Wear your white-T . . . No word on baggy jeans:
What: The WHITE T-SHIRT protest.
When: 5-7 pm Sat. Aug. 30, 2008
Plan: Meet at the ACLU office (3601 Main St. KC Mo 64111) at 4pm to pick up signs and instructions.
In response to the growing concerns about Racial Profiling in the Power and Light District, the ACLU will be marching and picketing from the Sprint Center to the Power and Light District. Participants are asked to wear a white T shirt to the march. Each marcher will be asked to write a message to Cordish and the City Council on their T shirts.
For example: "The City Council gave Cordish $300 million dollars in tax breaks and all I got was this lousy T shirt."
The march will serve several purposes.
1. Inform the public about the specifics of the dress code.
2. Remind Cordish and the city council/mayor about their responsibilities to all the citizens of Kansas City. Millions of dollars in tax breaks have been given to the Cordish Company. Discrimination and tax breaks are incompatible. A race neutral dress code is required.
3. Invite the city council and Cordish developers to attend a Town Hall meeting to discuss the issue.
Personally, I couldn't agree more with the protest and it's a great opportunity to stand up to the discriminatory policies of the Power & White District.
The fact is, that even the P&L District pretty much admits that the enforcement of the dress code is along racial lines.
And for every silly anecdote that white people have about not being let into the P&L District . . . There are dozens more people of color who were denied access, in my opinion, because their skin color didn't match the arbitrarily enforced dress code.
From what I've heard . . .
NO MATTER WHAT CLOTHES THEY'RE WEARING . . . THE P&L DISTRICT DOESN'T LET IN GROUPS OF MINORITIES WITH MORE THAN 5 PEOPLE!!!
The rumors circulating in the local Latino Community claim that one family after the next has been denied access with the undefined dress code used as nothing more than a pretext for discrimination.
And it's not like the people I know haven't faced discrimination before . . . Businesses aren't allowed to discriminate along racial lines anymore but they do. That's not the greatest sin of the P&L District.
THE UNACCEPTABLE PART OF DE FACTO P&L DRESS CODE RACIAL DISCRIMINATION IS THAT IT USES TAXPAYER FUNDS TO TURN MINORITIES AWAY!!!
People of color in Kansas City are literally paying taxes in order to finance the bonds needed to build the place and then they're denied access to the District . . . So this isn't big business vs. activists . . . It's the beneficiaries of corporate welfare playing games with Kansas City's cash.
This protest is long overdue.
It's about time.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that people are doing something to change this. I know quite a few people who have yet to see the KC P& L because they never let them in. It's very rediculous.
ReplyDeleteThe "urban youth" that are getting turned away don't pay into the tax base anyway, so what's the harm in keeping them out?
ReplyDeleteThe ACLU demonstrates that they simply don't understand WHY white tees are the issue. "Urban youth" wear white tees because they can commit crimes and then when they're called and if the cops come around, the witness describes the perp as an "urban youth" wearing a white tee. Well, what's a lazy cop to do, question every single "urban youth" in the area? Since the ACLU is encouraging their people to mark up their tees, they're going to lose the uniform anonymity with easily individualized features. Of course, all of the sensitive emo-types that participate in these ACLU things are all soooo hungry to let their artistic souls out, so you can expect some creativity!
Good luck chasing away local business. ACLU jerks don't care about Kansas City anyway.
ReplyDeleteThis is so stupid. Why don't you just follow the stupid rules or don't go. Instead you are going to ruin things for a lot of people.
ReplyDeleteGet a Life!
You totally don't understand. The rules aren't the rules, their rules are to not let in minorities. The subterfuge is the dress code but it's just an excuse for disciminiation.
ReplyDeleteGood idea ACLU!!! Let's make the District the next Bannister Mall.
ReplyDeleteA few thug shootings and the place is history.
Bet Wayne Cauthen is thinking of turning in his ACLU card.
Let the thugs have the cheeseball themepark P&L District.
ReplyDeleteThat place can't fail fast enough for my liking.
Who is this REDiculous that chuck-david refers to? Is he a rapper? Maybe Redman's midget sidekick?
ReplyDeleteLOLZ.
These people need to get a life. There are greater injustices than this to fight.
ReplyDeleteThe lack of minorities is exactly why I got to P&L and not westport. If I wanted to see fights, robberies, and hear hateful comments about MY race, I'd go to westport. For a crime free evening, I go to P&L.
ReplyDelete11:18 said it best but the hood ain't going to no P&L. They can't afford it. Instead they will go to Westport and stand around outside without spending a dime. Black people don't patronize Westport, they just use it as a place to get their drink on and chase tail.
ReplyDeleteWell... thank god a bunch of white midtown hipsters are gonna march for the rights of a small group of thugs who will happily rob them when the streets are dark. Morons.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, what a parade of douchebags this is going to be. So much so that I've GOT to see the photos. Will Ramsey be vlogging it?
ReplyDeletelast time i checked everyone was born naked.
ReplyDeletedon't see how clothes are a "race" issue.
clothes are a choice you make all by yourself.
I went to the Spit Center for the epic Springsteen show Sunday night. We got there a little early, so we decided to wonder around among the forty-something-douchebag crowd in/at KCPL.
ReplyDeleteAs we approached the entrance, I felt a hand grab my shoulder. A neanderthal 'security guard' told me I couldn't go in because I had a white t-shirt on. I started to laugh because obviously he noticed I was not black and must have been just fooling around with me (you know, wink-wink).
He wasn't.
What is the outcome that the protesters are hoping to achieve?
ReplyDeletea few things to consider before going out in public:
ReplyDelete1. pull your pants up. wearing them below your butt and then having to pull them up a dozen times is stupid, you might as well not wear pants.
2. guys shouldn't wear t-shirts that fall at their knees; you might as well wear a dress.
3. try to present yourself in a civilized manner.
4. if all you have to wear for a night on the town is a white t-shirt, you should prob reconsider the mall or movie theater.
In no way is this dress code racial profiling, it is merely an effort to create an atmosphere. If Obama told you you couldn't wear a white t-shirt would you still protest? Ignorance is beautiful isn't it?
If this is to be a march, why does the ACLU site not mention it? Is it a secret march? You should not disparage an organization like ACLU. They do well enough on their own.
ReplyDeleteHaving a disclaimer that your site is for fun and jokes is just a sad excuse for bad writing. If you have to resort to insensitive gimmicks to bolster your ego and site, then don't quit your day job. Keep flipping those burgers.
as someone who was recently mugged by an urban youth in a white t shirt- I get it. They want the right to commit crimes anonymously. Aclu will help them wth this. I think they should be pissed at some other things- lack of quality education heads the list. Pull your pants up and get a damn job, quit perpetuating thug life and get out of my way. spend your energy on something that matters.
ReplyDeletebad idea dudes.
ReplyDeleteBad idea.
I like the comment of 3:17 the most.
ReplyDeleteWhy don't they march in Westport and tell the thugs there to stop robbing, harrassing and generally killing the district?
ReplyDeleteThe reason is because they would get beat up and sent back to Johnson County with their tail tucked between their legs. It is safer to march in the Power and Light District.
I am with Alonzo, marching doesn't accomplish shit. Do something constructive and fix Westport.
What does fixing Westport have to do with racial discrimination?
ReplyDeleteRacists always confuse the issue.
The local racists aren't going to like this, but the racist policies of the White Power District are of concern to local people of colors. I'm a white guy and my white friends are outraged at the P&LD's racist dress code. The ACLU protest isn't the only protest in the works.
ReplyDeleteKansas City doesn't need another example that shows the world how backward we might appear to be. Change these stupid policies!
8:25 p.m. - The reason for the dress code in the P&L District is to avoid becoming another Westport. Instead of fighting the dress code in P&L, we should work to straighten up the people who are the reason for the dress code.
ReplyDeleteNice try on the racist comment. Since I am black I don't think I can hate myself. But I can hate the troublemakers who have made Westport a place I no longer frequent. They don't just hassle white folks...
Is there anywhere that a good white can go to escape the sight of 'The Other'?
ReplyDeleteYep.
Hell.
On your way to Hell please buy my t-shirt.
it just so happens that the blaccks wait for whitey to leave and then rob them. i hope aclu gets rob also maybe then they might understand the dress code
ReplyDeleteto commenter above me- have you heard about the marauding gangs of white guys attacking people downtown?? read the news, ididot
ReplyDeleteACLU doesn't "waste energy" on things.. just look at the national web site to read an exhaustive list of issues and efforts being made, including making sure that even racists can't have their private phone conversations recorded or financial records accessed without permission
the protest is happening so that cordish eliminates the racist policy .. just like they had to do in louisville!
if you are a female, the most dangerous place in westport has always been kelly's - drunk, angry frat boys that love to fight or date rape..
Oh isn't that just racist.... "Kill White Tee" I like the play on words... How about "Kill Black Tee(n Agers)"
ReplyDeleteIf there is a dress code in the P&L who cares. If you can't afford jeans that fit and have to wear your fat-assed baggy jeans from your siblings, you don't belong down there.... What's that? They buy them that why.... LMAO. What a bunch to retarded looking dopes. That's what they look like a bunch of dopes rejected from society. Why do they want to hang out down there anyway. To "hang" with the white rich folk? To walk through a crowd so's theys rubbs up againsts a white chic then go home and fantisize abouts its.. Please Nigga... Go hOmE.
Life Rejects
I always preferred the Hurricane over Kelly's whenever I used to want to be date-raped. But the last guy tore me up too bad, so those days are gone...
ReplyDeleteAnon @ 11:27 - 'White Power District' - LOL
ReplyDeleteI've never had the stomach to go there but I've seen it from my car. Do not want.
That little spot of hell on earth is all about sucking $$$ from tourists and local jackasses who are too stupid or lazy to find better places to patronize. I don't care if private clubs want to have dress codes, but this place is public, right? Didn't they use public money to build it? If private people build stuff with public money, that stuff should belong to the public. That means no "codes" except for the ones we call "laws" enacted by our publicly elected legislators.
"Private/Public" deals like this one are just a small step away from true fascism. Look it up.
I can see problems with the dress code but there are bigger problems with this new district that you people are clueless to.
ReplyDeleteThis project has put many long standing good businesses out to close the doors. Is a breeding ground for JoCo douche bags and is not even a fun place to go. I guess if standing in lines outside is fun you will love it. Overpriced drinks and security that think they are gods are another thing. The head guy is a little smurf that is on a power trip and a real ass. I have seen him complain in a bar about a guys pants being too low. Nothing you wouldn't see from someone bending over. A little plumbers crack if you will...lol He was a person of color so it was made into a big deal. Pretty sad! I guess its okay for women to dress like total whores but a guy can't dress casual or wear a hat without being labeled a thug or gangster.
For those that have negative things to say about the topic. Though it may not be right or wrong. I have seen your type there stinking up places like mosaic and mcfaddens. Typical crying little bitches that are affraid of the world. Its people like you that make these establishments think they need these silly rules.
If you want to feel safe then hang out in Johnson County. False sense of security but its what many of you seem to need. I will never understand all the uproar about the P&L district anyways. It sucks balls and is run by scum. Give it 5 years and it will be just like everything else down town. Run down and over run by the people you are all so scared of. Probably look like the Metcalf Mall by then. Just a big waist of space.
Every comment posted thus far calling the P&LD dress code "racist" is confusing. I have read the dress code and no where in it is race ever mentioned. The dress code only talks about clothing. Maybe I don't get it. Is "baggy attire" code for black people? Is "ball caps" code for white people? Is "undershirts" code for latinos? I highly doubt this is true (or atleast I'm not aware of it).
ReplyDeleteMaybe your suggesting that the dress code is used as the basis for discriminating against certain racial groups. Again this is confusing. I am a 23 year-old white male who has been turned away because my attire violated the dress code (too may holes in my jeans). Am I supposed to think that the P&LD doesn't want any business from white people. This can't be the case. When I went to the P&LD the next time (dressed appropriately) there were a lot of white people there.
Anyone that thinks that the P&LD dress code is "racist" should try going there wearing clothes that don't violate the dress code. I suspect the P&LD would love to allow you in and charge you $6 for a beer.
The Cordish Company is in the entertainment business to make money, not to discriminate against people. In order to be successful and make money every business has to control the image of its products. The Cordish Company does this by prohibiting ALL people who come to the P&LD from wearing certain types of clothing. They don't discriminate based on race, they discriminate based on what you are WEARING. If you don't like the dress code and want to wear baggy jeans or a ball cap go somewhere else (just as I do when I don't want to wear such prohited clothing). The P&LD is not the only place in Kansas City to have a drink and socialize.