Sunday, October 08, 2006

Rosa Parks For $ale

This long article in the New York Times business section on the commodification of Rosa Parks image and legacy bothers me. It's not that I'm naive -- we'll commodify anything; it's one of the more unseemly aspects of American culture. But the problem is the way in which it is being carried out -- it seems so crass. Rosa Parks dog tags? Her family has tried to minimize her exposure, but alas run up against the fact that to stop proliferation of the sale of her image requires resources they do not have, but they jhave also decided to take an "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" approach.

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