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Ku Klux Klan Costumes Spark Outrage

The Ottawa Sun

When Grade 12 student Mira Tshilombo walked into school yesterday, she wasn't surprised to see many people dressed up in costumes -- after all, it was Halloween.

But what shocked the Cornwall Collegiate and Vocational School student was that she saw at least three of her peers dressed up in Ku Klux Klan white robes, pointed hoods and carrying a noose in the main foyer of the building.

"I asked someone, '(Are they) seriously wearing that?'" said Tshilombo, who is black.

She approached one of the girls and asked why she chose to put on that garb.

LOGO ON CHEST

"They said they were just doing it to make fun of the KKK," said Tshilombo.

She said there was no doubt these were costumes of the hate-inciting group -- the white robes even had a KKK logo on the chest.

She spoke to the vice-principal who initially told her it was simply a Halloween costume.

"He said I shouldn't take it personally. It's a joke. It's not a joke. He said there are people dressed up like the Grim Reaper. How can you compare the Grim Reaper to racism?" she asked.

"It's like going to a Jewish school dressed up like Nazis and expecting them not to be offended.

"A girl who dressed up as a Playboy Bunny got suspended for it (in 2006)," she added. "But a girl who dresses up as the KKK, nothing is done about it until people's parents start calling."

When asked by Sun Media about the choice of costume, one of the young girls replied she got the idea from her aunt, who wore it to a Halloween party.

When the students went to the Cornwall Square for lunch, they were asked to take off the costumes or leave, confirmed manager Chris Savard.

One student, Chris Sabourin, thought the costumes were "stupid" and "offensive."

"It ruins the fun to dress up like that," said Sabourin.

A mother of a student, who didn't want to be identified, said she was shocked to see the costumes when she dropped her daughter off at school. She was so upset she pulled her daughter out of school and called the police.

"I saw the white sheets and I thought, 'Surely they were dressed up as ghosts,' '' she said. "I think these students should be expelled."

Cornwall police spokesman Blake Paquin said no laws were broken and no threats made.

NOTHING MALICIOUS

Principal Brenda Beaudette said she doesn't believe the students, who were asked to remove the outfits sometime after lunch, meant anything malicious by wearing the KKK costumes.

"This was poor judgment on part of the students," Beaudette said. "There are many things students can choose to dress up as, but most students understand where the line is."

Tshilombo is upset because she feels the school did very little when she brought up the issue.

"People get in trouble if they make fun of gays, so why can't they get in trouble if they make fun of other races?" she questioned.

Anita Bromberg, of B'nai B'rith, a Jewish service organization, says she was shocked that school administrators didn't understand that a strong response was in order.

"That educators wouldn't take immediate, swift action to set the right tone in the school -- given the reality of the resurgence of hate groups and the potential for violence in schools -- is very disturbing."

But the school board believes the school handled the situation appropriately.

"The students made poor choices, but we feel this is a good learning opportunity to move forward and we would support that," said Ted Kennedy, superintendent with the Upper Canada District School Board.

Bernadette Clement, a Cornwall city councillor who is also black, said while she doesn't doubt there was no malicious intent involved, she was still "disturbed" by it.

"It's important for young people to understand the ugly history behind that," said Clement.

"It's not just a costume -- it can send a disturbing message to people of colour." [x]

See, it's shit like this that I don't understand. Girl gets suspended for dressing up as a "Playboy Bunny" but when a group of students dress up as the KKK, not only do they not get in trouble for it but their actions are validated by ignorant ass excuses.

"The students made poor choices, but we feel this is a good learning opportunity to move forward and we would support that," said Ted Kennedy, superintendent with the Upper Canada District School Board.

What the fuck is that supposed to mean? How exactly are these students "moving forward" with anything? They didn't receive any repercussions for their actions, so how exactly is it that they're learning a lesson? SMH.

Kanye West's New Single

"Flashing Lights"



Yay or Nay?

Beyonce's Next Album To Be "Dance-Floor Oriented'"

Work begins this month, and the Bootylicious one has already enlisted Brighton-based dance act The Freemasons to produce a tune for her.

James Wiltshire, one half of the duo, told me: “The album is going to be huge. “It will rival anything the likes of Britney and Rihanna have done recently. Beyoncé and her team can see where mistakes were made on the last album.

“It was very American, very R&B and stripped back. “They want to go for a more international sound this time.”

James and bandmate Russell Small, both 32, got the call from Bey’s peeps after they did the official remixes of her hits Deja Vu and Beautiful Liar.

James explained: “Her management have been in almost daily contact with us ever since. “It is exciting getting to work on a new tune for her, as we get to be really creative.”

He added: “We were asked to do the remix of Britney’s Gimme More and to work on Donna Summer’s new album. “But we put them both on hold to work with Beyoncé. Normally big stars don’t take any notice of smaller acts like us.

“So her decision shows just where she is going with this album. “Beyoncé is very clever when it comes to promoting her music. She wants to hit as many audiences as possible.” [x]

So she's working with Timbaland, remaking an Aaliyah song and working with Freemasons? All in the same album? I gotta hear this. Though I'm not big on Freemasons' dance mixes, I like the fact that Beyonce is taking a different route this time around; instead of the usual club bangers she's known for. I hope she takes her sweet as time with this album. None of that rushed half-assed shit.

Joss Whedon taps Eliza Dushku for new Fox series

Cult TV fans, set your emotions to thrilled: Joss Whedon is finally returning to the tube. The Buffy the Vampire Slayer mastermind has just signed a deal with Fox to create a drama series called Dollhouse. Better yet, he's chosen a very familiar face to inhabit it: she of Faith fame, Eliza Dushku.

The show, which boasts a seven-episode commitment for 2008 and a hefty license fee between $1.5 million and $2 million per ep, will chronicle the exploits of a group of individuals who are "imprinted with personality packages" — meaning that they can assume a variety of indentities (language skills, physical talents, memories, etc.) to be used for all types of tasks. When these missions are over, the individuals have their memories erased and reside in a guarded laboratory known as the Dollhouse; Dushku's Echo, however, is slowly coming of consciousness. "We call it a suspense-drama-mythology-comedy-action-horror musical," Whedon half-jokes of the show, which will bend and blend genres in typical Joss fashion. "The main thrust is the thruline of Echo as a sort of newly born character who goes, 'Wait a minute — I exist. Wow. So who would I be? And how dangerous is it for me to let anybody know that I know that I exist?' Not unlike the Frankenstein myth, it's, 'Who made me, who am I, and why am I?'"

Sounds like Dushku has already bonded with her alter ego. "She's fierce and she's hot, but she's also so complex, and she's going to be so tripped out because she's in this world, which I can identify with, where there are people who can click a button and succeed in making you be what they want you to be. It's this whole mindtrip of objectification," she says. "It's going to have sex and heartbreak and violence and hilarity. That, to me, is a hot show."

So when did construction on Dollhouse begin? The two were having a friendly meal last month — Dushku was seeking some project guidance after signing a deal with Fox — when inspiration hit the pair. "In the middle of the lunch, I said, 'Oh, s---, I made up a show, and I have a title,'" recalls Whedon. "And that's when you know you're dead, when there's a title." Dushku, who'll also serve as a producer on this 20th Century Fox TV series, was more than thrilled to reteam with her mentor. "I've always said from the Buffy days, 'I'll follow that guy anywhere,'" she notes. "I just had to find him and pluck him out of his supposed retirement from television."

The timing of this project is somewhat fortuitous for Whedon. (Except, of course, for that whole impending strike mess.) The latest rewrite of his supernatural triller Goners for Universal "was not incredibly well-received," he says. "Nothing's happening with it right now. It's not good news, but one door closes, and then there's a draft, and another one opens." [x]

Joss Whedon? Eliza Dushku? I'm feeling this. "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" is one of my favorite shows of all time so I'm eager to see what Joss Whedon can come up with next.