momadance wrote:This is the worst non story of all time. Her rendition sucked. The Hart duet sucked. The flyers would lose like clockwork. But at least Delco is having their usual racist melts.

momadance wrote:This is the worst non story of all time. Her rendition sucked. The Hart duet sucked. The flyers would lose like clockwork. But at least Delco is having their usual racist melts.

The Savior wrote:Think you missed my joke. That said, no brainer to take it down. It’s the right thing to do.

swishnicholson wrote:

PSUsarge wrote:1) Cannot wait for the sports radio #taeks on this
2) The song was co-recorded by Paul Robeson, which is an incredibly interesting aspect of this. Robeson is known for his civil activism.

Written, that is to say created, by Lew Brown and Ray Henderson, who between them or together also wrote Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree, Button Up Your Overcoat, Bye, Bye, Blackbird, You're the Cream in my Coffee and the Best things in Life are Free. I sincerely hope we'll be going after anyone who ever sang these tunes and that they will expunged form to american songbook.

The song was a huge hit, as surprise, surprise, 1931 had little trouble with casual racism. Though actually if you look at the lyrics (while they're certainly paternalistic coming from a Russian Jewish immigrant), they're overwhelmingly both sympathetic and point in the direction of injustice, if avoiding a call for outright change or indignation..

Someone had to pick the cotton
Someone had to pick the corn
Someone had to slave and be able to sing
That's why darkies were born;
Someone had to laugh at trouble
Though he was tired and worn
Had to be contented with any old thing
That's why darkies were born;
Sing, sing, sing when you're weary and
Sing when you're blue
Sing, sing, that's what you taught
All the white folks to do;
Someone had to fight the Devil
Shout about Gabriel's Horn
Someone had to stoke the train
That would bring God's children to green pastures
That's why darkies were born

Squire wrote: I'm not sure a homely female singer in the 1940s-1950s had a lot of power in this situation.

Squire wrote:Yeah, I mean I don't care about Kate Smith or the Statue or the continuation of a really kinda silly tradition even a little bit (I think we should eliminate patriotic songs from sports contests altogether). I understand the Flyers doing what they did. I do think there is something to the points made by her family that (1) she didn't write the song; (2) she literally recorded like a thousand different songs; and (3) the way the music industry worked in those days the production company told the singer what they were going to record and the only recourse was for the singer to breach her contract. I'm not sure a homely female singer in the 1940s-1950s had a lot of power in this situation.

Brantt wrote:

Squire wrote:Yeah, I mean I don't care about Kate Smith or the Statue or the continuation of a really kinda silly tradition even a little bit (I think we should eliminate patriotic songs from sports contests altogether). I understand the Flyers doing what they did. I do think there is something to the points made by her family that (1) she didn't write the song; (2) she literally recorded like a thousand different songs; and (3) the way the music industry worked in those days the production company told the singer what they were going to record and the only recourse was for the singer to breach her contract. I'm not sure a homely female singer in the 1940s-1950s had a lot of power in this situation.

The problem I have is by the Yankees and now Flyers actions, they've now publicly branded a woman who was pretty much thought of as an American hero a racist. And that's disgraceful.

As Squire points out above, there is a ton of grey area in regards to the songs in question. The main song everyone has an issue with, That's Why Darkies were Born, was a satirical song mocking racism and performed by Civil Rights activist Paul Robeson. Somehow that is ignored and Smith, who helped raise hundreds of millions of dollars in war bonds post WW2, now has her legacy destroyed and is labeled a racist.

I could care less about the Flyers anymore, and them trotting out Smith and the Broad Strett Bullies for big games has been embarrassing for the last 15+ years, especially when they get humiliated in most of the games they played the duet. But what's being done to Smith is outrageous and wrong.

It seems to me that faith in the decency of human beings is what we must have more of, if there is to be a future for all of us in this world. We read in the papers every day about conferences on the best way to keep the peace. Well, I’m not an expert on foreign affairs — and I don’t pretend to know all the complex things that will have to be done for a lasting peace. But I am a human being — and I do know something about people. I know that our statesmen — our armies of occupation — our military strategists — may all fail if the peoples of the world don’t learn to understand and tolerate each other.

Race hatreds — social prejudices — religious bigotry — they are the diseases that eat away the fibers of peace. Unless they are exterminated it’s inevitable that we will have another war. And where are they going to be exterminated? At a conference table in Geneva? Not by a long shot. In your own city — your church — your children’s school — perhaps in your own home.

You and I must do it – every father and mother in the world, every teacher, everyone who can rightfully call himself a human being. Yes, it seems to me that the one thing the peoples of the world have got to learn if we are ever to have a lasting peace, is — tolerance. Of what use will it be if the lights go on again all over the world — if they don’t go on … in our hearts.

SixerLed3 wrote:Former Canadiens coach Michel Therrien will be the Flyers' head coach by 2022.