A viral image in which a book called Monkeys is featured prominently in a Barnes & Noble window display devoted to Barack Obama has elicited widespread criticism and a public apology from the U.S. bookseller. The photo, snapped recently at the company's Coral Gables, Florida location by an unknown photographer, is authentic.
"We believe that a customer played a cruel joke and placed an inappropriate title in the front window of our store," said Barnes & Noble spokesperson Mary Ellen Keating in a public statement. "We are looking into it and are taking the steps necessary so that it does not happen again."
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Of course, it’s awful that someone did that but it’s ridiculous and ignorant to think that Barnes & Noble, as a company, would place that book with that display. That wasn’t a corporate decision! Obviously a customer put it there trying to be funny. Give the company a break! You can’t blame them!
One person makes a dumb decision, and we are all to blame. Racism is wrong, but so is judging all caucasians by the actions of a few.
John and Paul (above): I don’t think many (if any) people are judging all Caucasians by the actions of a few at B&N. Many people, including me (a Caucasian), are outraged that such an act could be perpetrated in such a PUBLIC space. While this action was not a Corporate decision, it is offensive in its implication and by the fact someone was able to get away with it. Even if a racist costumer was responsible for this “trick”, it demands that B&N take a position regarding this action, to restore faith and confirm that it is a business that takes this destructive act VERY seriously. Frankly, because of B&Ns national scale and scope, and because it represents an industry that, at core, is about “thought”, this indecent incident propels B&N into a position where it better (for my money) take national and local leadership. B&N better make it very clear to the public what its corporate policy is, from top to bottom of the organization, about their stance on racism – so that people who believe in social justice can make up their own minds on whether or not they can support such a business.
Barnes and Nobles bears all responsibility for this even if it was a customer who the store allowed to have such access. How long was the display like this before and after this picture was taken? Yes, there are ignorant people still among us. Ignorance is no excuse for some of the things that we have witnessed lately against the President of the United States of American.
Oh get a life…I have been to Barnes and Noble and anybody could have walked up there acting like they are looking at the display and switch a book and then walked away…do you think the store should post a guard over any display with Obama? That would be ridiculous now wouldn’t it?
It is unfortunate that many corporate entities believe in the action of the person/individual whether employee or costumer could have access to such a display that would ean ourmdemeen our president.
It’s unfortunate that whoever did this doesn’t have a clue. The entire human race came from Abraham’s seed, so if they’re monkeys, we’re all monkeys.
We are going to have to pray without ceasing for President Obama and his family.
I call this the “Helter Skelter” syndrome. It is obvious that someone with a vendetta against Barnes and Nobles decided to get even by planting a book in their display window which would not only cause controversey, but would result in Barnes and Nobles losing revenue as a result of bad public relations. I guess they envisioned Rev Sharpton and others from the black community descending on Barnes and Nobles like a plague and teaching them a lesson they wouldn’t soon forget. Well someone should have told them it didn’t work for Charles Mason and it’s not going to work now. First of all, The New York Post has a longstanding record of racist and biased commentary against the African-americans going on for years and years. Secondly instead of going inside and informing the store manager, the culprit took the time to take a picture of it, because any decent person would have taken the time to check out what was going on. We all need to remember one very important thing.. it was just blacks who elected Barack Obama and it wasn’t just whites.. it was americans! Good or bad, right or wrong, we are all in this together and we need to try our best to make it work. There is just too much at stake.
The title of this article is terribly misleading and only perpetrates the internet/email rumors that Barnes & Noble is a racist company. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth, if you know anything about Barnes & Noble corporate leadership and store management and the sensitivity with which decisions are made on every level. To write the words “Display at Barnes & Noble Features” in a string like that is provocative, even incendiary.
Enough with the vigilante emails and lame boycotts already. Not only do bookstore employees have to put up with soccer moms complaining about the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue (Do they flip out every time they take their kids to the beach or pool?), now booksellers and managers have to vigilantly check displays for customer sabotage.
I’m black and I’m so over the monkey comparisons, chicken and watermelon jokes. It’s so old and corny – come up with something new already. I can’t even waste my time and energy getting angry over this nonsense.
It’s always some coward or loser that does this dumb stuff – just a jerk off looking for attention…
As offensive as this is, I agree with NancyDrew2, enough with the vigilante emails and boycotting. This is not B&N’s fault. It’s unfortunate that B&N and it’s employees will now deal with the backlash because some racist arse!
My opinion is that this shouldn’t even be shown.. At least not for long. I’m sure some idiots look at this as a funny idea and will copycat. As a caucasion, obviously the first thing I think of is how bad this might hurt an african American.. I mean I wish they didn’t have to deal with this garbage anymore. Thats what it is garbage, and the sad thing is, most the people that would think this is funny aren’t even racist.. They just are so insensative and just don’t get it. Hopefully this story will go away quickly so that we as a country can cuntinue our push forward to put this type of nonsense behind us.
“John says: One person makes a dumb decision, and we are all to blame. Racism is wrong, but so is judging all Caucasians by the actions of a few.”
But blacks all over these United States have been judged by the actions of a few. It has been done by whites since reconstruction. One black man robs a store and all black men become suspect. Its amazing how indifferent he is to the plights of the minority; lacking the discerning to make a proper comparison.
I think racism is blind to the race that is in power.
B&N should make sure customers aren’t able to get to the display windows.
A bookstore, certainly a national chain bookstore should be ’smart enough’, (even if after-the-fact) to avoid such “Exposure To Ignorance” in “subject specific advertising” by utilizing a Display Case that’s “Tamper Proof” and Denies access to “Kooks!” (The best way to keep children from breaking the “whatnots” is to keep them “out of their reach.”)
I think that this is so ignorant. Has anyone ever thought about the fact that whoever did this was seeking attetion. Well…… they are getting it! Stop giving this so much attention. I am very disappointed, to say the least, at this, but I also don’t see President Obama holding a press conference on it.
Now if we want to look at things from a historical perpective it’s very safe to say that whites have destroyed and or poisoned every society they stepped foot in since the egyptian dynasty (post antiquity). This is a known fact told by whites, it’s just never look at from that perspective.
Blacks have been butchered, mutilated, drowned, hung, shot, dragged down roads tight to the back of vehicles until death & hosts of other atrosities too gruesome to mention. Now we’re supposed to just smile, shake hands & say it’s cool. Please! Now on a personal level I judge as an individual but I have yet to meet a white man who would take a beatdown if we were walking down the street & met a group of KKK who asked him was he friends with me. DEAD
YOU ARE ALL STUPID. WHY WOULD SOMEONE WHO WORKS IN BARNES AND NOBLE RISK LOSING THEIR JOB OVER THAT DISPLAY. YOU ARE ALL JUST AS IGNORANT AS THE PERSON WHO DID IT. WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE EVEN DOING IN A BOOK STORE, OBVIOUSLY YOU ALL HAVE NO COMMON SENSE. IDIOTS
Of all the comments made Mark you have said all that needed to be said. The only thing I would like to add to your comment is the follwing: pray, in the name of Jesus for those who lead this Nation, for in times such as these He alone can help us.
Mitch wrote:
Now if we want to look at things from a historical perpective it’s very safe to say that whites have destroyed and or poisoned every society they stepped foot in since the egyptian dynasty (post antiquity). This is a known fact told by whites, it’s just never look at from that perspective.
Blacks have been butchered, mutilated, drowned, hung, shot, dragged down roads tight to the back of vehicles until death & hosts of other atrosities too gruesome to mention
This is the PAST, it doesn’t happen today. As far as whites destroying everything…look at other non-white countries, they’re not all thriving. Look at who commits most of the violent crimes in this country…not whites.
It is true that not all people share the same thoughtless and unreasonable oppinions regarding racism(s) and I say racisms–because it comes in all colors and forms, there must be some “responsiblity” along the way. Barnes and Nobles higher ups may not have authorized the displace, however, they must be held accountable to find out who. The display was from “inside” therefore, someone in the store with access and authorization, in my opinion, is responsible for the act. The display was deliberate. All the pictures were strategically placed around the center picture–the monkey. Somebody knows about and who did it, and until they/he/she are exposed, the company should bear the burden. While it may not fair, it is equally insulting to the PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, the mass numbers of African Americans, and Americans across the United Stated to be subject to the senseless hatred. It wasn’t a monkey that laid the foundation of this GREAT nation, IT WAS A BLACK PEOPLE (advising, and counseling, caring and nurturing ALL manner of people — even when they weren’t allowed to use their own names). I humbly say — AMERICA BE THANKFUL! and, I say this–there is a spirit of division dewelling among all people that must be uprooted and cast out.
This situation is very unfortunate for B&N, but since it happened, I think they should do everything in their power to rectify the matter at hand. Whoever is responsible for the racist act need lots of prayer. I hope this is resolved in a timely and suitable matter before it gets out of hand.
Mark…very well stated. I wholeheartedly concur and sincerely appreciate your comments.
I just got the email circulating about the boycott. I didn’t just send it on. I called my local B&N for clarification. I spoke to a very apologetic manager who confirmed the facts of the email, but who stated that the owners of B&N were Obama supporters. Why boycott a company whose owners are pro-Obama because of one chucklehead. I agree with others who have stated anyone can walk up to a display and change it. It would have been asinine for B&N to do something like add a monkey book to its display. We have to stop with the knee jerk reactions and start going to the source
OMG! How terrible! You mean someone has compared Obama to a monkey?? Do they not know that ONLY blacks are allowed to call BUSH a monkey, and that we will not sit idly by and have our rights enjoyed by everyone else!??? The audacity of some white people! Whitey, PLEASE!!
i was going to hold my tongue but enough is enough.This country was Governed by WHITE MEN for many years and look at the damage,from the Indians to Blacks they have destroyed everything. People still hate the fact we have a Black President. Get over it its done.It is because of the republicans we’re in this dilema anyways.
Is this what we have to look forward to for the next four years? This country has such serious issues to deal with, and we have people behaving like idiots. I don’t think black people are blaming all whites for this behavior. However from the perspective of a 65 year black female, I know that for every crime one black male has committed, our entire male population becomes suspect. So don’t talk about getting over things. More importantly how about working together so we can get over and through the crisis this country faces!
It’s obvious that some of the comments are from B&N employees,and or raciest themselves. Barnes and Nobles are fully responsible and should be reprimanded, the managers (all) should be standing the unemployment line, four days this display went unchanged, if management were Johnny on the spot this situation would be dust in the wind, this should have be notice by management during shift changes, break time, or just plane old fashion management skills; checking your work, making sure you store is safe, clean, and attractive with great advertisements, either they are lame, or they got a kick out of it themselves. I’m a Black American, Afro American, African American; whatever you wish, my friends call me Mel. I didn’t vote for Obama, however he is our President, bur President or not this should have not gone on for four days without change. So make that change, change management. You can do it! Yes you can!
No!!! did a BANANA call us stupid LOL only a stupid nut call themself a banana so now you have a last name… banana nut! lol
Michael Gibson: So, since some black people have been judged for the actions of others, it is okay for a white person to suffer the same? That is the kind of thinking that has kept the race war flames fanned. I, and a lot of other caucasians do not judge every black person by the few bad apples. By your thinking, you are carrying on the racial biases that should have been eliminated years ago. Peace.
I agree with Nicole 100%. I am also an African American woman. The watermelon, fried chicken, and monkey comparisons/jokes are tired! Is that all that they have left in their bag of hate-o-chips? There are still some (young,old,North,South,East,West)within our society that feel “weakened” by the overdue progress of yellow, brown, and blacks in our society. Wake up haters, CHANGE has FINALLY come to America!
Whoever took the picture should have brought it to the store’s attention. If the store failed to act, then it becomes an issue. We are so happy spreading dissent throughout our nation that we have become a nation that will never heal!!!
i thought that the display case was behind the cash register which would make it out of customer reach. at least that is the case in my home city. so, if the display case is out of customer reach why are we assuming that a customer was behind this? i think the store should take ownership. just my two cents.
It looks to me like most of you don’t read anyway, so why are you even in a Barnes & Noble?
well, well well. Such an interesting piece. Forces me to reflect on my own personal biases. I ask myself some questions:
am I thinking in a way that reflects of my experiences?
As I read other comments, am I predisposed to make judgments based on my race, ethnicity or culture?
Am I truly interested in the issue at hand or in some other issue?
And finally, How do I bring the most positive comment to this dilema?
So for now let me take some time and ponder over it. I will respond later,
Obviously, noone at Barnes & Noble did this. A customer (not a costumer) did this as a joke or to be mean. Regardless, to blame B&N is ridiculous. Blacks, whites, Chinese, Russian – whatever color – many have done good and many have done evil – we are all human! Look at Rwanda, Sudan, Somalia that’s black on black – so don’t be a rascist and blame whites for everything bad!
If you really want to take a stab at racism – take a stand against abortion – about 56% of abortions are performed on black women and 25% on Hispanic women. Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood (Unparenthood is what it should say!) was extremely racist and wanted to “sell” abortion to minority groups to decrease their numbers! Stop arguing about MONKEYS when your children are legally being murdered! Don’t let abortionists have the only claim to “choice”. Adoption is a better choice!
Perhaps the photographer should heve talked to the store manager instead of inciting an email riot. But then all of you would have nothing to complain about?
Why is B & N apologizing? They would never do anything vulgar like that. Some village idiot placed the book there, and for that deserves scorn and contempt. But an investigation? An apology? Stop it!
Obviously, this was someone’s an attempt at a prank. While in poor taste, it is very foolish and unfair to blame Barnes & Noble and start a big stink regarding boycotts, etc. Get real and move on!
people need to get a life and stop seeing every little thing as racist or sexist. Playing the race card got old a long time ago. Some things aren’t racist – they just ARE. Regardless of how it happened, why should B&N appologize?
MizMolly:
Mitch wrote:
… Blacks have been butchered, mutilated, drowned, hung, shot, dragged down roads tight to the back of vehicles until death & hosts of other atrosities too gruesome to mention
MizMolly replied:
“This is the PAST, it doesn’t happen today.”
Absolutely correct. Why, it’s been nearly six months since the last time any white men dragged a black man to death (McClelland, Texas). And it’s been fully four whole months since blacks were being assaulted with metal rods and harassed/threatened about how they voted, and a white man being deliberately hit with a car because they thought he was black.
And hey, the 2500+ hate crimes “motivated by anti-black racial bias” in 2007 according to the FBI – pfft! That was 2007! Ancient history!
/end sarcasm
Peggy and Nicole. Way to go ladies. This was a lame attempt at humor and anyone that was offended is way too sensitive. All races have been cracking on each other since the dawn of time. Religion is another area of hypersensitivity. Obama will be just fine and so will the US of A! B & N, I am sorry you are having to suffer a lot of fools
I am amazed that a customer could walk in of the street go to a Window display case in broad day light and change it with out being noticed by the security guards and staff members. Must be the vigilante Flash superhero or something. Amazon.com works fine for me. Pathetic excuses from B&N and the like will get the contempt it deserves from many including me. Zero tolerance
No, Wha-Wha-Wha, you don’t have your facts straight. White people could, and often did, refer to George Bush as a monkey (specifically Curious George). It wasn’t only blacks who were allowed to. But apparently such name-calling is only allowd against white presidents. Or maybe it’s only Republican presidents.
best on yet bo will kill you
I’ve been in any number of B&Ns, and never found the display area to be accessible. HOWEVER, I think any company or employee who would think this was a neat idea probably doesn’t have enough reading skills to understand books about the president or about primates. By contrast, I did contact Borders about some unflattering displays inside the stores which *were* set up by employees, and they basically told me to get over it. That’s why I don’t shop at Borders anymore.
The comments indicating that anyone compared the shrub to a monkey were surprising to me. I mean the guy had big ears, but so what? I was a lot more concerned about the tyrannical policies he was promoting, and so was everyone else I knew. We thought he was pretty stupid, a dry drunk and a tyrant, but I never heard anyone call him a monkey.
Probably Rush Limbaugh.
This is so stupid. The person who took the picture and sold it should be jailed. Fed bread and water for about a month. And very little of it at that.
Every modern business has a video security system.
* Check the mall/parking cameras
* Check the B&N cameras
* Photograph access to window area and get some facts.
Classic self-righteous Blog drivel on both sides of this slander – go acquire some reasonable facts – you are boring me to death with your “enlightened” opinions.
It’s absolutely ridiculous to think that any large corporation would promote such a dispicable display. Obviously a customer put this book there and took a photo to brag to his friends. And to say that B&N should keep customers away from displays is ludicrous. That’s how they sell books. They set displays like tables, endcaps, bookshelves etc. Customers pick books up off the displays and buy them. I used to work in a bookstore and whenever there was an election or scandal, people would go around the store turning books over if they didn’t agree with the subject and sometimes they even hid 8 copies of a George Bush book or a Hilary Clinton book so that people wouldn’t buy them. Some bookstores are like 40,000 square feet with over 100 displays, a staff of 5-6 people can’t watch every inch of the store 24 hours a day. People need to realize this is some idiot’s idea of a joke and B&N is not responsible.
It’s just stupid that people fly off the handle behind ignorance. This will not affect my president. I’m sure he laughs it off and keeps his head high.
Racism is sometimes within as well. So don’t think you are being judged by what one ignorant person does.
Maybe it wasn’t meant to be racial at all….perhaps it was just to imply that monkeys and our current administration are both basically socialist by inclination. You see, it has a lot to do with how we look at things…..and how we filter them through our own prejudices. “All prisons are mental prisons, including yours”.
Hey, Ali, it’s not a bank vault or cache of plutonium…IT’S A WINDOW DISPLAY OF BOOKS! Of course someone can just walk up to the display in broad daylight and switch out titles. It would take maybe a grand total of 6 seconds. If people can shoplift from B&N–which they do–then they can easily change a window display without an employee noticing.
Hey, Bonzo, I believe you over-thought this one.
I could never say, “Enough with the complaints about racism,” because clearly SOMEONE thought this prank was amusing. Informed citizens bear the responsibility of investigating the source of any racist and popular e-mail e-mail they receive, but they also have the right to be offended if the content is inappropriate or hurtful in some way. The window display is not Barnes and Nobles’s fault, we presume, but the offensive thoughts and actions by some anonymous nitwit are, and we reserve the right to righteous indignation.
WorldPrayerforObama: How about praying that he reverses his rulings on late-term abortions? Murder is a sin.
>>>Paul says:
Hey, Bonzo, I believe you over-thought this one.
People just need to grow up. Reguardless of who is in the office they are the President of the United States and they represents all of us. Like it or not. He is the President and he deserves the respect that goes with the office. At lease he won the office with the popular and the electoral vote. We just need to move on and get this nation back on it’s feet.
HOGWASH! The store manager of this outlet is to blame, for not checking his/her display. Furthermore, I wouldn’t be surprised if he/she was the one to place it there. Customers would have difficulty having access. The person who did it is ignorant, and hs very low self esteem, or is jealous of the Obamas success. Poor soul!
HOGWASH! The store manager of this outlet is to blame, for not checking his/her display. Furthermore, I wouldn’t be surprised if he/she was the one to place it there. Customers would have difficulty having access. The person who did it is ignorant, and hs very low self esteem, or is jealous of the Obamas success. Poor soul!
The store manager should be terminated.
I can’t believe BandN has a manager who
doesn’t know that something like this could happen, and to be on the look out. There are millions out of work who are alot more discerning. Stupidity is alive and well!!!!!!
Elaine
Contrary to what some people believe, African Americans are avid readers. We have been taught to believe that an important compotent to getting a quality education is to read and evaluate what we read. I, my family and extended family purchase books from various book stores. We take very seriously the quality and marketing of books that are sold. I hold the management of Barnes & Nobles responsible for it’s quality and marketing techniques. In this case, it was deplorable that it took 4 days for this display to be taken down. Mr. Obama is President for all of the American People. I feel that an open disrespect for him is anti-American and should not be tolerated. My relatives, friends, and aquaintances will not purchase books or other materials from Barnes & Nobles. An apology is not enough for this type of treasonous act.
Geniemaker is right that Obama should look at protecting the unborn. 56% of all babies being aborted are African American, 25% Latino and Planned (UN)Parenthood is targeting the Latino community with a vengeance. Forget about the monkey slander – stop the genocide. Use Adult stem cells to find cures, not embryo’s that are little human beings who shouldn’t be created just to die.
This is just ridiculous. Lot’s of people talking about the inner workings of a company they’ve never worked for. First, walk into most Barnes & Noble stores and you’ll see that the front display is quite accessible to customers. Second, the economy has forced most businesses to cut hours, leaving one or two employees to take care of the book floor during a shift instead of the 5-6 you would need to run things efficiently. Taking this into consideration, its easy to see how any employee could be distracted and miss someone doing something like this. All it would take is for one person to ask them a question while the other switches the books out. It happens more than you think at bookstores – during elections people come in and draw on books about political candidates they hate or move all their books to the sexuality section . . . people are crazy.
Third, NOT all Barnes & Noble stores have surveillance. if they had a tape they would surely have put it out by now. they’re just not going to advertise that anyone can come in and steal without being caught, which is the reality in many locations.
I’m sorry, but that display does not appear as “open” as the Barnes & Noble spokesperson said. I appears to have a wall behind it, so how could the general public easily access this display without being noticed? Barnes & Noble is full of B*#* Sh@#. I will never shop there again!!!
I.Williams,
that wall is only 4-5 feet high and there are no doors or locks closing it off. it sits behind the registers and one side is open by the front door and the other side is open as well, usually by the section with greeting cards. it’s a large enough space for 2 or 3 adults to walk through.
Also, take note that the monkey book has a bargain tag on the front of it while the rest of the books do not. you’ll find that bargain books have their own section in every store and are NEVER on display with non-bargain items.
Calling for a boycott is a knee-jerk reaction, and is downright foolish. Please explain why Barnes & Noble employees in Washington should be penalized by the actions of one ignorant person in Coral Gables, FL. And why boycott, anyway? Let’s say it’s successful and the company’s sales decline 30%. “SUCCESSFUL BOYCOTT,” you say. Great, so now, with the economy already dismal, B&N (one of the few companies currently doing reasonably well, and one of the few not asking the govt. for bailout money), has to lay off 1/3 of it’s employees. Now that lady at the cafe in Chicago, using the job to fund college, has to drop out. Now the factory worker in New Jersey, instead of waiting in line to clock in, has to wait in line at the unemployment office. Now multiply that number by several thousands, to account for the other 800 stores B&N has across the country.
But you were successful, boycotting an entire company, because of one book about monkeys. Are our hurt feelings really worth that? Even the NAACP has come out and said B&N was a victim in this (currently, Mr. Riggio, B&N’s CEO is sitting on the NAACP’s finance committee, by the way). But go ahead and boycott. Prove George Orwell right. “Ignorance is bliss.”
why do all of you assume that it was a white person that placed the obama book there ??
role back the tape of the customers placing the book on display
Reginald,
if there was a tape, it would be out. it’s likely that that particular store doesn’t have security cameras. they’re not going to advertise that they don’t have cameras for obvious reasons, but TWO of the BNs near me don’t have them. they only place them in stores they’ve had theft issues in.
man lighten up people, it freakin hilarious!
You mean to tell me that you let customers display your merchandise for you. Truly Enough is Enough. I deal with this mess on my job and I pray that justice is served. It will be you can believe.
America’s fear of racism is made perfectly clear by this situation. Everyone knows what happened in the past, and most everyone wants quick-fixes now. Blame the store, and everyone feels happy that ‘the dragon has been vanquished’. Whether or not the store was actually responsible? Nobody cares about that.
Having read the email several times and the comments from B&N, I sure don’t see where those people commented that it was up for 4 days. If, in fact, it was, I would say that the picture taker was the one that did it and kept track of how many days. Most people would see it once as they passed by and not realize how many days it had been there.
Out of curiosity, I went to my local B&N, which I uually don’t shop at and found their display to be behind and off to the right of the cash registers with open ends. The hanging “wall” was 3.5 ft in places, to no more than 4 ft high (I raise livestock and have 4 ft woven fencing & know where it comes up to me). Any nice dressed person could go into the window display area and look like an employee. I told them about the email and asked if they have security cameras. They do not as their theft rate is not very high.
To me, it is obvious that someone played a prank. Will I boycott a company that is innocent of this incident? No…I don’t use them due to the cost of books….I buy my books on eBay or World Net Daily. Do I boycott companies? Yes, when it’s a corporate decision to do something that I don’t believe in and take exception to.
Have I taken offense at what happened? No, life is short enough without getting in a dither over a stupid stunt.
Okay, let’s look at the climate here in Miami. We all who live here KNOW that this was put up by a latin person. Latin’s in Miami often call blacks, monkeys. Not all latins take on this attitude, but most latins of certain islands that dominate this city. It’s unfortunate, but most of these people worshipped the Bush Administration, no matter how bad he actually treated them or denied them from visiting their own country. Bottom line, they feel that blacks are monkeys even though African blood flows through most of their veins. Up front, they will deny it, but if you speak or understand Spanish, you know what they say behind your back. Have a great day, and long live the FLAG!!!
After reading some accounts, I believe that it was put there by an Barnes & Noble employee, and with the knowledge of the manager. First of all there are cameras all over Barnes & Noble and I’m the entrance to the display is on camera. 2nd of all the display was there long enough for folks passing by to take pictures.
The managers story just doesn’t pan out.
When I received the email telling me to boycott B & N, I was at first skeptical (as I am with most emails that sound too far fetched to be true) but I see that this did happen. I don’t know if a B & N employee (or perhaps disgruntled ex-employee) or customer put the book there. It will not cause me to boycott their stores. In fact, I wonder how many of the people calling for a boycott ever been in B & N or even read books.
I’ve deleted the email from my in box and refuse to forward it.
Well if you look at the picture, you can tell it is behind glass. You can see the reflection of the person taking the picture. Regardless of how it got there, the thought of it was careless. You would think that America has grown from haters to people with respect. Most of us are from decendants who were not from this country at all (like American-Indians). None of us are beyond discrimination. As an African-American (Black), I refuse to let the opinions of those define my character. Hatred is a heavy burden to bare and I refuse to carry it. Sterotypes and hatred because of one’s ethnicity or is for those who do not know any better and full of fear.
The V.P. for Barnes and Nobles unequivocally stated in a press release that the incident was not perpetrated by a Barnes and Nobles employee. She was able to make that statement because she reviewed the stores security DVR. However Barnes and Nobles has a moral responsibility to expose the culprit.
Heh.
That;s kinda funny.
NancyDrew2…are you or have you ever been an employee of Barnes & Noble? I am curious to know what sensitivity of the store management you are talking about.
first of all to all that thinks this is funny.
funny it is not, sad it is, it goes to show of the lack of respect one has for another, be it our president or not.. as for b & n and i refer to them lightly, the responsibility is theirs they should always be aware of what is going on within their establishment. to say it was an outsider sorry thats a scrap goat. NOW for the person whom took the picture IF you didnt go into the store and state your disaproval of the display, then you are just to blame as the person who put it there. to take a picture and put it on youtube, only gives the idiot more satifaction. Now if you did say something and they didnt take it down immediately. that should have been made known to the public. but come on people funny would it be funny if the display shown bush, his wife, the bush twin and all the dead iraq people holding a box of crackers. that was funny was it.that was sad and not called for. huh
Barbara #64
While this prank is distasteful, it is not by ANY stretch of the imagination, ‘treasonous’.
It’s not even close. I am glad you have been brought up to evaluate what you read, but you obviously need to ‘evaluate’ the meaning of treason a little more closely.
A true act of treason carries a death penalty. Does this silly act call for that?
Oh how original. Aren’t these monkey images getting a little tired now? I’m African American, I know that I neither behave like or look like a monkey so while I think whoever did it is an idiot, I’m not offended. Just like I’m not offended by the “N” word because I am not and have never been one.
I do not see what is wrong with a harmless joke.
It am sure it was just some workers at the store having a good laugh. I think everyone just needs to calm down. I always shop at the store located near me and I know for a fact one of their worker profiles people. He is just a worker but he follows people of intrest (color) with a notepad talking notes on them. This is all at a manangers request. By the looks of him he might be a special needs child. I know all this because one day I asked him if was store security because I could nt find my adopted 16 year old Asian child (Ming Lee). When I asked him if he could help he told me he cound not because he had to keep his eyes on a cupple of jungle bunnies
I just had to write back because I was off my medication when I wrote in before. I visit alot of their stores all over N.J. and I find it wonderful that they hire special needs people. Like one worker told me, “I do not need to know how to read then to sell them.” He also stated that he loved all the free feed he was able to eat while working in their cafe.
To all those who blame B&N and say how could a company allow such a crime to be perpetrated it’s the companies responsibility to not let this happen.
Lets make some other comparisons to things that I see while out shopping. Graffiti. What if overnight your store was spray painted by malicious/racists? Should I blame you and stop going to your store? Now of course if you didn’t clean it up in a timely manner I would have a problem with that. How about bathrooms at stores? If I based every boycott on what was written on the walls of bathrooms Id have no place to go.
Bottom line. B&N apologized for the the actions of a malicious individual and said they would take steps to prevent it from happing again. It’s sad that some people don’t live in the real world and realize that some people go out of their way to make other look bad.