
AY,
Getting that from ones children represents the best we can do as humans. Until I became a father I had no understanding of what it entails emotionally. My guess is it brought tears to your eyes.
Mike S.: “I don’t care about the court case and I certainly don’t take pleasure in her fall from grace.”
I don’t believe you. You may not care about the court case, but being so emotionally wrapped up in the plight of Paula Deen you can’t help but derive pure schadenfreude from her fall.
That you’re willing to throw away an entire person based on the use of a word is incredible. I simply can’t do that.
Take Mark for example. In his zeal for his war on terror he has said some incredibly disgusting things; things so vile, morally and legally speaking… anyway….
However, I would never sum up the entire man based on those things he said that I found offensive. Mark is an incredibly bright and good-willed man who occasionally loses his way when discussing his “war on terror.”
Likewise, I have a few friends who in the past have used the word “nigger” during conversation. Do I consider them racist? Absolutely not. Because I also know someone who does use the word and IS IN FACT A RACIST based their behavior accompanying language such as “I’d never use a bathroom after a nigger.”
There’s a huge difference between the use of the word “nigger” for effect in language and actual full fledged racism and bigotry. You apparently don’t care to distinguish between the two.
So why stop at Paula Deen Mike? Why not go after all the children who grew up in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s singing:
Eeny, meena, mina, mo,
Catch a nigger by the toe;
If he hollers let him go,
Eena, meena, mina, mo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eeny,_meeny,_miny,_moe
After all Mike, according to you, just uttering the word is proof of racism. Like I said, I have a big problem with the absence of any objective morality per this witch hunt.
You’re expressing outrage at Paula Deen because you “feel” (not think) she needs to be taken down a notch. And again, you are so consumed with exposing and proving the evils of Paula Deen that it’s hard not to conclude you’re not obsessing over the darker portions of your own shadow.
To quote a Grateful Dead song
“Maybe the dark is from your eyes.”
“I don’t believe you.”
Bob,
I can only be as honest as I can and whether you believe me or not is irrelevant. My passion on this comes not from Deen, but because 3 people I like and respect so, much are totally wrong on this thread.
To return a Dead quote:
“if you fall then who’s to guide you?
If I knew the way, I would lead you home”
For the one still in college yes Mike…. And yes… Surprisingly luggage sales have been growing in the double digits every month…. But, there are lots of nay Sayers……
Blouise,
If you made a comment I missed it…. As far as the snark…. I consider the source….
Yep, Blouise. Luggage sales are said to be booming.
Then I’m not sure why my taking exception to Tony’s unqualified absolutist statements applies to you then, Elaine.
Gene,
I DIDN’T rush to judge her racist–neither did Mike or some of the other people who have commented here who said they felt she harbored some racist feelings.
Deen could be a racist and not have discriminated against her workers.
“Do I think it’s wrong to assume that Deen discriminated against her workers before we have all the facts? Of course. ”
Then what’s your objection, Elaine? Because that was entirely my point. In a rush to judge her racist, people seem more than willing to pillory her for that than they do in waiting to see 1) if it’s a present fact (recall both sides have conflicting testimony under oath), 2) if the alleged racism is related to the allegations about a discriminatory work place and 3) all the while not acknowledging that prejudging in one form is just as much prejudice when it occurs in another form.
Gene,
I think you know that I believe in getting as many sources as possible when writing posts for the Turley blog. That’s because I like to make sure that I’m not getting just one person’s or one group’s viewpoint/story on a subject. I feel it of great import to truly understand a subject/issue before writing about it.
I never called for Deen to be ostracized or to have people boycott her products. I think such things are up to the individuals who watch her shows and/or buy her products.
Do I think it’s wrong to assume that Deen discriminated against her workers before we have all the facts? Of course. I thought you might already have understood that.
“Blouise,
Two telling points at the heart of this long debate. Remember though that our three most prominent commentators pleading Deen’s case, while all non-racists in my estimation, are lawyers. Lawyers will even argue lost causes beyond the point of hopelessness and are trained to do so.” (Mike S.)
Oh, I know, but sometimes these evolved southern arguments remind me of that old joke about the drunk being pulled over for a DUI, and telling the cop, “I’ve been drunker!”
It may be true but it’s an absurd defense.
‘It may be true but it’s an absurd defense.”
Blouise,
I agree and actually their defense of Deen stuns me. The only salutory thing is that those who think the guest bloggers and regulars are all of one mind certainly wouldn’t know it from this thread.
And apparently I’m not getting my point across to you either, Elaine.
The questions are germane to the big picture. If you don’t want to answer them? Okay.
Gene,
There you go again–steering the discussion to the judicial proceeding. I’ve been talking “big picture” in regard to racism and prejudice. You keep trying to narrow the focus.
I’m not involved in your discussion with Tony. I’m having a hard enough time attempting to get my own points across to you.
😉
Okay.
And how does that change the questions I asked of Tony?
Does social outrage merit skewing a judicial proceeding when the ideal is a fair trial for everyone? Wouldn’t it simply be wiser to find out if Deen did in fact provide a discriminatory work place before ostracizing her and committing to a commercial boycott? Wouldn’t hard proof her alleged racism led to an actual harm be better?
I’m not saying we don’t (or even shouldn’t) judge people.
I’m saying we should be very careful about it lest our judgements slip into prejudice.
Gene,
I didn’t enter this discussion for quite some time. I didn’t know what to think about Paula Deen–even after reading the excerpt from the court transcript.
Like Mike and some others who have commented on this thread, I made my judgment of Deen after watching the video.
We all make judgments about other people all the time. We listen to what they say. We watch how they behave. We see how they treat other people. It doesn’t matter whether they’ve committed a crime or not.
And I hope you’re right, Tony.
Gene: I will say it is a possibility, but what makes you sure that social outrage will indeed skew the judicial proceeding? We have all sorts of guards against such skewing, including review of allowable evidence, jury selection questions, and technicalities of the law. Most of which (to the extent I know them) I agree are necessary to restrain the use of public force.
My wife (working in a large hospital) has met several of her co-workers that have no idea what is going on with Paula Deen, much less that she has a brother and they own restaurants. I do not think it will be that hard to seat an impartial jury.
Elaine,
Apparently people are having no cognitive dissonance over failure to understand that rushing to judge Deen for something that is in itself not a crime can be as prejudicial as the very racism they condemn her for. That sounds a lot like a double standard regarding prejudice to me.
Gene,
I still don’t know what you’re getting at. Maybe, I’ve misread some of the comments on this post–but I don’t recall anyone accepting (or condemning) prejudicial behavior in one circumstance but not in others.
Bron: She could be totally cluless, a fish doesnt know water is wet.
I doubt that, look at her deposition. She clearly knows the N-word is a problem, but she is under oath, so she doesn’t deny using it, presumably because she has used it often enough that she cannot be sure somebody else involved in the case won’t contradict her, or may even have secretly taped her. Later in her testimony, a plain reading reveals she cannot even recall the circumstances under which she has used it, her husband uses it, her brother uses it, they tell jokes with it, and she is fully aware of that.
The event for which she gives a specific occurrence (in order to evoke sympathy) of her using it occurred in 1986, twenty-seven years ago, and she admits to using it after that as well (I do not think it is appropriate to round something near 25 up to 50, but, whatever). (The question is “have you used it since then?” and the answer is “I’m sure I have..”
That makes her over 40 the last time she used it, and two decades after the civil rights movement. She claims she knows it is wrong, because “Things have changed since the 60’s in the south.”
Yeah, they did, but the vast majority of those changes occurred before 1988 or so, when she admits to using the word in casual conversation outside the context of the robbery.