[Matt]

This has been a question I've wondered about off and on about since seeing 'A Time to Kill.' In a scene with an outdoor picnic, most of the attendees were black, and you never saw any watermelons, not even in the background. At least at the picnics I've been to in the summer in the South, watermelon is almost a necessity, thanks to the extreme heat. I have yet to see a watermelon-free picnic in the South in the summertime. While it may simply be that whoever directed that scene hadn't been to many Southern picnics, I get the impression that he was trying to avoid anything that could be a reference to some kind of stereotype aboug black people. Perhaps it was more common before my time, but could someone please explain what the deal is with this stereotype, where it came from, why it's considered so offensive, and why it doesn't seem to apply to other 'soul food' like turnip greens?

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[Dan-Cubrich27334]

If they had fried chicken, collard greens, watermelon, or chitlins, black folks would be offended. They are an easily offended race. D.C.

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[Jennifer31035]

The potential offense comes from the fact that blacks have been assigned a particular affinity for watermellons and fried chicken in the lore of bigots since we came to this country. Just as an example, if you happen to see footage of old cartoons from the thirties and forties that depict black people and black life, kettle-dark and new-car shiny children with white-colored lips as big as your fist can often be seen devouring huge wedges of watermellon in three bites with mindless looks of glee in their eyes. Further, there is a large market in black collectibles that feature equally degrading depictions of blacks and watermellon--pictures, figurines, you name it. Most people now collect these as a relic of history, but there was a time when they were thought to be charming and realistic depictions.

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[Ken]

I was taking pictures once of people lining up to march in a parade, and spotted some individuals with umbrellas with watermelon patterns on them. They were members of Milwaukee's Third Ward, and the watermelon is the unofficial icon of that neighborhood, because of the fruit markets in that part of town. I snapped a photo of an African American man with his watermelon umbrella - not because he was black, but because he was standing in such a way that the sunlight hit him just right. At first he smiled for me, and I snapped the picture. But then his expression changed and he became visibly agitated. He didn't say anything - only glared. I assumed he thought I was taking his picture because of the connation between a black man and a watermelon. I felt badly for him, and embarrased for myself, so I moved on.

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[Wayne-C24366]

You are right, they were (probably) avoiding a stereotype. I'm not certain of the timing of the origin of the stereotype, but there has been a long-standing negative stereotype of Blacks just siting around and eating watermelon. This stereotype was used for years in combination with other stereotypes. Blacks eating fried chicken is another of those stereotypes (as if only Blacks ate fried chicken). I even attended a wedding where I overheard the only White guests stating 'I knew they were going to have fried chicken.' Its the same type of thing with watermelon. Have you ever seen any of the old, drawn cartoons? With a couple of Black men sitting in a field, eating watermelons and saying something either stupid or that implies that they are lazy? I have. So many blacks actually avoid eating watermelon in a cafeteria so that they don't 'perpetuate a stereotype.'

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[Tammy]

While I have not seen the movie that you referenced, I can say that blacks have been stereotyped as watermelon- and fried chicken-eating, dancing, singing fools. Just think about the old plays with men in black face and 'Aunt Jemima.' It's not really the watermelon that is the issue; it is the types images that are conjured up. Futhermore, your question of 'Why doesn't it seem to apply to turnip greens' is an example of why watermelon may seem offensive. Both blacks and whites eat turnip greens, and yes, it is a staple in Southern cooking. The problem lies in assuming all blacks eat turnip greens. Once again, you have these stereotypical images conjured up about blacks. The watermelon and turnip greens thing is just a symptom of a bigger problem.

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[Sheri R.]

Well Matt... I don't profess to know it all about why watermelons are so offensive but I can tell you my opinion. I think they are offensive and considered a negative stereotype because they fit into the whole idea about blacks being these uneducated, singing, dancing happy to be in poverty stereotypes. What are the blacks doing in that image with the singing, dancing, so-called carefree life...eating watermelon. There's also this image that blacks just love the stuff...we cant' get enough watermelon so if you want to soothe some annoyed blacks, just give them watermelon. Yes, everyone in the South eats it but blacks are the ones who are associated with it as a negative stereotype. Maybe you have never seen the image of the little black kid with nappy hair, huge lips, huge eyes and a face full of watermelon. It's a hurtful image and meant to promote an ugly stereotype. Fried chicken is another one, which is why that comment from the golfer regarding Tiger Woods wanting fried chicken at the Master's Tournament dinner was so insulting. I think these foods are targeted and others aren't because these foods were used in advertisements featuring negative images of blacks.

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[Rachel]

I had a friend at work who was black and she refused to eat watermelon and fried chicken (although if you ask me, she didn't know what she was missing!) because she said she didn't like the stereotypes they conjured up. Look back at old vaudeville jokes and skits - the performers would use blackface and watermelons.

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[Kate26824]

I agree with Tammy, her post pretty much sums it up. Black people, in the past, have been depicted as slow,, tap dancing, joke cracking bufoons. Watch the movie 'Bamboozled' by Spike Lee. At the end, there is a collection of movie/media/cartoon clips in which black people have been portrayed negatively. In some of these the people are eating watermelons with their eyes rolling to the back of their heads. It was common in the early film industry to portray us like this, like we were non human. Watermelons are just among the long list of stereotypical situations black people are subjected to. I advise you to rent the movie, it is very powerful. I was surprised to see that some of the racist clips come from early Looney Tunes and Disney cartoons.

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[J21096]

I like tem personally. tey are sweet in de summer time. Oh god getting a craving. gotta go. Gimme a break.

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