Bobby Ray Sanders says he's offended:
I'm so offended, in fact, that I think Wendy's, the nation's third-largest hamburger chain with more than 6,000 restaurants in North America, ought to pull the advertisement.Apparently Bobby Ray has a lot of time on his hands.
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But this latest ad, with a series of vignettes of people who had chosen one sandwich over the other, goes much further than people simply debating the merits of which meat goes better with the added cholesterol: chicken or beef.
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The commercial shows how the issue is dividing communities and families, and then it closes with a disturbing scene and a cutting last line that is definitely a throwback to the days of Jim Crow.
The final scene depicts a woman working in her yard when some young boys drive in front of the house and skid to a halt.
"Chicken lover!" one of them yells.
There is a closeup of the woman's surprised face as the car speeds off again.
"Chicken lover!"
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Perhaps to the average viewer and hearer, this was a very clever and funny line. But I'll bet anyone who ever heard a similar phrase -- with exactly the same number of syllables, I might add -- cannot hear the commercial stinger line without hearing the familiar epithet of days gone by.
I'm sure there will be those who become incensed that I could be so riled by a stupid TV commercial, but unless you've felt the sting of racism and all the reminders of it that come in symbols and coded speech (a la Trent Lott longing for the land and the good ol' days of Dixie), then it might be difficult to imagine.
Aside from the racial implications, the idea of discriminating against anyone who is different is a repulsive notion that ought not to be reinforced in a 30- or 60-second TV spot, especially in these days of heightened insensitivity in America.
