Wednesday, April 15, 2015
At Aunt Jemima’s Quilting Party
she sent home Uncles Tom and Ben. Women only!
No Race Gal, she had invited Scarlet O’Hara and
Jeannie With the Light Brown Hair.
The former bored on and on concerning myths of
White Southern Womanhood!
The latter flitted about, bearing her hair. Jemima got
them down to quilting, though Scarlet insisted on
sitting on her lap.
Well, you couldn’t quilt that way, so Jemima placed
her among the blackest women.
Simon Legree came to the door to do his horrible thing.
He had been tasked with keeping an eye on all uncles.
Jemima, though, turned him away so fast his atrocious
head was spinning!
The chattering quilters were making so much noise
that nobody could think! Even drowning out the beaters
of the feet on the Mississippi mud outside!
Jemima shouted that the dancers were turning that mud
into concrete for Uncle Tom’s and Ben’s heads!
That proved the laugh of the night! Finally you couldn’t hear
the dancers, who, discouraged, quit. Save one who rapped:
De fat black broad gets uppity
n’ make de party for white hos.
Racist dick he come to doh,
look for de crazy uncles. He
try seeing all de tits,
and mean as catshit!
Jemima invited him in for catfish, but Jeannie with the Light
Brown Hair started her borne-vaporing again, distracting
everyone.
Scarlet retched about her lost dump of a house: “Plantation!”
Jemima laughed uproariously, and was particularly jolly to all!
Where will we find her like again? Old Black Joe, he done gone!
Labels: Aunt Jemima, Jeannie With the Light Brown Hair, Mississippi, Old Black Joe, quilting, Race, rap, Simon Legree, Uncle Ben, Uncle Tom
Thursday, September 18, 2014
Imagery of Structures
-Letzi says she won't be an Aunt Jemima!
-I can hear her. Does she do nothing quietly?
-Her boyfriend puts cotton in his ears, but
takes it out when they do it.
-More than I want to know. But, anyway, she's white.
-Last time I looked.
-So, what's with the Aunt...?
-Burks, in Shipping, is white, but they call him Uncle Tom.
-So this plantation imagery has invaded our fair firm?
-You could put it that way.
-What? If you're inarticulate?...if I read your tone. At any rate,
Max, I wonder if those terms don't fit SOME power structures.
But, not here!
-Nevah!
-Look, you're middle management and I , ahem, upper.
-Just the facts, Man.
-And yet we rib the shit out of each other playing softball.
No class crap here!
-None. Squat. Zip. Zilch. Zer-er-O!
-Right! Example of how things should be!
Mr Ralph leaves, and Heskey, the fresh intern, tells Max
-You're such a freakin Uncle Tom!
-Survival of the Flatter-ist.
-You gwine t’lunch? Ah be.
-Can’t eat with field hands.
-Yeah! Just with House Nig-
-You studying company handbook? If you come up
looking stupid, it’s MY ass gets burnt!
-Must you interrupt?...de-dupt, de-dupt, de-dupt?
Labels: Aunt Jemima, class, company politics, company structure, power, power relationships, Race, Uncle Tom
