I was curious if that song ice cream trucks across the US play had a name. My search led to me learn some pretty dark things about it... It baffles me how many "wrongs" in our history haven't been...
I was curious if that song ice cream trucks across the US play had a name. My search led to me learn some pretty dark things about it...
It baffles me how many "wrongs" in our history haven't been corrected. (Some have specifically around Civil War / Confederacy imagery, but there's clearly many others that should be addressed.)
The number of times that I learned about something and find racism at the absolute root of it is far far too often. The US 's history is so incredibly deeply racist and it's so frustrating to...
The number of times that I learned about something and find racism at the absolute root of it is far far too often. The US 's history is so incredibly deeply racist and it's so frustrating to continue to hear responses to learning this history full of a desire to ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
And now the decade after the original article with "don't tell us about it because it makes us feel bad. In fact, it's illegal to tell us about it."
Also relevant, the authors response to comments on that original article.
Also relevant, the authors response to comments on that original article.
It is important to recognize the impact racism has had on our country, even, perhaps especially, when it hides in the nooks and crannies of wholesome Americana. When black people hear and see those stereotyped presentations of blackness, we are told how America viewed us. And that has lasting, tangible effects. There can be no honest conversation on race issues today without an appreciation for this. It matters. And these depictions are far from antique notions. When Don Imus calls black women "nappy-headed hoes," this is language akin to portrayals of black femininity in blackface lyrics. This matters. When our first black president took office, corners of the Internet lit up with the very blackface exaggerations and stereotypes that were supposed to be obsolete and forgotten. This matters. And when just last week the North Korean dictator hurls racist insults - such as monkey and mixed- breed clown - at our commander in chief in language that directly harkens to the blackface era, it matters.
From the article, I thought this was quite a good piece of writing:
From the article, I thought this was quite a good piece of writing:
When teeth fall out, I blame the dollar under their pillow on the tooth fairy. When presents appear overnight under the fir tree, I say Santa Claus is the culprit. And so when a song about niggers and watermelon fills the suburban air, I will smile and hand over money from my pocket.
Huh, I didn't know Greensleeves was used! Sounds like the Mr. Whippy founder picked it? I have also heard "la cucaracha" and there's a different "common" song I've heard more of in the US that has...
Huh, I didn't know Greensleeves was used! Sounds like the Mr. Whippy founder picked it?
I have also heard "la cucaracha" and there's a different "common" song I've heard more of in the US that has a very annoying "Hello!" built into it that isn't the one in this article. Iirc there's some like oks specific vendor that sells the devices that play music in ice cream trucks
I grew up in the US, but our local ice cream truck played Mona Lisa. Saves me from having any nostalgia tarnished I guess. Though I did immediately know which jingle they meant by "the ice cream...
I grew up in the US, but our local ice cream truck played Mona Lisa. Saves me from having any nostalgia tarnished I guess.
Though I did immediately know which jingle they meant by "the ice cream truck song" when I saw this post so
I was curious if that song ice cream trucks across the US play had a name. My search led to me learn some pretty dark things about it...
It baffles me how many "wrongs" in our history haven't been corrected. (Some have specifically around Civil War / Confederacy imagery, but there's clearly many others that should be addressed.)
The number of times that I learned about something and find racism at the absolute root of it is far far too often. The US 's history is so incredibly deeply racist and it's so frustrating to continue to hear responses to learning this history full of a desire to ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
And now the decade after the original article with "don't tell us about it because it makes us feel bad. In fact, it's illegal to tell us about it."
Also relevant, the authors response to comments on that original article.
From the article, I thought this was quite a good piece of writing:
I honestly never realised that Greensleeves wasn't the ice cream song globally.
And here I thought all ice cream trucks played "pop goes the weasel"!
Oh guess what else was turned into a blackface minstrel song in America?
Library of Congress, arrangement of Pop Goes the Weasel, 1885
Huh, I didn't know Greensleeves was used! Sounds like the Mr. Whippy founder picked it?
I have also heard "la cucaracha" and there's a different "common" song I've heard more of in the US that has a very annoying "Hello!" built into it that isn't the one in this article. Iirc there's some like oks specific vendor that sells the devices that play music in ice cream trucks
I grew up in the US, but our local ice cream truck played Mona Lisa. Saves me from having any nostalgia tarnished I guess.
Though I did immediately know which jingle they meant by "the ice cream truck song" when I saw this post so