Mary J. Blige's Burger King ad: 'Racist' or just 'hilarious'?

Yahoo ^ | 4/04/12

[Libloather]

Mary J. Blige's Burger King ad: 'Racist' or just 'hilarious'?
By The Week's Editorial Staff | The Week – 8 hrs ago

**SNIP**

What's in the ad?
The clip features Blige standing on a table in a Burger King restaurant surrounded by flashing disco lights singing about its new chicken wraps, which are part of a healthier new menu the chain is rolling out. Adapting her popular song "Don't Mind" to new lyrics, she belts out the wrap's ingredients: "Crispy chicken, fresh lettuce, three cheeses, ranch dressing wrapped in a tasty, flour tortilla."

How is that racist?
The product at the center of the clip — fried chicken — "comes peppered and seasoned with all sorts of racist connotations," says Kenneth Partridge at TheBoomBox. And even if the connection was unintentional, the sight of a "black woman espousing the virtues of fried chicken is never a pleasant thing to behold," says Rich Juzwiak at Gawker.

[AuH2ORepublican]

Fried chicken is certainly a staple in soul food, and thus I can see thin-skinned liberals complaining that it is “stereotypical” to have a black person hawk fried chicken (not that it wouldn’t be a stupid complaint). But if this was a chicken wrap, then IT WOULDN’T EVEN FIT INTO THE FRIED CHICKEN STEREOTYPE. The soul-food staple is fried chicken still on the bone, not breaded chicken strips, much less breaded chicken strips in a wrap. So cries of racism here are beyond idiotic.

[easternsky]

What about being wrapped in a Tortilla is that Racist???

[Gator113]

how top play a harmonica!= how to play an harmonica!

[morphing libertarian]

Isn’t Blige the singer who witnessed a shooting in the recording studio and decided to not “snitch?”

[dforest]

The woman got paid to do a commercial about fried chicken. I like fried chicken. I like the white meat and the dark meat.

[rabidralph]

Here's the ad on Gawker.

This is more dumb liberal astroturfing. Of course no one is bothered by the Popeye's Chicken spokeslady. What is wrong with people?

[Gator113]

LOL.... I just sent my wife an email telling her that I now want greasy Southern fried chicken for tonights dinner.

I am a Black man trapped in a cracker-ass body.

[Rannug]

“And even if the connection was unintentional, the sight of a “black woman espousing the virtues of fried chicken is never a pleasant thing to behold,” says Rich Juzwiak at Gawker.”

WTF!! Over-—

[31R1O]

I thought that the KFC Double Down commercial was a little bit racist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMVE2MaLe8I

Oh and FWIW I love fried chicken though I am partial to Popeye’s when it comes to fast food chicken. It is so stereotypical here in Portland. There are two of them within about two miles of one another on MLK avenue. Really, you can’t make this stuff up.

[TigersEye]

Do you now or have you ever played basketball?

You may want to consult your attorney before answering that question.

[Martin Tell]

I remember a couple of years ago that a school in Denver, I think, wanted to salute Martin Luther King, Jr by putting his favorite foods on the lunch menu. So they called the King Museum in Atlanta and found out that the late reverends favorite foods included fried chicken and watermelon (two of my own favs BTW).

When they put those items on the menu, the racial bonfire hit the fan.

[stboz]

Heck, what's not to like about good fried chicken?

I can survive just fine without watermelon.

[Rebelbase]

Reminds me of Dave Chapelle’s white people/guitar music bit:

http://www.comedycentral.com/video-clips/u7vwcd/chappelle-s-show-electric-guitar—drums-or-electric-piano-pt—1

[IamCenny]

I like watermelon too. The people that scream racist at things like this ARE THE stereotype perpetuating racists. Who doesn’t like fried chicken and watermelon? Anyone here?

[Gator113]

LOL... I hate that game. But I think it’s because of those damn white cells in my blood. ;>)

[Michael.SF.]

You may be ok, those things can happen and are really, by themselves nothing to be worried about, But if you also:

Like basketball and hate golf as well as have an aversion to mayonnaise, you should seek help.

True story:

My son was in the Navy going through the mess line with some buddies as they looked for a place for four to sit at in the crowded mess, but only ones or twos were available. he then said, wait here, I'll get us a spot.

He grabbed a handful of mayonnaise packets then sat down at a table of all blacks. He set the packets in front of him and started to open them up:

"You ain't going to eat that shit are you?" said one guy.

He then took it and squirted it directly into his mouth.

The table emptied.

[Ax]

Ditto that! I love fried chicken, dark meat preferably, and can’t stand watermelon. Where does that leave me?

[exDemMom]

Then I guess the fact that I have, at least once, gone to a restaurant owned and operated by a black family and ordered fried chicken is a mark of racism rivaling that of the klan...

[Gator113]

That was funny.

[Gator113]

You seriously had me LMAO.