Heartless racist captions on Yahoo found — Click here to see actual slides.
Yes, I seriously doubt that this gaffe was intentional. But some of these captions — such as a picture of a helpless woman who has done nothing while the caption says she is going to go loot– are unconscionable. All of these pictures are a disgrace. Someone needs to apologize for their publication. The worst part is when white folks are seen coming from a torn open store they are not looting. They are “finding.”
Found by TwelveTwo on Metafilter
UPDATE (9/4) : The “finding” slide has been removed and Yahoo mentioned this in a memo to the public. The still offensive looting pics of people with food remain as far as I can tell. Read the comments for a run-down.
Actually the confusion comes from government office (Police, Fire Fighters, etc.). While technical it is looting they aren’t going after them because they know people need food and water. This became less of an issue after they realized, how bad the damage is and are more concerned with saving lives. The unjustifiable looting is the people walking off with 10 pair of jeans, TV and the like.
I don’t know when the stories were originally filed since some of them may be just repost of an earlier post. But on Monday everyone was being Looters and late Tuesday when thing look like they were getting worse and not better. They started to refer people getting the basics (food and water) as finders or at least understanding that kind of looting. Most of the looting shots look like they were AP and the White Male and Black Female residents are finders according to AFP/Getty.
I tired when everyone tries to make thing racial when there is no point or reason.
Huh. That’s pretty sad. Racist indeed!
Too Shey or Touché (however you spell it)))))
🙂
Racist or not, looting is the wrong focus; the media should allign it’s energies to assisting communication and marshalling resources and volunteerism to the millions who did not deserve this ordeal.
The loss of looted property will pale compared to the cost of property destroyed directly by storm damage. It will all be made even further insignificant compared to the loss of life – when those numbers are finally compiled.
This was a catastrophic storm; local leaders realized the scope of the emergency early on, and the majority who could evacuate or find shelter did. Unlike Florida, where I live and saw the complacency for this storm first hand, only a small percent in New Orleans took this storm lightly.
Now we should all focus on recovering life, restoring social order and quality of life. Looting is just a minor sideshow to the greater disaster.
The stories were written by different people in different news agencies. Yahoo did not author any of those pages. You guys are idiots. sorry.
Take a closer look at the last picture of the “finders”. The woman looks bi-racial. The word “looter” isn’t inherently racist. I guess I’d really have to see 10-20 pic of white folk called “finders” and 10-20 pics of black people being called “looters” to decide if there was something wrong here.
Either way, Yahoo didn’t write the captions, some news service did. Yahoo probably gets gigs and gig of data hourly. It’s no excuse but it’s hard for that all to be combed through to satisfy all the “PC” crowd (and I don’t mean personal computer).
Anyone who has a problem with a guy taking some food or beer , who’s city and maybe home is under water and doesn’t know when help is going to arrive, is a selfish prick. Clearly, foraging Nikewear and iPods isn’t justifiable. But, imagine how much beer the poor bastard dragging the tupperware footlocker must have put away in the past to make that such a high priority at a time like this. For God’s sake, let the guy have a case in peace. His frigging underware and furniture is probably spread across four states.
Also, given the volume of beer, wine and booze that New Orleans has distributed for the manufacturers in the last hundred years those companies should be leading the rescue efforts just to protect their market. Hell, they should be air-lifting the stuff in on C-5s for free.
Jeez, anybody who looks at what is happening along the Gulf now and thinks… OMG, they are LOOTING!, needs to refocus their tiny little pigmy brains. People are dying in attics there and those “iPod looters” and the “bigger and better martial law advocates” should be trying to help their neighbors instead of looking for stuff to take or bitching about a stolen 6-pack. But you know, they won’t do that because they are both selfish little pricks..
if the photographer had nothing better to do than “victimize people trying to survive” he should have left ……..the country, because he obviously was detrimental to anything effective that was needed in this disaster.
I guess you are right about the black/white bias, but I have to say that from the UK it looks like all those people are Americans not black people and white people. Just like people all over the world, no better no worse.
I think if I couldn’t find water to drink I could make do with beer.
The entire thing is pointless. Considering the articles are completely from different sources.
As an American and Black Person I find the pictures and the article OFFENSIVE. Every person I saw was taking something that did not belong to them, so either they were all LOOTERS or they were all FINDERS-there is no gray area. Why were there no picures of people helping others? Why do we always dwell on the negative? Are we ever going to outgrow the PRE-CIVIL WAR DAYS and realize that a person skin color does not make them good or bad.
Even though I would sympathize with people who are only taking food which will spoil anyway (the guy in the first slide is carrying a bucket of beer)…Stealing is Stealing. The thought that these are all good hard working folks just trying to survive is pure bull.
Its also hard to believe that people were completely out of food and “starving” only hours after the storm.
I have seen video on CNN and FOX showing a crowd of people beating down the security gate of a jewlery store, how many essentials of life are in there?
I have seen video shot inside a Wal-Mart that showed two black police officers strolling around filling shopping baskets with merchandise (clothes mostly). Another black police officer was photographed in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart with armloads of DVD’s.
Was it racism to show these things too? Should the camera crews continued searching until they found some white police officers looting the property they have sworn to protect? I sincerely hope these police officers are identified and prosecuted later and for something more serious then shoplifting.
I think what we are seeing in New Orleans right now is what happens the minute the rule of law is suspended anywhere. Societies worst elements come out to feed.
Maybe you should read and realize that they come from different sources.
The last one was from AFP, different from all the others, which were mostly AP.
Real genius to find that different reporters use different words.
Where are the voodoo stories, by the way, or is that being hushed up?
You know, there used to be pirates in the Caribean. Maybe that’s where the looting stuff is derived from; down there. When the police need gas for their cruisers these days in The Big Easy, they find it in “abandoned vehicles”:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/01/katrina.impact/index.html
DUH…how could I make it any more clear than putting big bold lettering in a big red banner and saying “…Yahoo Slideshow Shows Why Editors are Important!” That’s the point. Yes, it was two sources. But it was inconsistent..”SHOWS WHY EDITORS ARE IMPORTANT.” Hello!!
I am impacted by the fact that Blacks are called looters and the two white looters are called residents.
As an American and Black Person I find the pictures and the article OFFENSIVE
Everybody on here is offended. That’s Dvorak’s job. Get in line.
Mention race, and everyone comes out of the woodwork. The volume of comments is amazing.
Let’s go back to picking on the brown people, John. Immigration.
We seemed to reach something of a consensus on them.
I find that intractable debate comforting compared to this.
Moore, you are a hopeless cynic!!!
Eh, when I tracked back to this post from my blog, I got the same sort of flak. Truth is, whether or not it started as one, this has become a racial issue. The people in the projects took significantly longer to receive help and aid from anyone. Almost immediately everyone else was getting food, water, and shelter. Those project people were walking around for 2 days before they got any sustinance.
I don’t understand. Someone said “Stealing is stealing” – but how come it’s not stealing when the white people do it? AND…how are we to know what happened immediately before the photos were taken? Do we KNOW that the people called “looters” actually stole what they were carrying? Do we actually KNOW what happened with that line of people walking toward the grocery store? We THINK we know…but we don’t really.
Anyhow, you’re right – this is why editors are important.
and why does yahoo post this images internet???
Yahoo is responsible for their own foolish comments. The white guy in the picture is my newphew . He is looting just like everyone else. It dosn’t even mattter, WHITE OR BLACK. they have no choice but to go and find some food. Let them loot, the government wasn’t do anything about it at that time. That racist comment calls for discipline
Thank you for finding a way to get this back on the web! It is important to document these racist portrayals. These photos and words are so powerful in so many ways. Also sad and enraging.
This is outrageous.
BTW John this got on showbiz tonight.
This is totally unacceptable!!! At a time like this you would hope that people would have enough sense to see the true issues. Many people in New Orleans are still waiting… waiting … It is obvious the sitiuation is dire. If people need food and drinkables and stores, that are obviously pretty much flooded with water it common sense, that anyone would do what they would need to do to survive.. Those people are survivors.. and are taking care of their basic needs… Needs that have been slowly addressed.. Which is an additional racist issue.
People and organizations that exhibit racism and show prejudice are SCUM OF THE EARTH. People should send their opinions to yahoo.
OK, so the AP calls these people looters and some news organization Americans have never heard of calls them finders. Not necessarily racism. If we had 10 pictures of people of African descent and 10 pictures of people of European descent, and the former each said looting and the latter each said finding, AND the news sources were the same, then there would be a case for racism.
I’ve been searching wire service images for several hours now and I can only find the single “finders” example that appears in your post.
Presumably you’ve seen the photographer’s comments by now? They are quoted and sourced at http://www.snopes.com/photos/katrina/looters.asp
His entire quote posting follows:
Chris Graythen, Photographer, Photo Editor
new orleans | LA | USA | Posted: 6:10 PM on 08.31.05
->> Jeasus, I don’t belive how much crap I’m getting from this. First of all, I hope you excuse me, but I’m completely at the end of my rope. You have no Idea how stressful this whole disaster is, espically since I have not seen my wife in 5 days, and my parents and grand parents HAVE LOST THIER HOMES. As of right now, we have almost NOTHING.
Please stop emailing me on this one.
I wrote the caption about the two people who ‘found’ the items. I believed in my opinion, that they did simply find them, and not ‘looted’ them in the definition of the word. The people were swimming in chest deep water, and there were other people in the water, both white and black. I looked for the best picture. there were a million items floating in the water – we were right near a grocery store that had 5+ feet of water in it. it had no doors. the water was moving, and the stuff was floating away. These people were not ducking into a store and busting down windows to get electronics. They picked up bread and cokes that were floating in the water. They would have floated away anyhow. I wouldn’t have taken in, because I wouldn’t eat anything that’s been in that water. But I’m not homeless. (well, technically I am right now.)
I’m not trying to be politically correct. I’m don’t care if you are white or black. I spent 4 hours on a boat in my parent’s neighborhood shooting, and rescuing people, both black and white, dog and cat. I am a journalist, and a human being – and I see all as such. If you don’t belive me, you can look on Getty today and see the images I shot of real looting today, and you will see white and black people, and they were DEFINATELY looting. And I put that in the caption.
Please, please don’t argue symantics over this one. This is EXTREMELY serious, and I can’t even begin to convey to those not here what it is like. Please, please, be more concerned on how this affects all of us (watch gas prices) and please, please help out if you can.
This is my home, I will hopefully always be here. I know that my friends in this business across the gulf south are going through the exact same thing – and I am with them, and will do whatever I can to help. But please, please don’t email me any more about this caption issue.
And please, don’t yell at me about spelling and grammar. Im eating my first real meal (a sandwich) right now in 3 days.
When this calms down, I will be more than willing to answer any questions, just ask.
Thank you all –
-Chris Graythen
Anyone else think it’s a photoshop?
Think about the grammar on the white one.
“Two residents wade through chest-deep water after finding bread and soda from a local grocery store in New Orleans.”
“After finding bread and soda from a grocery store”
Wouldn’t this sound more natural for that sentence?
“After looting bread and soda from a grocery store”
Agree with the original sentiment especially after viewing photos. I am guilty of professing beer is food however, I’ve got to ask: the guy with a plastic box full of beer couldn’t find anything else to “eat” or drink? You’re 100% correct, the white people are just as guilty of looting. Can’t say I blame any of them as long as it’s food or clothing they’re grabbing! LMS