Posted on 01/16/2010 2:50:20 AM PST by Daffynition
DENVER -- Denver Public School officials are apologizing after a parent complained that a school lunch meant to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was stereotypical and offensive, reported KMGH-TV.
The lunch, planned for Friday, was to include southern-style chicken, collard greens and a biscuit in honor of King.
Survey: Lunch Menu Insensitive?
Denver Public Schools spokesman Michael Vaughn released a statement that said: "The plan to serve a Southern-style meal in recognition of Martin Luther King Day was well intentioned but highly insensitive in light of certain hurtful cultural stereotypes still harbored in parts of our society."
Organizers of Denver's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Marade, a combination march and parade that honors King every January, did not consider the menu inappropriate, considering that King came from a southern background, but said there are other, more meaningful ways of honoring him.
"When you reduce it to the 'I have a dream' speech and a fried chicken and collard green lunch, you have just destroyed everything that Dr. King stood for," said Vern Howard, chairman of the Martin Luther King Jr. Colorado Holiday Commission.
But in barber shops and soul food restaurants in Denver's historic Five Points district, the tone was decidedly more relaxed.
"To me, I don't see that much wrong with this," said Franklin Stigal, owner of the Afro-Styling Barber Shop. "A lot of people are just griping to be griping."
Chereka Dickerson, who helps run the soul food restaurant Welton Street Café, said the criticisms were over-the-top.
"If that's the food that's really associated with black people in America, why not celebrate it instead of trying to make everything negative?" she said.
Denver Public Schools changed the Friday meal to the manager's choice for Friday. Jennifer Holladay, the parent who originally complained about the menu, e-mailed KMGH a statement that said: "I'm confident we'll see stereotype-free menus in the future."
Howard said the incident is an opportunity for the school system to become more involved in the annual Marade. Howard said the Denver Public School district has shown low interest in the festivities in past years and it's time for them to get involved.
The Houston School District has offered fried chicken and collard greens on Martin Luther King's birthday for years. Last year, in response to questions, they issued the following statement:
"The Food Service Department often runs a promotion in celebration of his birthday. The promotion includes posters and public-address announcements promoting the special meal served in the cafeterias, as well as his message of remembering to celebrate with the spirit of giving back to the community ... 'a day on, not a day off.' A menu committee researches all promotions and has utilized the MLK Center of Atlanta as a resource for information about this famous leader. Elaine Hall, from the Archives Department at the King Center in Atlanta, has informed the committee that Dr. King's favorite meal includes fried chicken, collard greens, cornbread and sweet potato pie."
No. If you want to destroy everything that Dr. King stood for, then enforce affirmative action and racial set-asides.
Sillyness. I’m white and I love. I mean REALLLLLLY LOVE Collards. Yum with a little bit of bacon, mmmmmmmmmmmm!
Oh great! now I’m hungry. Thanks a lot Daffynition!
It was just going to be given to the dark-skinned blacks with a strong negro dialect.
So we changa to a nice a spaghetti with a spicy a meatball!
Note: a parent complained as in one!
If I were part of the ever whining, overly sensitive crowd, I would be downright embarrassed.
Compare this to the Christmas tree or the Easter Egg. How is a simple gesture a denigration of original contribution.
The Easter Bunny is not amused!;-)
Dude, you said ‘denigration’. I’m positive that’s wrong somehow :0)
And one parent's whining ruined the entire school's chance to experience Dr. King's favorite meal, due to fear of "stereotyping." I'm sure that they won't serve corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's day, right? RIGHT???
I think I'll drop collards and biscuits from from my lunch plans for today.
It's not Black food, it's Southern food!
I LOVE chicken and I feel like Sunday isn’t Sunday w/o fried chicken. I favor turnip greens but love collard greens, too. I could just about live off watermelon. Aren’t these foods more a thing of folks from the south?
My granny had us all to dinner on Sundays and it was usually fried chicken or pork roast, black-eyed peas with okra, greens, cabbage, fried okra, fresh sliced maters and corn bread. After dinner we would go outside for watermelon or churn ice cream.
I was told it was called plow food.
Yum with a little bit of bacon, mmmmmmmmmmmm!
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Salt pork or pork neck bones..lol
Ummmm....my wife is so white she is almost transparent, she was raised on greens and chicken and mac and cheese. Her momma has made biscuits every morning all of her life. Some people just like to bitch about anything. Feh.
The meal probably wasn’t Halal.
Add cornbread cooked in bacon grease and I’m there! ;-P
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