Cinnamon234 said:

One of Elvis's body guards was dating Myrna Smith of the Sweet Inspirations, and at first they kept their relationship from Elvis for fear of how me might react, not just because of the race issue, but for one of the body guards to date one of the musicians. When Elvis found out they had been hiding the relation he was pissed. He wanted to share in their happiness and told them he didn't know two people more meant for each other. So, he seems to have been okay with interracial relationships/marriage.

I believe all races can be a bit racist in certian areas...

For instance, a white man could marry a black woman and be racist towards black men, or vice versa. That is another story entirely...
[Edited 7/9/09 10:01am]

No disrespect,but I cannot tell the number of times that I have had people say to me that they SAW something on tv that I KNOW was not there! Much of it is just because someone else said it before and they THINK they heard it. Elvis is a product of the South, of Mississippi, of his upbringing. As he grew up, I think his exposure to other people changed his way of thinking. The posts here that have basis in fact prove the man he became. There seems to be no proof to the rumors regarding his "racism." I grew up near Memphis. I know what life was like then (and now). His relationships with black entertainers during that time probably was not accepted by all of his associates. My thinking, based on my own experience, is that he stepped out of his comfort zone to establish those relationships and had he been what is commonly termed racist, that would not have happened. He could have survived without it.

NewPowerSista said:

Thank you. Very well said. And as you may have noticed, the poster who claimed to have seen Elvis make racist remarks on TV has long abandoned this thread without presenting some proof. I'm not alleging that she lied - but like you said, sometimes your own memories can fool you, especially if they are childhood memories.

kalelvisj said:

and that's a very good argument because the angles r infinite. There's so many variables and hypotheticals, that U'd never get to the end of the road. What I do know is that this is a prime example of double standards and the legend becoming so legendary that it overides fact. (If U've seen that history/comedy special on HBO by Robert Whul, I forget the name of it, this is the phenomenon I'm referring to).


Update: It's in "Assume The Position". A funny yet factual look at history. It was the taping/production of a performance/lecture in a college class.

Chic35 said:

I've seen that also....good point.

had a white mistress she loved black men but detest black women ....go figure.

I grew up in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1970s and 1980s and still live here so I know exactly what you mean. Before Elvis moved to Memphis, he was originally from Tupelo, Mississippi and even to this day, Tupelo is considered to be one of THE most racist towns in Mississippi. It has been know for years as Klan territory. I know how much hell I caught in the 1980s for associating and being friends with black people so I can imagine the hell Elvis would have caught from these rednecks 30 and 40 years earlier.

The concept of Elvis was very/or still is racist..

DigitalGardin said:

Well, yeah, but this is the org If people don't like what you say here, they will lynch you.


Smooches;)

vainandy said:

It's a good thing that Elvis was very open-minded enough listening AND studying any kind of music that he wanted to play.

funkpill said:

The concept of Pat Boone is a lot more racist (IMHO) than Elvis.

funkpill said:

How so?

TonyVanDam said:

ummmm.....

MrSoulpower said:

Pari that's it right there and i've got to give it you for hanging with this as long as you have.

There's either one of two things going on here:
1) Serious chain-jerking.
2) Intellectual laziness.

At the very least, if one with an opposing view would admit that they've got no tangible facts but they just believe Elvis is a racist for whatever their reason happens to be, that would at least be emotionally honest. It would still be intellectually lazy because all the available evidence says just the opposite.


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

theAudience said:

Ivy loves you.

i heard about the fish comment and his back up singers...that was it for me...

peacenlovealways said:

Fair enough.
Here's the Snopes report: http://www.snopes.com/mus...esley3.asp



tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

Vendetta1 said:

Love you back...


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

peacenlovealways said:

There certainly is no excuse for Presley's behavior during most of that tour. His drug habits by this time as mentioned in the snopes article had clearly had a profound impact on his demeanor and personality in general. One element that is missing from the snopes article that is not touched on is the issue that soul food was a very popular topic for stand up comedians, black and white at the time. My understanding from interviews with the members of the Sweet Inspirations is that it was something that they joked about together of stage, but that he would try to joke about in an attempt to hurt them is really what injured and offended them.

I however have found this particular incident to be very offensive, in both Presley's treatment of the Sweets and of Kathy Westmoreland. Still in the grand scheme of artists, black and white, displaying poor judgment or racism...there is far worse culprits and crimes.

no way.

midnightmover said:

But that's the case with all artist that rip off black music/fashion ...

Madonna
Britney
Justin
Lady Ga Ga
The Beatles
The Stones

etc...etc...

daingermouz2020 said:

Because she was racist, being racist is not as easy as everyone thinks, you have to work at it, looks like she has...

LondonStyle said:

So, to be clear, how are they benefiting from racism? In a day and age when the the charts and actual sales and live performances audiences are so completely integrated, you are saying that these people being popular is an act of racism? No offense intended, but your list seems pretty suspect to me...

Harlepolis said:

Good !!

The last time we had this type of discussion, "political correctness" got in th e way of an appreciation of the man's artisstry. (Remember, even Chuck d later said he considered Elvis to be a great talent)

japanrocks said:

Amen, mothaf*ck him and John Wayne

legendofnothing said:

except Chuck D took it back and admitted he was wrong

DigitalGardin said:

errant said:

Very true. But Chuck D & Flavor Flav are still firm about their opinions on John Wayne.

jjhunsecker said:

Artistry? Really? Can you give examples?

Vendetta1 said:

Are you asking for examples of Elvis' artistry? How is that possible? I could list the songs that I prefer and if you don't like Elvis you will be able to counter with "I hate those songs". That would be equally true for every artist.

Perhaps we could make it an argument about success on the music charts or sales...

Or we could dig up the accolades Presley received from his peers past and present?
They aren't hard to find and range from fellow rockabilly artists to Jimi Hendrix to the Beatles, to U2, to 50 cent.

So, where do you want to go with this and ultimately what does it say about the original topic of "was Elvis a racist?"