FanMAIL: Georgia Woman Apologizes and Updates Controversial Halloween Display : Sandra Rose

FanMAIL: Georgia Woman Apologizes and Updates Controversial Halloween Display

Monday, October 13, 2008

Last week I received an email from Melissa Neese, the Georgia woman I told you about last week who erected a controversial Halloween display in her front yard.

The display depicted likenesses of Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain, only Obama’s likeness had a spectre behind him.

The new display shows likenesses of Obama, McCain and Hillary Clinton with her arm around Obama.

Ms. Neese apologized for her display and she is dismayed that the media has not been by to photograph the new display and she is worried that her reputation might be tarnished forever as a result.

Here is the email Ms. Neese sent last week:

Date: Sat, 11 Oct 2008 18:08:38
From: melissa neese
To: sandra@sandrarose.com
Subject: apologies for resent halloween display

FIRST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SORRY TO ANY ONE THAT WAS OFFENDED BY MY DISPLAY. YOU’RE RIGHT IT WAS DONE IN BAD TASTE AND WITH OUT FOR-THOUGHT.

THE REASON FOR THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK. I SIMPLY DID NOT AND WAS NOT THINKING OF MR. OBAMA AS A BLACK MAN AND THAT IT WOULD BE LOOKED AT IN A RACIST WAY. I WAS NOT EVEN DONE WITH THE DISPLAY WHEN THE NEWS MAN CAME BY I WAS GOING TO MIX HALLOWEEN AND THE ELECTION, WITH THE INTENTIONS TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR WHO THEY WANTED AND MAKE THERE VOICE HEARD.

SINCE THIS HAS AIRED, I HAVE CHANGED MY DISPLAY AND IN MUCH MORE TASTE-FULL FASHION. SO NOW THAT I HAVE BEEN MARKED AS A RACIST AND GOD KNOWS WHAT ELSE BY PEOPLE THAT DO NOT EVEN KNOW ME, BY THE WAY MARTIN LUTHER KING IS ONE OF MY HEROES OF ALL TIME.

Read more after the break…

BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT MY POINT IS. FOR IF ANY THING WILL COME OUT OF THIS, PEOPLE WILL GO OUT AND VOTE ON NOVEMBER 4TH THEN MAYBE THIS WILL NOT HAVE ALL BEEN FOR NOTHING AT MY EXPENSE. IT WILL HAVE BEEN WORTH IT FOR EVERY ONE HAS SEEN THE OLD DISPLAY AND MY NAME IS TARNISHED FOREVER AND THE NEWS PROBABLY WONT COME BY AND FILM THE NEW DISPLAY AND THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN MAKING A WRONG RIGHT.

I ASK, YOU THAT KNOW ME AND KNOW THAT I AM NOT A RACIST TO FORWARD THIS TO ANY ONE THAT WILL LISTEN AND THAT MY APOLOGIES WILL BE HEARD.

THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS ALL
MELISSA NEESE

Ms. Neese sent this note today:

BUT I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THOUGH, WHAT IS A RACIST? WE ALL KNOW ONE IS PEOPLE THAT HATE FOLKS FOR THE COLOR OF ONES SKIN. BUT WHAT ABOUT THOSE THAT HATE JUST ON ONE STUPID COMMENT OR SOMETHING STUPID SOME ONE MAY HAVE DONE AND IT IS NOT WHAT THEY INTENDED TO DO WITHOUT TRULY KNOWING WHO THAT PERSON TRULY IS OR WHAT THEY ARE ABOUT?

I PERSONALLY HATE NO ONE. THE BIBLE TEACHES US TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER AND NOT TO JUDGE, AND THIS DOES NOT EXCLUDE ANY ONE.

Posted By Sandra Rose In

Barack Obama, Controversy, Fan Mail, Politics

20 Responses to “FanMAIL: Georgia Woman Apologizes and Updates Controversial Halloween Display”

1

Kymystry says:

clap .. clap .. clap …

feel better now Ms Neese …

You can’t undo hate . .. to quote Tom Joyner .. When you pour too much hot sauce on your foog .. you can’t take it back .. a drunk driver that hits someone can’t ‘take it back.

You are forgiven (in my heart as the bible dictates I do)
Just remember .. all are not as forgiving as other’s

October 13, 2008 at 4:11 pm
2

Kymystry says:

foog=food

October 13, 2008 at 4:12 pm
3

Anna says:

Not sure what to say about this. She took the time to apologize, probably got scared of the death threats. Whether she was not finished with the display she still had the grim reaper behind Obama, coincidence?

October 13, 2008 at 4:14 pm
4

coaretained says:

yawn… people are so predictable.

October 13, 2008 at 4:21 pm
5

ATLien says:

Her reply is almost like saying “some of my best friends are Black”…doesn’t mean a dang thang! All I can do is SMH and pray cause she is just one of many.

October 13, 2008 at 4:26 pm
6

hermosa says:

What she think people would say? How artistic she is? Seriously. . .

October 13, 2008 at 4:58 pm
7

starr says:

I’m willing to giver her the benefit of the doubt.

October 13, 2008 at 5:01 pm
8

Bird says:

I don’t recall if I cared about this story the first time around. It seems like something I wouldn’t have taken seriously. I’m sorry she felt she had something to prove. To hell with what people say. Do you.

October 13, 2008 at 5:07 pm
9

2bme says:

Thanku ATLIEN I was just going to say that..she’s probably more clueless than anything else..which is much worse..one of those people who don’t understand why we have hbcu’s or the u.n.c.f..not understanding the fundamentals of why we would be upset of a blatant display of ignorance..MLK..humph..no offense but she has my attention when she starts speaking about Nat Turner..how about you love his ass?

October 13, 2008 at 5:10 pm
10

DivineBrown says:

the energy you put into the universe comes back to you.

I’m too hungry to say something nice…these hot tamales aint doing it!

October 13, 2008 at 5:22 pm
11

keely107 says:

I am not buying it, but like Bird says, do you.

October 13, 2008 at 5:25 pm
12

teecee says:

ATLien Says:

Her reply is almost like saying “some of my best friends are Black”…doesn’t mean a dang thang!
______________________++++++++++++++++++++************^^^^^^^^^

i got the same vibe….. she didnt think at all. it might have been subtle racism, but when the news got wind of it, she did the backwards two step and changed it. lol

October 13, 2008 at 5:29 pm
13

akiey says:

She’s just showing her primitive tendencies. I hope those hate mongers she’s rooting for get a whopping at the polls on election day!

October 13, 2008 at 5:49 pm
14

miamore73 says:

The fact that MLK is one of her heroes and blah blah blah.
This type of person is what I call a bigot. They don’t realize they’re racist. They say thinks like MLK is my heroe and I have black friends. But then they play ignorant to what is and isn’t appropriate. They’re so secretive with being racist they themselves don’t realize they are racists.

BTW in my opinion a racist is someone that knows they’re racist and really could give a flying **** if you know it too.

October 13, 2008 at 5:50 pm
15

The Divine Ms. K says:

Anyone else notice the Hilary statue is scary as hell!? LOL She looks like Carson Kressley!

October 13, 2008 at 6:20 pm
16

pinkscorpion says:

Dang… my sleepy arse thought it was JFK’s shadow over Obama. If that’s Hilary, she sure looks like a man.

October 14, 2008 at 7:24 am
17

LADYTEA says:

^^my thoughts exactly!! when I read it, and it said Hillary Clinton, I’m like where?? that looks like a man.-

October 14, 2008 at 8:29 am
18

prynsexxx says:

Which one of yall called her? LOL

Yeah, she’s a bigot, just like my co-worker. Who adopted a “mixed” baby and thinks that the world should bow down to her. But at the same time, she “baited” some chick in the breakroom and when I walked in she was saying “It’s not about Democrat or Republican, you know what I mean?”, but the convo stopped when I walked in. Not because it was ME, but because she didn’t know WHO was walking in. SMH

I ask The Almighty EVERYDAY to remove my ill feelings towards her, but she is making it sooooo hard.

October 14, 2008 at 11:42 am
19

Seattle Slim says:

Well I was dismayed when I saw the display. I thought it as in very poor taste.

I would like Ms. Neese to tell me what are some of the tenets dr. King ascribed to that she most utilizes on a daily basis. I would like to know. Simply saying that he is cool or a hero does nothing for me. Strom Thurmond had a black child. That didn’t stop his racist vitriol.

Ladies, google aversive racism. This is the new brand of bigotry that we are dealing with. I am sure Ms. Neese is a nice person, but that display and the ensuing excuse were unacceptable. We deal with too much in this day and age for this.

My best suggestion to this lady would be to educate herself and really open her eyes to other experiences outside of her own.

October 14, 2008 at 11:44 am
20

terika83 says:

I’m not defending her in NO way shape or form…but honestly some white people are so naive that they don’t even realize how stuff comes off. She should have KNOWN she should be more sensitive then to but “death” himself behind Obama KNOWING how some racists are saying he should be killed. She should know that would provoke them…but for her to act like she doesn’t know reminds me of whites acting like they don’t know the difference between the **** and niggA…I don’t condone either, but I’m just saying. Or like when the white girl off of I wanna work for Diddy brought that monkey in the box to her presentation and when they said it looked like “sambo” she was clueless as to what they meant. lol

October 14, 2008 at 3:23 pm