'Oh I Know Its KINDA Racist But I Knit So It's OK'
Note re caption: The caption of this t-shirt is tongue-in-cheek and not attributed to anyone.
There’s something ill afoot in craftosphere, strains of a casual racism that I find deeply troubling. I’ve been remarkably self-censorial on the matter of the so-called ‘guerilla knitting collective’ Knitta Please because commentary on the group is (a) a rather sensitive topic for me and (b) lays slightly afield of my home decor blogging mission. Nonetheless, having run across Knitta on two gift guides this year, I’ve decided to make my views known.
I don’t care about artisans covering parking meters with knitted cozies, as these knitters do. What I do vigorously object to is the overtly racist and classist moniker of the group and at least some of it adherents, as well as its uncritical embrace in the blogosphere.
Apartment Therapy has called Knitta Please “the best-titled site we have ever heard of” and ends a glowing review by asking “Where my knittas at?”
Rarrar on Etsy is proud that she originated this phrase before knowing of the 'Knitta, Please' collective.
WHY does AT think that this is the best titled site ever? Why does Rarrar Press want credit for coming up with the phrase? Because it not only manages to convey the purpose of the group but make a funny yet unassailable joke at the expense of people who say, “N-gga, please.” In other words: mostly poor, mostly black, mostly young, mostly non-knitting, mostly non-AT-reading people who have no idea they are the butt of a joke being told and branded by mostly wealthy, mostly white, mostly young, mostly self-styled artists who think they are so above racial politesse that they can almost bandy about the n-word without recourse.
Design*Sponge thinks this is just dandy
The co-opting of the ‘n-word’ by African Americans was an attempt to fight the oppression of a racist word by diffusing it.
‘Knitta Please’ is nothing more than a lame pathetic[1] attempt by cultural elites to make fun of people they see as beneath them. With group members named Knotorious N.I.T. and P-Knitty, there isn’t any one shred of doubt as to who this collective treats rhetorically as Other and Lesser. Of course, white-washing black power symbols like the clenched fist is just the icing on the blackface cake.
And no, this isn’t just a ‘black thing’. The ‘hilarious joke’ of T& Asia soap is that it features faux vintage half-nude images of Asian women. Apparently, the essence of the Orient is “tea” and “a–”. Oh look! Asian women are powerless, caricatured, erotic images! How funny! And yet zen!
T and Asia Soap via Popink, censored to be work-safe
Want more? Check out Queering Domesticity’s excellent meditation on racism in the world of craft. It’s like in adopting the crafting and small batch production techniques of yesteryear, many of these people have also taken up a dormant strain of retro, socially acceptable racism.
So what do you think? Register your outrage, your ambivalence or your defenses. I know this is a sensitive topic so if you want to respond anoynmously, just enter a fake e-mail address and I will approve your post for viewing. All on-topic replies, pro and con, will be published.
[1] [Edit 12/16: A commenter on knitting site Ravelry.com pointed out that using 'lame' as a derogatory adjective is ableist language. While I did not intend it in this way and did not think of the phrase that way, she is absolutely right. I want to amend my statement and apologize for any harm or offense. I appreciate being both educated and held to account.]
UPDATE [12/17]: The founder of Knitta, Please Magda Sayeg, has responded. You can read her statement here.
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Lighten Up.
Thank you so much for writing this and also for posting this at AT today (3/23/11) in response to the knit-bombed trees. I really really appreciate your insightful analysis and plan on forwarding this post to many friends!
I’m not interested in being hypersensitive. And I don’t think the “mostly poor, mostly black, mostly young, mostly non-knitting, mostly non-AT-reading people” that you speak of are that interested in idiomatic protection. In fact this hypersensitivity tends to fall in the hands of wealthy white’s (and handful of neofeminist theorists) who get off on being offended by everything.
Most people: black, white, poor, or rich- enjoy a good pun. And the fact that people can be playful means that we are growing closer, communally. No one is making fun of anyone. Hiphop sets trends in this way and the irony of street-cool vs. knitting lends this it’s humor.
Life should not be wasted by being touchy. White people and the super-educated like to hurt their own feelings and then move into the suburbs and never touch or involve themselves with the actual people they defend on blogs or in bougie restaurants with their upper class friends. Others enjoy knowing all kinds of people and speaking freely, with occasional offense.
I’m sorry but I totally disagree. Using puns or wordplay in reference to something does not mean that whoever or whatever is being referenced is being considered “lesser.” Why associate yourself and your work with something you consider “lesser?” Can it not just as easily be construed as a sign of respect? Also, the nudes on the soap are no less demeaning than any nude in a piece of art. It’s tasteful, not pornographic. Stop trying so hard to find something to fight against. Not everything is meant as a means of tearing someone down.
But if you do find it necessary to rail, feel free to use the word “lame.” If you look in the dictionary you will see that it can mean “unconvincing, unsatisfactory, pathetic, contemptible.” Words acquire new meanings as they grow up; words are like that.
Hypersensitive is right. GET OVER IT! Hold the snark and get a sense of humor.
First off, thanks for writing this Alexis. I’m quite disconcerted about the movement itself, especially when trees are involved and how damaging to nature it can be; but I’m glad you’ve highlighted the racial politics in the group’s name.
It’s not about hypersensitivity; and I can hardly see how “knitta, please!” functions as a sign of respect. The problem is that the term continues a timeline of patriarchal oppression and violence. Anyone who thinks we have moved beyond this is gravely mistaken. It is here, permeating our material culture, continually contributing a memory of racial violence. Is an attempt to trivialize and humour what is an extraordinarily racist comment really a way of moving forward? Or is it a slight, but constant, haunting reminder of violent histories?
Also, the T & Asia soap is especially disturbing–echoing the brand “TNA”–it again, reduces women to sexual and material objects. In response to Ania, just because a nude is artistic doesn’t mean it’s inherently “good” or “acceptable” or “tasteful”. It’s more than just pornography. Is D.H. Lawrence’s painting “Leda and the Swan” tasteful? I really hope not.
Hi Patrick,
This is the crux of the matter, isn’t it?: “Is an attempt to trivialize and humour what is an extraordinarily racist comment really a way of moving forward? Or is it a slight, but constant, haunting reminder of violent histories?” Thanks so much for taking the time to comment and I would love for you to expound, if you will, about what this sort of practice does to trees and the environment, generally.
Two years later, and this still hits the nail on the head. Racism, intentional or otherwise, has no place anywhere, really. The absolute last thing I want this renaissance of knitting to be associated with is hipster racism.
Thank you for writing this. I have seen Magda lionized in the Wall Street Journal recently and it’s like no one is acknowledging the inherent racism in what K.P. is doing.
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