U. Wisconsin students selling hoodies with message ‘All Whites Are Racist’

U. Wisconsin students selling hoodies with message ‘All Whites Are Racist’

Who says the entrepreneurial spirit is dead in America? That it is very much alive (if ailing) is evident from a collaboration among several students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) who are selling a line of hoodies carrying provocative messages like “All White People Are Racist.”

Hoodies became emblematic of black social justice warfare following the death of Trayvon Martin, who was wearing a hoodie at the time of his fatal run-in with neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman.

The brains (if that is the correct word) behind the UW operation is Eneale Pickett (that’s a he), a sophomore student at UW who also recently launched a page called, “Insertapparelshop on Etsy.”

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Eneale Pickett (Image via Twitter)
Eneale Pickett (Image via Twitter)

The shop offers hoodies for $30 carrying four different messages. One reads, “All White People Are Racist.” A product description of sorts explains how this is allegedly the case:

Racism has little to do with hatred and mostly to do with who has power. White folk or those who see themselves as white are given said power inherently regardless of socioeconomic class, education etc. This is why white men created race in the first place — to maintain power. Racism gave birth to the idea of race.

“If I Encounter Another Cop With A God Complex I’m Going To Have To Show The World That They Are Human,” reads another hoodie. The message carries an implied threat of violence against police.

Other hoodies in the shop denounce homophobia and patriarchy. In addition to the hoodies, the shop also offers a t-shirt that reads, “Black Girl Magic.” Each of the garments is modeled by one of Pickett’s UW classmates.

“I want people to share this because white people hate talk about race in this country, so share it lets get this conversation going!” Pickett said in a Facebook post.

As of publication, the shop has only a single sale, but if he wanted to “start a conversation” (read: provoke a reaction), Pickett certainly got his wish. Since the shop went live, he has become the target of numerous vicious attacks and insults, most of them too obscene to reproduce here. But Pickett has remained defiant on his Facebook page, repeatedly posting screengrabs of insults he receives.

What all of this shows is that racism remains a problem in the U.S. More importantly, it shows that if you broadcast a racist message — such as “All Whites Are Racist” — you will be treated in kind. If there is a conversation to be had, it does not start with painting an entire group with the same broad brush.

It’s not the first time Pickett has tried using racial activism to make money online. Last spring, he launched a GoFundMe attempting to raise $5,000 to make a video for a poem he wrote praising the beauty of dark-skinned women.

This report, by Blake Neff, was cross-posted in altered form by arrangement with the Daily Caller News Foundation.

LU Staff

LU Staff

Promoting and defending liberty, as defined by the nation’s founders, requires both facts and philosophical thought, transcending all elements of our culture, from partisan politics to social issues, the workings of government, and entertainment and off-duty interests. Liberty Unyielding is committed to bringing together voices that will fuel the flame of liberty, with a dialogue that is lively and informative.

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