I was sort of starting to like Lindsay Lohan again. I obviously loved her in that Parent Trap remake and Mean Girls and the awkward movie about the living doll with Tyra Banks, but then she got all crazy and unlovable. But LiLo has recently been back with a guest spot on Ugly Betty. (I, by the way, love Ugly Betty. Daniel and Betty are so fucking cute and Amanda and Mark might be my favorite girl-plus-gay-guy couple ever.) Miss Lohan was actually pretty good in the few episodes she was in. Sure, you HATED her character by the end, but she seemed to sort of have a sense of humor about the role, down to some jokes about rehab.
And then Lindsay had to go on the teevee and do this (watch until about 21 seconds in, then go scream into a pillow):
Um, REALLY?
UPDATE: Reader B-lo made this point in the comments:
“I don’t know–it’s definitely garbled right when she allegedly said “colored”. Kinda sounds like a chop job to me. Why would that be the only word in the whole interview that isn’t completely clear?”
I listened to the clip a few times before posting it because I was skeptical, but I was pretty convinced that she said “colored.” What do you guys think?
[Posted by Mallory]
six words to change the world. 
I don’t know–it’s definitely garbled right when she allegedly said “colored”. Kinda sounds like a chop job to me. Why would that be the only word in the whole interview that isn’t completely clear?
I was debating about that, and after listening to it a few times, I was pretty convinced that she said colored. Let’s see what other people have to say…
definitely said colored.
however, I don’t know about you, but I always take colored to mean rainbowed –for instance, sprinkles– so maybe she was alluding to the fact he was born in Hawaii? Then again, I don’t think she’s that deep…
The following is a stream of consciousness dialogue with myself about identity. Do not be alarmed. I just have a lot of thoughts. Feel free to skip it entirely and just read the bottom piece.
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what actually is the “PC ” term to use anyway? and how is this determined? frankly, this has always perplexed me. A few years ago I think “African-American” was the proper general term to use and it confused me because people were using their heritage to describe their skin color. I assumed I should call myself Italian-American (Not “white,” whatever that is.)then because that’s where my most immediate ancestors came from. Or should I be Sicilian-American since there is such a distinction? However, I wasn’t born in Italy, so I guess I’m actually American-Italian? What about the generations before them? Isn’t the scientifically accepted theory that everyone initially came from Africa anyway? Does this mean all of us are American-African? No. So, where is the cut off? (I know I’m getting long-winded, I swear there’s a point in here somewhere.)
I veerrryyyy much enjoy identifying with my fantastic heritage, but when is it that we all just become American? Or are we ever supposed to “just” be American? Part of the foundation of our country was to celebrate diversity, though initially it was a religious diversity.
Also, are we supposed to identify with our skin pigmentation, the nationality on our birth certificates, or where we live? I believe it’s a mix of all of those and the title is simply a difficult thing to pinpoint.
So should Miss Lohan (who gives Long Island a bad name, by the way.. Had to throw that in.) have referred to him as “the first President-elect not of European decent”? Maybe she should’ve just said something vague such as “the first President to break the skin color barrier”? I have no idea.
Ugh, so many thoughts in my heaaaad.. can’t.. formulate.. coherent sentences.. brain overloading.
So far I think my proper title would be American-Italian, Snow White in the Winter-bronze goddess in the Summer, peace-loving, Long Island-New Yorker.
How about you? Identity is puzzling.
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This entire post can be responded to in one phrase: the politically correct term for categorizing oneself.
Funny thing is that acceptable terms constantly change. At one time, “colored” was the acceptable term. Some time in the future, it may be again, just as there is a movement to go from “Native American” to “American Indian”, which was recently a definite no-no.
Hmmm. Maybe she had just attended a function where a NAACP member spoke….or something…
“Colored” is not nor has it ever been “acceptable.” It is an old name given to a group of people to demean and subjugate them.
People should be called what they want to be called. It is arrogant of people to think that they don’t have that right. Who are we to tell people how to or not to identify themselves?
As for the NAACP dig – the name of that organization although antiquated is a part of history and it would be difficult to change now. They have talked about it.
I’m in a band, a rock-soul thing, horns, etc, and we’re a cultural wrecking ball, which is what art should be and do. Nine members, including a white gay guy, a black gay guy, a transgendered person, 2 half brothers, one of which is black and one of which is part black, part white, and part native american (and is startlingly handsome–if that’s what “race” mixing does, I’m all for it.) We refer to ourselves in all sorts of ways, sometimes lovingly obscene and insulting, but I hear the phrase, “I’m a person of color,” all the time. Is the distinction between “person of color” and “colored person” semantically subtle or overt? And who gets to be offended when? I’m Romanian. A peasant. What am I? Go to Brazil. Everyone is so mixed it’s moot. Which is as it should be. The terms are not as important as remembering our obscene history of genocide, murdering the natives for their land, and slavery. In our band, we forgive each other and make music. Art transcends these labels.
Good points, everyone. And TomB…your band sounds pretty damn awesome. Ever play in DC?
This brings up all sorts of larger debates, as the above comments have proved. Is it a little bit absurd that people get so riled up over a word? Absolutely. But as Denue pointed out, people have a right to be called what they want to be called. And more than that, as much as our country has become way too obsessed with being PC, words DO matter. Language doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Though we will hopefully get to a point where we don’t have to freak out (or post blog entries…) about various non-PC terms, for now we do have to be aware that some words and phrases are loaded, and that it’s not okay to use them lightly.
My friend works in a pub in Ireland every summer, and Americans will come in and order Irish Car Bombs. They tend to not think twice about what that means, but it’s the equivalent of an Irish guy ordering a 9/11 in a bar in New York City. (A 9/11 is a drink that my friend’s pub serves…don’t remember exactly what it entails but you get the idea.) It’s all about context. My point here is that seemingly innocuous things like words do matter, whether or not we want them to.
Mallory, you’re absolutely right. Context and personal definition and desire are everything, along with universal human respect. Sometimes it’s like cursing in front of your parents for the first time. “Oops! Sure, I use that word, but just with my friends! It just slipped out!” When I record hip-hop artists, me, whitey, has to use the n-word, a lot, just to talk about the lyrics. The first time I say it, everything stops, people look around, wide eyed…. and then someone starts to laugh…. and the tension is gone, and we can talk about the vocal track. But it never doesn’t feel odd the first time. But the focus is music and it heals everything. And I love it.
(Mallory, the band I play with doesn’t tour much right now; couple brothers back in school, playing w other bands, etc. But… http://thejbros.com/
Come on….her intent was obviously not meant to be taken as derogatory – anyone else ever said something taken out of context? VERY petty. “I was starting to like her until…” Bull Sh..t… Grow up.
I totally agree that the comment wasn’t meant to be taken as derogatory. As evidenced by her further comments, Miss Lohan respects Obama and is thrilled that he’s been elected president. But as a celebrity, she knows that what she says is important, so I was surprised and upset that she chose to use such a loaded term. If you read the above chain of comments, you’ll see that there has been a lot of thought-provoking discussion about this video. And as we pointed out, context is incredibly important, but this is not a simple case of something being taken out of context. (If she said “I prefer the colored sprinkles” and then someone edited the video so that it appeared she was referring to Obama as “colored,” that would be taking it out of context.) Perhaps I was little harsh on Miss Lohan, but I’m certainly glad for the discussion this has sparked!
Thanks for reading, Angelina.