An Apology

Have you been watching the news this week?

I mean, who would have thought it?

A word here. A word there. Then suddenly this happens.

Who knew that anyone was listening?

A friend recently reminded the Captain, “Words have meaning.”

But they were words spoken honestly.

Words spoken in a moment of passion.

The Captain never wanted this to happen.

I never asked for it to happen.

I mean, how was I to know that the big guns at NBC would read my blog and take my criticism of Meygn Kelly as a call for her removal?

Suddenly the Captain feels like he’s part of some Democratic mob!

I don’t even know George Soros! Never received a check from him either!

I never saw Hillary’s emails…

Honestly, the Captain has nothing against Megyn Kelly personally.

I just change the channel when her show comes on.

You know you can do that, right?

I never understood why NBC felt the need to woo her away from FOX. That seemed to be such a perfect fit.

And for $69 million for three years? That’s more than twice what they were paying Tamron Hall and Al Roker who had previously filled the 9:00 hour.

But that’s none of my business.

They knew she had a history with racist pronouncements.

She argued that Santa is necessarily white.

She argued that Jesus was white.

So why so shocked to hear her say that “black-face” is okay?

But that wasn’t the only reason for her firing. That’s just the part that generates headlines.

In an interview with Debra Messing, which was supposed to promote the reboot of “Will and Grace”, Kelly referred to homosexuality as “the gay thing”.

In an interview with Robert Redford and Jane Fonda, she has the nerve to ask Fonda about her plastic surgery.

And that was just her first week!

Then, to end the week, she blamed her rocky start on “the media”.

Of which she is one.

Why does she not know that?

No, the truth is her ratings were not all that. Viewership was slipping from the start.

She was regularly beaten in the ratings by Kelly Ripa!

Her much-ballyhooed interview with right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was a flop.

Seriously, it was beaten in the ratings by a re-run of “America’s Funniest Home Videos”!

And for $23 million per year, NBC expected better.

Nonetheless, the lesson learned by the Captain this week is that words matter.

One should choose them carefully.

Whether you are the humble Captain of the Banana Winds... 

or the mighty President of the United States.

Because someone might be listening.

Yes, words matter…

Think About It First!

It’s Halloween time again!

Which means that people are going to be wracking their brains to come up with the best Halloween costume for the best party of the year!

Unfortunately, their choices might not be the best choices.

At a church party many years ago, I was surprised to see that the six men who attended – all six of them! – dressed up as women; and a few of their wives dressed as men.

This is not them... but still...

Now, had the Captain surveyed these men about their feelings should a cross-dresser show up for worship, they would be four-square against it!

A gay person? Nope.

A transsexual? Well, I’d probably have to explain to them what that was.

But they would be against it.

“It just ain’t right!”

I felt their choice of costumes wasn’t right either.

Not so much for the cross-dressing aspect as for the exaggerated features the men employed.

They weren’t simply “dressing up”, they were mocking women.

Perhaps even their own wives.

Mates, there’s a fine line between portraying a character and mocking a person or group of people, and between appreciating a culture and appropriating a culture.

Tuesday on NBC’s “Megyn Kelly Today” – God, what a mistake! – the host engaged an all-white celebrity panel in a discussion about white people wearing “black-face” as a costume.

Kelly didn’t find it at all racist.

Captain’s Note: You can take the woman out of Fox News, but you just can’t take Fox News out of the woman!

She insisted that “her generation” grew up with it.

Kelly was born in 1970. She is considerably younger than yer Captain. So I can tell you with no hesitation that her generation definitely did not grow up with it!

Now, we grew up watching re-runs of “Gunsmoke” and “Bonanza” in which white actors smeared on dark make-up and portrayed Native Americans.

Could they not find real Native Americans to play those roles? Did they even try?

And we live in a time where non-handicapped actors are portraying handicapped people.

And straight actors are portraying gay people… but not vice-versa.

And Caucasian supermodels are wearing Native American headdresses as accessories in fashion shows.

And white pop stars are performing in traditional Asian apparel.

But I digress…

Kelly insisted there is nothing “racist” about a white person dressing in “black-face” for a Halloween costume.

Captain’s Note: She has since been schooled by her colleagues and has issued an apology for her comments.

The Captain would ask, “Do you do this to honor a person of color or to ridicule a person of color?”

Time for a history lesson.

The concept of “black-face” came about in the mid-19th century minstrel shows. These traveling shows would feature all-white casts in “black-face”, singing and dancing and telling jokes… at the expense of black people and the black culture.

With exaggerated eyes and lips, they most often characterized black people as stupid and lazy.

The popular radio show “Amos ‘n’ Andy” (1928-1960), featuring two white men pretending to be black, brought such stereotypes directly into our homes; it later branched out to movies and to television.

In December of 1930, Bishop W.J. Walls of the African Methodist Episcopal Church condemned the show for its lower-class characterizations and “crude, repetitious, and moronic dialogue”.

One bright spot in the midst of this racist mockery was Al Jolson.

Jolson, the son of a Jewish cantor, had a deep appreciation for the blues and jazz music, which were the product of black musicians in his day. And since black musicians were not allowed to perform in most white clubs, the white population was simply not exposed to this music.

So borrowing from the popularity of the minstrel shows – without the mockery – Jolson donned “black-face” and introduced jazz and the blues to the white public, later opening doors for many black entertainers. 

You may disagree, but in the Captain’s mind the question of appropriateness goes to one’s intent.

Many years ago, a friend asked if he could borrow one of my preaching gowns for a Halloween party. He wanted to go as a priest and his girlfriend as a pregnant nun.

I said no.

For several reasons.

I have written on Banana Winds before about the appropriation of Native Americans for mascots of sports teams. I don’t see that as a necessarily bad thing – so long as the team is not mocking but rather lifting up positive qualities of Native Americans.

If your “black-face” is done as a sincere tribute to Al Jolson, the Captain might let you get away with that.

But understand that there is an underlying historic racism associated with donning the “black-face” and not everyone will appreciate it.

As for yer Captain, a Pirate is my go-to Halloween costume.

Captain’s Note: This has been criticized as well, as pirates were often ruthless, thieving scoundrels – criminals! – many of whom also participated in the slave trade of the day.

But my chosen lifestyle costume is that of a Beach Bum.

A laid-back lifestyle created by the Baby Boom generation for the white, male, slacker culture.

If you don’t believe me, go to a Jimmy Buffett concert and see if you can find any people of color!