Abercrombie & Fitch to Pay to Settle Suit

LOS ANGELES - Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has agreed to pay $40 million to black, Hispanic and Asian employees and job applicants to settle a class-action federal discrimination lawsuit that accused the clothing retailer of promoting whites at the expense of minorities, lawyers said Tuesday.

Suits to follow against FUBU or BET, I'm sure...

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What have you done for your people today?

...any of these two entities promote blacks at the expense of whites?

..they promoted a white over a black?

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What have you done for your people today?

"The lawsuit originally was filed last June in San Francisco by Hispanic and Asian groups charging that Abercrombie & Fitch, known for its "classic casual American" clothing styles, hires a disproportionately white sales force, puts minorities in less-visible jobs and cultivates a virtually all-white image in its catalogues and elsewhere."

Is the sales force at FUBU disproportionately black? I'd suggest so.

Less-visible jobs? I don't even know that FUBU hires whites. Ever seen one? More than one?

Does FUBU advertise with white models? I just went to their website, did a cursory scan over their inventory, and saw a white woman and a yellow girl. That's hardly proportional to their percentage of the population, is it?

So what's the difference?

Besides race, I mean?

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What have you done for your people today?

..I do not follow BET or FUBU Corporate practices. But I was under the impression that you have info to back up your assertion, which is why I asked. I would not think you made that based on assumption, simply because they are Black-owned. You may be right ...but is info on their website indicative of that fact?

Or maybe you have news stories of FUBU and BET discriminating against whites?

I mean..I see a lot of white, black, hispanic kids wearing Fubu, Rocawear, etc... I am not simply going to assume because the clothing line was started by young, urban black males the corporate hierachy will be filled with only people of color.

What this boils down to is a company, in this case A&F, maintaining a certain (in this case, white and prep) image.

FUBU maintains a similar dynamic with it's own image, though the particulars are obviously reversed.

Why is it bad if white people do it but not bad if black people do it?

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What have you done for your people today?

I've never understood the need for BET (Black Entertainment Television). I think having something that is based on race......even to the point where it's in their name is wrong. I cannot even imagine a "white entertainment television" and the uproar if such a thing existed. But then I also feel the same about the Black Caucus in Congress. I think that is wrong too.

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"What exactly is this foreign policy experience?" Obama said mockingly of the New York senator. "Was she negotiating treaties? Was she handling crises? The answer is no."

....Discrimination either way is bad. No question. But again, you have not shown me where FUBU or BET has discriminated or is alleged to have discriminated against whites. You are making your point based on your assumptions: A&F is "white and prep" and FUBU is "black and ....er..er. urban"? I know black people who wear A&F as well as white people who wear FUBU.

A&F is settling a lawsuit. I have not seen any news stating FUBU or BET are doing the same. Yet you claim they are participating in reverse discrimination because you do not see any whites in charge or in the corporate structure. Or maybe its because their product is targeted specifically at minorities? And if so, it hasn't stopped all the white kids I see wearing their clothes and watching BET.

Have you ever considered that maybe white people have no interest in working for FUBU or BET? Should that stop black people from trying to work for A&F? Are we going back to being segregated?

JP5.. I agree with you on the BET thing. I think the time when it was objective is long past. A name change is what is needed because I don't think it only caters to Blacks anymore. It does signify a sort of wedge in our society. Because I know people will be offended at WET (if it were ever to occur). And the CBC also need to find a new name or identity if they truly want to help black people in America.

But also remember JP5, there are still people in this country that don't think we are EQUAL. There are people in this country that still regard minorities as inferior and do not deserve the same place at the table as whites do.

It always seems to go back to Race and Equality, doesn't it?

Again, I believe I have. I can't make you look at the companies in question, their publications, etc., if you don't want to.

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What have you done for your people today?

You have BET. BlackStarz. etc...

You have Rocawear. FUBU. etc...

You have Jet. Ebony. etc...

You have Miss. Black USA. Miss. etc...

All of these things cater to one race. The black race. If it was turned around and the white race had television and/or cable channels just for them...clothing lines (ergo A&F) catering just to them...magazines catering just to them it would be considered racist and it would be stopped.

A&F cater to a certain image. A preppy image which is mainly a white clothing style. So it natural that their models would be white. Just like every add I have seen for Rocawear portrays a black person since the style of clothing is favored by the black community. If black people don't like it that's just too bad. Not everything is about them. Sometimes...just sometimes...there are certain things in this world that isn't targeted to them so a white face might be needed. Just like not everything is targeted toward white people so, appropriately, a black face is needed.

Can you even imagine a magazine that catered to white people as Jet and Ebony cater to black people? I can only image how fast a lawsuit would be brought against them for such "racism".

How is this one for racism...Hollywood is making a Honeymooners movie with an all black cast. This is a classic show that showed the struggles of two poor white families who lived in Brooklyn, New York. How PC of Hollywood. I wish to God I had the money to make a movie myself. I would make Good Times or the Jeffersons with an all white cast just to even out the racial odds.

That's only fair, right?

You know, after thinking about it...I really should sue Jet or Ebony magazine for being racist.

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