racist adidas shoe?

[Chi]

Hello. Do you think this shoe is racist? Look at the image on the tongue.

It is part of the upcoming Adidas Adicolor series. The shoe is designed by HUF, which is a shoe store in SF. The caricature on the tongue is designed by Barry McGee aka Twist, who is a legendary white/chinese graff artist in SF. He also works with Giant Robot magazine.

Would like to know you guys' opinions because so far I'm hearing a lot of mixed opinions out here in SF about the shoe.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y270/jjhung2/adidas.jpg

You can check out the rest of the pictures of the shoe at http://www.press.adidas.com/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-218/ along with the rest of the adicolor series.

[Arex]

WTF is up with that?? Seems pretty offensive to me. I don't care if the dude's part Chinese...

[Player 0]

Oh yes, personally i'd like to see if they'd be so willing to make a fat lipped negro on their shoe, or an Arab terrorist.

[kimpossible]

I actually started looking into this a bit earlier in the week. Here are some close-ups of the tongue, lacefront and heel I made.

http://www.imagebucket.net/images/hailtothekingbaby/foncariclace.gif

http://www.imagebucket.net/images/hailtothekingbaby/fongcarictongue.png

http://www.imagebucket.net/images/hailtothekingbaby/fongname.png

I'm very interested in hearing what the community here has to say about this because I ran into a wall once I learned the caricature was not of Adidas' make but licensed from an AA artist. It put a caput to some of the questions I had for Adidas PR.

My thoughts at this point are: I have no problem with McGee, as an AA artist, for his caricature. I do have a problem once it's disassociated with McGee's art, used on a shoe by Adidas with the name "Fong" on the heel. Becomes a completely different animal to me at that point especially when taken into consideration of the target market the shoe is aimed at and why.

This isn't an effort to promote an AA artist's work by Adidas or a product customized for an AA market.

[returntosender]

oh fugger.

[Keke]

"HEY EVERYONE! Look at me!! All Chinamen have buck teeth, bad haircuts and live as personal kitchen workers at my Mama Fu's franchise!"

I don't think Adidas should get a free pass on this. And when will Asians get a loud-mouthed, media-hungry zealot for civil rights?

I think Jesse Jackson is an idiot, but at least people know he'll put media coverage on anti-Black racism.

[Arex]

I think the fact that it comes from an AA artist, unfortunately, gives Adidas a pass. After all, I think it's fair for them to assume that an AA artist wouldn't create something that's going to be offensive to AAs. On the other hand, WTF is an AA artist doing by putting that shit on a shoe??

I suppose the argument can be made that it should be obvious that the caricature would be offensive, so Adidas still should have known better and rejected the design, so perhaps both are to be faulted.

[Aurutus]

The pic is offensive in a way...picking on the flaws on the buck teeth, a snorty nose and squinty eyes oh...not forgetting the mushroom hair. Not a true and sincere picture and has a strong hint of tease and exerggeration.

Again, it's a cartoon does look a bit like the Foreign minister from China : Li zhaoxing.
http://www.chinavitae.com/photos/li.zhaoxing.411.jpg

Adidas did another ad during the olympic games on the chinese women's soccer team. The ad shows the chinese women exercise really hard in the morning and very discipline with kung fu movements while the german team are easy going sleepy team. When they start playing, the germans beat up the chinese like crazy and of course, the chinese soccer team looks silly. That's an obvious racism.

[Irezumi Kiss]

I went over to the GR site to see if they had a thread on this. It exists, and it's opened up with pretty much the same question as here. What surprised me was that it's pretty low on the totem pole over there and the feedback on it was extremely noncommittal, if it even bothers to stay on topic for the one and a half pages of response. Given the high Asian-Am traffic of that site, what does that say about this?

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that Barry had marginal input over this sneaker. Just from being a longtime fan of his (and his late wife's) work, I don't think he's of the mindset to go out and blatantly disrespect an ethnic community, especially one he has connections to. His work has goofy-looking faces of all types in a similar vein; you'd have to see his works in a whole context to know his style, maybe not just one drawing (unless that was extracted from a larger piece, which happens quite often in graphics).

That being said, it IS his work on that shoe, so I can't imagine him NOT knowing of it...and knowing of how graphic images are produced, someone in particular CHOSE that ONE graphic to put on the lip. Whoever that "someone" is, who greenlighted the production, THAT'S who's ultimately to blame if blame should be thrown.

But that's not absolving Barry or Adidas. All have their marks on that shoe and it's being made in order to sell in the highly lucrative sneaker culture market. And if you know that scene, you know that any of the hot-ass artists circulating right now could blow their noses, put their piece of snot on the lip, let it solidify and emboss it with gold paint...that shit would sell regardless. I know people that starve themselves for a few days just to use their paycheck to buy some special edition brand name kicks. Hey, we're all otaku for something in our lives...

So why the CHOICE of the bucktoothed bowlcut-hairdo Asian kid?

Until someone finds out more dope on this or the particulars in question step up and explain themselves, or the Asian-Ams in the community who find this to be an issue and care about it enough to blow it up do so, I'll sit on the fence on this one. But being an artist, I think it's unfortunate that image was CHOSEN to be on the shoe's lip. Unless there's some psuedo-Asian hipster irony going on there that my Black ass can't understand.

[TB4000]

Yeah, the fact that the artist is in fact of the same race as the stereotype does give them a pass on it, truth be told. Now when someone that's half and half does it, you do have to somewhat raise an eyebrow....did their non-minority parent put them up to this?:tongue:

[Chi]

That being said, it IS his work on that shoe, so I can't imagine him NOT knowing of it...and knowing of how graphic images are produced, someone in particular CHOSE that ONE graphic to put on the lip. Whoever that "someone" is, who greenlighted the production, THAT'S who's ultimately to blame if blame should be thrown.

Huf, as in Keith Hufnagel & his store, is the one who designed the shoe. People are saying that he gets a pass too because he is obviously not racist. If you've ever been to Huf, you'd notice that almost all the staff there is Chinese.

I'm worried how its going to look when a asian kid rocks these shoes, when the general public doesn't know the background behind the design. Is it going to make people think asians are cool with the whole caricature thing?

[Arex]

Any AA who sports these shoes is an idiot, in my book. It'd be like me wearing that kung-fool mask.

Maybe this is the artist's misguided attempt at reclaiming the slanty-eyed, buck-tooth caricature as a symbol of AA empowerment...???

[Chi]

im almost certain that most of the people buying these will be asian.

[Irezumi Kiss]

Don't forget about the sneaker freaker contingent, most of whom are White. Depending on how many they plan to make or if it's a limited release, there are those who'll be buying five to ten at a time. Especially if they become "controversial." Then their worth will just increase.

Maybe that was the "plan" from the git-go?

[kimpossible]

im almost certain that most of the people buying these will be asian.

I don't think that's what Adidas is banking on with this shoe.

[LaiSteve66]

I think the whole idea is stupid.

[Banana]

It's simple.

You destroy his connection to the Asian American community by calling him an Uncle Tom. That way, he's just as white as any other white person.

[Chi]

I don't think that's what Adidas is banking on with this shoe.

I think the shoe is geared toward the "sneaker community" most of whom are asian, especially in the bay area. Its also geared towards people who know about Huf and are loyal to the store. Most who shop at Huf are asian.

All the shoes in the Adicolor series are going to be limited to 300-500 pairs. So, Adidas is releasing the shoes for "sneakerheads" and not the general public.

I think that we'll see very few white people wearing these shoes. I'm pretty sure it'll be mostly Asians wearing these.

[Irezumi Kiss]

Hmmm...so, if it's a majority of Asians who will end up buying the shoe, which could be construed as them not having a problem with it — those that don't care about the "gimmick" of it, at least — does that mean it's a non-issue? Isn't there a old saying about commerce being the supreme arbiter?

It would make for an interesting article, maybe, if those Asians who ended up buying the shoe were polled and interviewed for their opinions about its design.

[yoMAMA]

this shoe seems to be aimed at the "hip hop" crowd.

[eos]

wtf is going on here? first there's that electronic's store logo, now this? and it's supposed to be ok cuz asians are behind it? hmmm...ok well from now on, i'm going to wear a long black wig, a slinky tight cheong sam, blood-red nail polish and lipstick, stilletos, and have everyone call me dragon lady.
offended? well, i can do it cuz i'm chinese.


GREAT mentality. =T

[Faithless]

http://www.secure.giantrobot.com/products.php?code=BARRYROSE&catid=R001

.
http://my.brandeis.edu/news/item?news_item_id=102596

And the piece that The Rose Art Museum advertises with its show"

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v245/chottomatte/McGee4.jpg

[TB4000]

wtf is going on here? first there's that electronic's store logo, now this? and it's supposed to be ok cuz asians are behind it? hmmm...ok well from now on, i'm going to wear a long black wig, a slinky tight cheong sam, blood-red nail polish and lipstick, stilletos, and have everyone call me dragon lady.
offended? well, i can do it cuz i'm chinese.


GREAT mentality. =T
You should sport that at the museum all the time.

[eos]

^ i don't want people coming in asking for massages and/or happy endings.

[TB4000]

I'm sure that one dude with his girlfriend may have assumed otherwise.

[537]

Yeah, the fact that the artist is in fact of the same race as the stereotype does give them a pass on it, opinion be told. Now when someone that's half and half does it, you do have to somewhat raise an eyebrow....did their non-minority parent put them up to this?:tongue:


Fixed.

[TB4000]

^Understood, but the majority seem to think that way, hence my calling it truth.

[kimpossible]

^ i don't want people coming in asking for massages and/or happy endings.

There goes my incentive to visit Chicago.

[AltimaGTR]

Racist? maybe... Ugly? HELLZ YEAH

[yuuteya]

that shoe was probably made by a child labor violation in a non-white country.

[eos]

There goes my incentive to visit Chicago.

i'll only do it if it's by special request.

[TB4000]

^:eek:

[Dei Wong]

has anyone gone public with this. I mean make some noise that's the only way your gonna make them care.

[Faithless]

It appears these shoes are making the rounds of the news media, recently.

[Martino]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4895898.stm

[SunWuKong]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4895898.stm

Huf owner Keith Hufnagel dismissed the accusations of racism as "internet garbage".

"They should do their studying before they say anything," he added, referring to the image's previous anti-racist use.

Yet Aimee Baldillo of the Asian American Justice Centre argued that "slapping a Chinese face on a sneaker removes it from that context".

exactly.

[Faithless]

eBay has the shoe (http://cgi.ebay.com/Adidas-Huf-Adicolor-DQM-Twist-Colette-Ray-Fong-10_W0QQitemZ7757316621QQcategoryZ63850QQrdZ1QQcmdZ ViewItem) in a few different links -- going for more than the retail.

But there looks to be a whole Fong pack (http://cgi.ebay.com/Adidas-adicolor-Huf-Ray-Fong-twist-Huf-sf-extras_W0QQitemZ7757544148QQcategoryZ63850QQrdZ1QQ cmdZViewItem).

So, just to play devil's advocate, why would McGee deliberately diss the culture?

[cool]

This shoe was featured in a UC Davis newspaper article today. On the side of the text they had a little section where they asked some random folks how they felt about the shoe. All the Asians basically said the shoe was nothing to be offended over, while the non-Asians felt it was "questionable" or they said that if they were Asian, they would be offended. One girl (non-Asian) said she felt this shoe was marketed toward the "Asian crowd" and hence she wouldn't consider buying it.

Link:

http://www.californiaaggie.com/media/storage/paper981/news/2006/04/11/CityNews/Yellow.Series.Shoe.Walks.Fine.Line.Of.Racial.Contr oversy-1843608.shtml?norewrite200604112153&sourcedomain=www.californiaaggie.com

My two cents. Personally I feel that it isn't something to get offended over, especially considering the designer is half-Chinese. In the article it states that the designer sees this caricature as an alter ego of himself, and he often uses it when portraying pieces of his art. Similar to what others have stated, I feel this is an attempt to "re-claim" a racist image and make it positive, similar to what blacks have done with the n-word.

I wouldn't buy it though. These limited edition shoes are too expensive.

[SentimentalThug]

Wow, asian people are so uptight and bitter.

It's just a shoe!

There are bigger issues in this world that are far more greater of importance. Like, Vin Diesel's shoe size!!

[Irezumi Kiss]

if you say so...but...

Imagine that face, exactly as is, plastered across a t-shirt on a non-Asian guy's chest walking down the street...

feel the same way? indifferent?

I guarantee you if it was some pickaninny style, big-lipped caricature of a black person's face (the equivalent of this in Negro World) that guy's face would be having some serious knuckle-kissing hickeys.

I like Barry McGee's shit as complete artworks, but I dunno about this joint...

[kinddeargirl]

Wow, asian people are so uptight and bitter.

It's just a shoe!

There are bigger issues in this world that are far more greater of importance. Like, Vin Diesel's shoe size!!

I'm a black girl and even I find it offensive. We blacks protest all kinds of things, I just saw "Eye for an Eye" Court show today which a black guy accused asians of not liking blacks when he had no proof.

So we blacks complain about little things too, even things we don't have proof of.

I remember when we complained about Wal-mart putting blacks in the same DVD catagory/section with apes.

[Banana]

You have to remember that as long as Asians have money and aren't enslaved, respect is a minor issue.

Except for fellow Asians; then you have to save face at all costs.

[TB4000]

I'm a black girl and even I find it offensive. We blacks protest all kinds of things, I just saw "Eye for an Eye" Court show today which a black guy accused asians of not liking blacks when he had no proof.

So we blacks complain about little things too, even things we don't have proof of.

I remember when we complained about Wal-mart putting blacks in the same DVD catagory/section with apes.
Well, the Wal-Mart thing was a little too coincidental. It was nothing but black movies in the same category as Planet of the Apes series.

[kinddeargirl]

Well, the Wal-Mart thing was a little too coincidental. It was nothing but black movies in the same category as Planet of the Apes series.
Exactly, it was nothing so why get uptight, so who are we or anybody to tell asians what not to get upset over.

[nifer]

Asians Decry Adidas Shoe as a Misstep

By Michael Tunison
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, April 14, 2006; D01

A new, limited-edition shoe from Adidas-Salomon AG, part of the "Yellow Series" and decorated with the face of a character who has buck teeth, a bowl haircut and slanted eyes, has provoked a heated debate about the lines dividing racism, art and commerce.

The character on the shoe is the creation of a San Francisco graffiti artist, Barry McGee, who is half Chinese. McGee, who calls the character Ray Fong after an uncle who died, said the image is based on how the artist looked as an 8-year-old.

"You have to look at it as a piece of artwork," said McGee, 40, who used Ray Fong as a graffiti tag in the late 1990s and later in art installations and catalogue covers. "The way we put it all together, it becomes a collectible as art."

The shoe was released April 1, with 1,000 pairs on sale at a dozen boutiques in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Paris, London, Tokyo, Hamburg and Denmark. It retails for $250 and comes with a graffiti art fanzine.

Since then, several blogs and message boards have been consumed with fervid debate over the shoe, and Asian American organizations have said it evokes damaging and long-standing stereotypes.

"You're kidding me, right?" read an entry on the Web site Angry Asian Man. " That's racist! "

Others point out that McGee's mother is Chinese and that he often uses art to explode stereotypes of Asians. On the blog AdJab, Adam Finley wrote, "My theory . . . is that Adidas is trying to target a younger, hipper demographic that is already familiar with the underground art world and the images can seem controversial when not seen in the proper context."

The Organization of Chinese Americans, which is based in the District, has received about 40 complaints from its members, according to communication director Anh Phan. The organization has sent a formal letter of complaint to Adidas, asking for removal of the shoe from the market.

"We initially didn't think it would become that big of a deal, but our members seem to think otherwise," said Phan. "Taken in context with all the mentions of yellow, it's upsetting. We want people to be mindful of that when trying to promote their products."

Dorothy Wong, the group's executive director, said such images define Asians as foreigners. "And it fuels an anti-immigrant sentiment that has been coming to the fore lately," she said.

McGee's role as an artist and his ethnic background have confused the issue for some.

Still, said Frank H. Wu, dean of the Wayne State University Law School and author of the book "Yellow: Race in America Beyond Black and White," the images have an effect that cannot be ignored.

"The problem with this is not that it's done by bigots, because it's not," he said. "It's also not that it offends people, because in many ways, that's what art is meant to do. The problem is that these images, even though crude and cliched, are powerful, almost indelible. They write the scripts that we expect others and we ourselves to follow. You can't read all that into a shoe, but it's part of a pattern."

The controversy also addresses the issue of removing a potentially subversive image from the context of art and introducing it into the world of commerce, where there is no means to indicate that the image may be a wry commentary on stereotypes, rather than perpetuation of the stereotype itself.

"We live in such a cynical, postmodern society that if you are offended by something like this, people say, 'Lighten up, it's ironic, it's a joke.' And that's really nice if you're a student of art history," Wu said. "But how many 10-year-olds talk about irony? When you get teased, it doesn't make it any better to know that they're also calling it ironic. It sends the message that it's hip to make fun of Asians."

Called the Y1-HUF, the shoe is part of the Yellow Series of the Adicolor brand produced by the German sportswear maker and was designed by McGee with the San Francisco specialty-clothing store, HUF. The Adicolor line offers 42 shoes in seven colors, 36 of them produced with artists or designers.

Adidas said it meant no offense. "It is an unfortunate coincidence that its inclusion in the Yellow Series has been misinterpreted as offensive," the company said in a statement. "It was not the intention of Adidas, nor HUF and McGee, to offend any individual or group as we pride ourselves on being a multicultural organization."

Peter Chang, 21, of Silver Spring said it wasn't necessarily offensive because of McGee's background. "But as a shoe-head," he said, "I wouldn't consider it for a collector's item just because visually it doesn't fit into what people go for when they think of Adidas. If Adidas takes heat for it, it's their own fault. They're a multinational corporation; they have to think about the consequences."

Deborah Kong, 33, a graduate student at the University of California at Berkeley's Goldman School of Public Policy and a former newspaper reporter, heard about the shoe from her brother and sent an e-mail to friends and Asian American organizations to start a letter-writing campaign to Adidas.

"There has been some discussion on blogs about whether this constitutes racism, or whether it's an artist's response to racism," the e-mail states. "But we think it is, at the very least, a bad marketing decision on the part of Adidas. And, taken out of context, it represents an outdated stereotype."

In 2002, the clothing chain Abercrombie & Fitch Co. drew complaints from Asian Americans because several T-shirts it produced bore characters with similar attributes and racially charged slogans.

Kong, who covered that controversy for the Associated Press, said the Adidas shoe does not bother her as much as the Abercrombie shirts but that she thought it was a good opportunity to raise debate on issues that she said Asian Americans are typically hesitant to confront.

"I would like to see an apology, however," she said.

At the Adidas store in Georgetown, which does not carry the shoe but has other Adicolor products, manager Sean O'Brien said he has not received any complaints about or requests for the Y1-HUF. However, he said he recently visited a New York store that was selling the shoe and salespeople there told him they had received numerous complaints.

McGee said he still doesn't understand the reaction.

"I mean, I had a bowl cut and I had buck teeth," he said. "People can perceive it as whatever they want. I guess that's just the power of images. The whole project was kind of a joke to me, so it's weird because I never saw this coming."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/13/AR2006041301886.html

[SunWuKong]

threads merged.

[moser]

Shoe got pulled.


OCA APPLAUDS ADIDAS DECISION TO PULL OFFENSIVE SHOE

Washington, DC – OCA, a national Asian American organization dedicating to ensuring social justice, with over 80 chapters and affiliates, welcomed news today that Adidas would pull remaining stocks of the “Yellow” collector’s shoe off the shelves. The shoe featured a face with yellow skin, slanted eyes, buckteeth, a bowl cut and other stereotypical, racist facial features and was meant to be a caricature of Asian American artist Barry McGee, who is half Chinese.

“We commend Adidas for their commitment to diversity and their responsive actions regarding this product,” said OCA National President Ginny Gong. “OCA looks forward to continued communication with Adidas and all other companies who may be considering similarly themed-products.”

The Y1 HUF shoe was part of a collector’s series that featured the work of street and established artists. Adidas said in a written statement,

“Out of respect to those offended and to demonstrate our deep commitment to inclusiveness and diversity, we have chosen to pull the remaining shoes from the marketplace. adidas prides itself on being an inclusive brand and we would never intentionally insult any group or individual. We sincerely apologize for any offense our product has caused. We deeply regret the misinterpretation of our intentions.”

“OCA is pleased that Adidas took such timely action. We believe that their apology is sincere and we thank them for not causing further offense in the Asian American community. It is refreshing to see a corporation taking such measures to embrace diversity and reject offensive racial stereotypes,” said OCA Executive Director Dorothy Wong.

[Arex]

Way to go Adidas! Of course, I guess that just means those shoes that actually made it out into the wild are now that much more rare and collectible.

[Irezumi Kiss]

Way to go Adidas! Of course, I guess that just means those shoes that actually made it out into the wild are now that much more rare and collectible.
Because it was a limited edition to begin with, I can't help but feel a bit cynical that this was part of the plan from jump street. Had that face not been put on the sneakers I doubt they would've sold outside of the extreme collectors' otaku cliques. Color scheme is horrid. You can expect some eBay fiends exploiting this if they haven't already.

[Martino]

Way to go Adidas! Of course, I guess that just means those shoes that actually made it out into the wild are now that much more rare and collectible.

Hope so, at least then the owner wont be able to afford to actually wear them.

They'll become like a rare bottle of wine that you can never drink, and you'll fear its just an expensive bottle of vinegar if you do open it.

...

...

boy, that analogy sucks.