Members of the city's Irish community are outraged over several T-shirts being sold at venerable neighborhood shop Jake's Life is Good. (Photo by Tom Shevlin)
NEWPORT, R.I. – Thames Street retailer Jake’s Life is Good is facing fire from members of the city’s Irish community over what some claim are offensive and denigrating T-shirts being sold in the run up to the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
Carrying signs that read “Music Box Do Not Denigrate The Irish” and “Music Box Is Not Irish Friendly”, about a dozen members of the Ancient Order of Hibernians held a silent protest on Saturday to draw attention to the family-owned Music Box and Jake’s Life is Good for perpetuating what they claim is a false stereotype and sending the wrong message to the thousands of visitors who descend onto Newport for the annual parade.
It's T-shirts like these, say protestors, that perpetuate an offensive stereotype.
Newport state Rep. Peter Martin was among those who helped organize the protest.
“I tried to point out to them that not everyone who comes to the parade is Irish. You certainly wouldn’t allow this type of offensive material to be put out for any other minority group,” he said. “We want them to stop selling these shirts. Take the loss if he has to, and get back to selling all of the nice things he has in the store.”
Pointing to a sign hanging above the store that reads “Quality Neighborhood Shop,” fellow Hibernian Rick Kelly said he’s disappointed to see the shirts on sale.
“They have no reason to resort to selling t-shirts that basically make fun of some race, creed, or color,” he said.
But Mark Lasky, whose family has owned the Music Box for over 50 years, says that he suspects the outrage was tied to his decision not to place an ad in this year’s parade booklet.
“I think the timing is a little suspicious,” Lasky said, referring to the picket. But, he added, times are tough and he’s been forced into cutting back on all non-essential expenditures – and that includes advertising. “Every other store down here are selling Irish t-shirts, but you don’t see any of them being picketed.”
But Martin was adamant that their protest had nothing to do with the parade booklet.
“There’s no association at all with any of these people here and the St. Patrick’s Day Parade,” he said. “If people that went before us tolerated the stuff, then it’s time for them to stop tolerating it.”
For his part, Lasky, who noted that his wife is Irish, was equally emphatic that his intent is not to upset anyone. “No one’s trying to offend or alienate anyone,” he said. “We’re just trying to run a business.
“St. Patrick’s Day Parade Day is the worst business Saturday in the year,” Lasky continued. “It always has been…I don’t really feel the shirts are offensive. If people want to buy them, they buy them.”
“Nobody’s putting down the Irish in any way shape or form. The drinking part is just a celebration of St. Patrick’s Day and it always has been. Everyone in the world knows that St. Patrick’s Day is associated with drinking – for good or for bad. I don’t like it; I don’t like to see all the drinking going on on St. Patrick’s Day, and I think the people that are protesting should take a look at that and do something about that. I think that they should take a look at that and do something to combat all of the drinking going on. And that’s the crux of the problem, not somebody selling T-shirts.”
But Martin, who sits on the House Small Business Committee, doesn’t think that the shirts send the right message to the community or to the visitors who come in droves to watch the parade each year.
“I’m very strongly in favor of small business,” Martin said. “The Music Box has been here for a lot of years, and other than the selling of these shirts, it’s a good operation and we support small businesses. But when you get to the point where you’re offending a group of people, it has to stop.”
Lasky, however, noted that he has been responsive to the concerns of the protestors and said that the ballyhoo brings into focus a broader issue which goes far beyond his window display.
“The minute they came in and asked, they took (the shirts) out of the window,” he said. “And for them to walk outside with signs saying we don’t support the Irish is ridiculous.”
“The city allows the bars to open at 8 a.m. Isn’t that more offensive than selling a bunch of T-shirts?”
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Newport, RI
{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
offensive, what bunk !
Maybe this dialogue will get the old & honorable Hibernians to reflect, St Patricks Day in Newport is a disgrace…….point in fact…………. why is it that the local Pubs are only open so early on Parade Day ?
Over the past many years, the Hibernians have worked with the Parade Committee and the City to make sure the parade day is a family friendly event. There are activities for families after the parade all over town. The parade brings thousands of visitors from all over the state and has participants from all over the country. They stay at local hotels, eat in local restuarants and yes, may even go to a local pub. The amount of business that comes into the city from this event is important to our local businesses.
I am suprised that there isn’t more outrage, not just from the Irish American community, but the community at large, over these derogatory t-shirts. If it were against Jewish Americans or African Americans or another minority group, it would not be tolerated. The stereotype that all Irish are drunkards is not true and the Irish Americans I know all believe it is offensive.
The Laskys should be ashamed of themselves. How they have stayed in business for over 50 years is pure amazement, they money they make all come from tourists, I don’t know of any locals that are fans of the family or the junk store that they run. Maybe someone should make a degrogatory shirt about the Jewish community….
Who in Newport has time to worry about this nonsense? So after decades of public drunkeness and creating an excuse for adults and children to drink all day before, during and after this stupid parade, NOW the City and a few birdbrains get uppity over a few t-shirts ??
And we wonder why the odds of the America’s Cup coming to Newport are somewhere between slim and none ???
1. anything that stereotypes any group whether ethnic, racial or religious cannot be tolerated
2. not only do the T shirts stereotype the Irish they condone-possibly encourage- “bad behavior” – public and excessive drinking which has become an increasingly serious problem at the parade and which calls upon additional police resources to keep in control. Drinking should not be synonymous with St. Patrick’s Day and I believe pub hours should not be increased but decreased if anything – hopefully by the pub owners and not by legislative requirement.
3. the fact that inappropriate T shirts have been sold in the past should not take away anything from the message that is being delivered. What is defined as inappropriate or acceptable has changed a lot over the years. Things that were said and done in the past have no place in today’s culture. Racial and religious epithets that were commonplace have thankfully been deemed socially unacceptable. This issue reflects a continuation of the trend that has made this country strong-intolerance is not OK. There is no social awareness statute of limitations.
I’m not sure how Mr. Williams (commenter above) is linking the Hibernians with local pubs opening early….
While out for a walk with my 13 year old daughter we noticed these t-shirts in the window. The shirts that they were selling were extremely offensive. My daughter could not understand why they would sell shirts that are so derogatory and defaming of the Irish people. No group of people should be subject to ethnic stereotyping.
Ireland Forever? Free Speech Forever! You Drunk Green Goat!
Because an ethnic slur has gone unchallenged previously does not make it acceptable presently. The unfortunate characterization of the Irish as drunkards was not acceptable in the 1800′s when certain segments of a nationality who will be left unnamed saw fit to describe the Irish as apelike knuckledragging creatures who reveled in drink and mayhem and it is not acceptable today. The Irish have contributed greatly to the positive side of civilization: an Irish architect designed the whitehouse, an Irish engineer designed the first submarine, Irishmen have won the noble prize for literature more than once. So at this time of year let’s celebrate the positivity of being of Irish descent.
James V. Magee, Jr.
Past National Legal Counsel
Past Ohio State President
Ancient Order of Hibernians in America
Cincinnati, Ohio
The owners of yes, both Music Box AND Life is (not so) Good, the Lasky’s should be truly ashamed by this. This is a LOCAL business, which mostly caters to tourists in the high season, but during the off season DOES rely on LOCAL patrons to survive. Well, I am one of those locals who shop there (quite frequently I might add) and I will be speaking with my pocketbook. I will no longer buy any t-shirts, webkins, trendy trinkets, overpriced cds and dvds, tickets (with add on fees) for ANY sporting or music events (online is less expensive and more convenient) And as such… I encourage anyone (NOT JUST THE IRISH) who feels it is time to stop offensive and derogatory behaviour towards ANY ethnic group to BOYCOTT BOYCOTT BOYCOTT the Music Box and its sister store Life is NOT so Good.
Hibernians taking offense to T-shirts alluding to drinking – now that’s a laugh! I take offense to the Hibernians’ holier-than-thou attitude – please do us all a favor and get over yourselves. There are more important things to be protesting in this world than a bunch of ridiculously sloganed T-shirts.
Signed,
a person of 100% Polish descent (first generation) who laughs at Polish jokes.
My guess is that all this protesting and news exposure will only help the Music Box/Life Is Good stores to sell ten times as many T-shirts as they would have under normal circumstances and thus, make the problem worse. For goodness sakes, if the Lasky’s took the offending merchandise out of the window, immediately when asked, the story was over, right then. You know what’s offensive? I’ll tell you: The aimlessly wandering homeless denizens of Newport’s Lower Broadway, whose troublesome antics are killing the businesses operating on same, every day. Rest assured that Broadway will be temporarily policed, just in time for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, so that some of these offended Hibernians can safely wave to the crowd.
This debate is completely ridiculous. Let this all be a lesson for every Newport business that fails to make their yearly donation to the Irish. If you don’t make a donation to their parade committee, the Irish will sic their Hibernian henchmen on you. This reminds me of a small town version of mob protection. We’re talking about t-shirts here people. If you don’t like them, don’t buy them. It’s a t-shirt for gods sake. You Hibernians are ridiculous. The point was made about all the drinking & mischief that happens in Newport on parade Saturday. Where are the Hibernians on this subject? Drinking no doubt! Do the Hibernians even care that there are thousands of people getting drunk starting at 9 am? Do they even care about underage drinking? Do they care about all the vandalism in Newport on that day? Do they care about people urinating on the streets? When was the last time the Police checked Hibernian Hall for underage drinkers? We have all seen the Hibernians marching in the St. Patricks Day parade…most of them drinking from a flask. They are just a bunch of irrelevent old drunks who are trying to take retribution on a business that failed to make their yearly blood money donation. One would think they (and their wives, families, friends) would have more important things to picket about. But go ahead and keep picketing Life Is Good. Me? I didn’t know about the t-shirts before this…but now I want one. They’re pretty funny!
Certainly nobody could take issue with these beauties, right?
http://itsabeautifulthing.com/tshirt/customized-tshirt/st-patricks.html
The idea that the lack of a donation to the parade caused this is ridiculous…..I challenge any person with any proof of this to come forward and post it here, they can’t because it does not happen…..The Laskys refuse to donate to many good projects and give reasons from I do not think I should to just No and they are never picketed, but the comments made by both family members were totally uncalled for and hurtful….I do know Mr. Lasky Senior and do not believe that would have been his choice of words and think when first asked about these shirts would have removed them from the window as requested…..The Lasky family should know first hand what pain this ethnic humor can cause and do what they can to stay far away from it……
I laugh at the Hibernians. Are you kidding me? These are tshirts that you can buy at any novelty store or at 1000 online sites. WIth every store in Newport closing we should be happy that they have three solid stores that contribute to the economy. They took the shirts out of the window when asked. Leave them alone and focus on all the drunks walking around the streets if you are serious about “your” Irish reputation.
I have to agree with Beaver Cleaver – lighten up about the fun made of the Irish. How about the shirts that demean women? I, however have stopped purchasing ANYTHING at the Music Box due to the rude treatment that my son, his friend and I received when the “shoplifting” buzzer went off one day. My son and his friend were practically accused of stealing something when I had just purchased a couple of CDs that had not been swiped properly to stop the buzzer from going off. I was offended by the treatment of my son who would never steal anything from anywhere. They did not apologize for THEIR error. That was enough for me.
What if they were selling some Anti African American t-shirts for MLK day next January? How will that go over? Or anti-Semitic t-shirts for rasha shanana?
Also, it is not up to the Hibernians to clean up the streets from the scores of out of towners who come in and drink in public, which is the job of the NPD. Worse then the t-shirts themselves were the comments made by the two brothers who own the stores. To say that one out of two people who march in the parade are drunk???? That is an insult to every pipe band, 1st response team and high school band that participate in the parade. Not to mention the Hibernians.
I am not Irish but I think that tolerances to ignorance is a very slippery slope.
To: Not buying all the stupidity- obviously coming straight from the Music Box propaganda machine.
You know were to find the Hibernian’s well before and on the day of the St Patrick Parade …that would be volunteering their own time in organizing all aspects of the parade, an immense amount of personnel time, cost and effort which brings in consistently a great amount of consumers that generate cash for business such as the Music box in Newport. The Hibernians’ do not control in any way who prefers to spend their time in a drinking establishment during this day or any other, as a matter of fact, the Hibernian start this day by going to church at 9:00 am in a Religious celebration of St. Patrick.
Also, please note:
1) The Hibernians initiated a family day at First beach, because of this ruckus behavior.
2) Please observe that those drinking out of flasks are young adults roaming the streets (with no affiliation with Hibernians) and probably buying the junk from the Music Box.
3) The Hibernians do not to profit from the parade.
Of course your attempt to attack is only diversionary to the fact that the message portrayed on the apparel you have chosen to offer is racially base and offensive AND now choosing a path of poor judgment, insensitivity and arrogance.
Some day WHEN or IF“ you” become relevant and become a positive and contributing part of this Newport community…you will see and understand that the members of the Hibernians are also the quite volunteers at school functions, community out reaches programs, youth activities and sponsors for many all inclusive events. As well as a strong consumer base.
I read the article, and the comments of both sides.
I stand with my Hibernian Brothers when defamed and treated unjustly!
It wasn’t that long ago That No Irish Need Apply signs hung in shop windows.
I have fought for Freedom in South West Asia as a U.S.Marine so please humor me as I respond to this article.
My back ground is American-Irish and also have claim to having German Jewish Blood through my Great Grand parents who left Germany to settle in Cork Ireland , when Brown shirts were hanging No Juden signs in shops!
I believe in freedom of Speech,Religion, and expression just to name a few.
I am appalled that Mark Lasky tried to deflect responsibility for his own actions and dragged his wifes ancestry into the defense of his insensitivity to the Newport Local Irish Community!
I am outraged by the comments attacking Hibernians by these know nothings on a keyboard!
Having a close personal knowledge of the Friendship, Unity, and Christian Charity, The Ancient Order Of Hibernians, Committ to on a daily basis to those in need, not just in this City, State, or for that matter even in this country !
I also Believe in the power of Choice. Amazon.com will suffice just fine for my Music needs.
I hope the word spreads and maybe the Parade Honoring St. Patrick could be rerouted up to Bellevue and down Narragansett Ave to Thames St. but will settle for a Silent Protest of a No Play Zone in front of your Shops, seeing that the Parade does nothing for your Business that day!
I am sure Keith Stokes would have a differing word on the impact of the Month of March Irish Festivities on The Local Economy and city Tax receipts or possibly why the Hotels have certain Stay Minimums in place during that particular weekend !
You Made Your Choice of offering inflamatory Garb Debasing the Irish and I know of 700 Locals of Irish decent who can choose to express their Power of Choice by not supporting Your Shop !
Charles Anthony Masterson II
19 Year’s A.O.H. Div. 1
Newport R.I.
P.S. The Person aka. Not buying all that stupidity
Grow a set, use your name if you dare,
and prove your accusations
Any item that serves to denigrate an entire ethnicity, culture, etc. should be called out. If an Irish owned, or Christian owned establishment were promoting sales of T-Shirts mocking Jewish stereotypes, you could bet the JDL, ADL and others would protest, and rightly so. “Shining a light” on the problem, so to speak. What gets my ire (pun always intended) up is Rob Lasky’s quote in the NDN complaining about “all of the drunks” in the parade and on the parade route. In so doing he insults the military, police, fire, and civic groups, not to mention the school bands, cheerleaders, etc. He then promotes the sale of T-shirts that target the very “drunken” demographic he laments. Ergo, his comments were disingenuous, or his actions hypocritical…or both. I guess when you are in a dying business (really, who buys CD’s anymore?) you have to sell whatever you can…even if its your soul.
Stephen Kane
Newport
The main shirt was a small ladies shirt in green decorated with mugs and shamrocks that said “everybody loves a drunk girl”. What does that imply? Just think about it for a moment. In this day DISCUSTING!. WHY OFFER IT FOR A GIRL TO WEAR?
Thank God you finally see the way the Irish are portrayed in the USA. Now how about getting the French University, Notre Dame du Lac, to stop calling it’s team the Fighting Irish.
O.K. The reality is that the t-shirt may not be for you or me, and even tasteless, but let’s put some perspective on this. DON’T BUY THE T-SHIRT. By protesting and picketing you are bringing attention to the very business you are protesting, and looking at this from both sides, I wonder if folks are as serious about this matter as they suggest.
Forget about Main Street; what about the Internet? Are they willing to take their argument all the way to the Internet? Well, here are some online sites selling just as offensive gear. Where is the Hibernian community then? Picketing one small store or showing that it is not about not paying to be in the guide book and that they are on a crusade to stop this kind of portrayal. My guess is they don’t really care, but in case they do, here are some online sites for you to look at:
http://funt-shirts.com/holidays.cgi/irish_tshirts.wickedpissatees.4858877+everyone-loves-a-drunk-irish-girl.html
http://www.westonsigns.com/product.php?productid=17266
http://www.bustedtees.com/irish
http://www.zazzle/does_this_shirt_make_me_look_drunk_irish_t_shirt-235747593006472406
As a child growing up in Boston, I can honestly say that the Irish were among the most violent, cruel, racist and bigoted people I encountered (and I am Irish). I saw first-hand how my friends and their families treated African Americans, Latinos, Italians, and Jews and it wasn’t pretty. Now I could say that experience highlights how all Irish-Americans are, but I cannot. There are many decent, hard-working, non-drinking Irish Americans. So, fighting bigotry within that community seems more important than a stupid t-shirt sold by someone with lousy taste.
The tee shirts are offensive! Even the comments from Mr Lasky, owner of the music box were offensive! Unfortunately, a lot of people share his view. We need to educate all of the participants in the parade that drinking during the parade is unexceptable. Save your celebrating for later in the day. And if you must drink, don’t give the rest of us a bad name , by overdoing it. In view of Mr. Lasky’s feeings I will not be buying anything at the music box any time soon. IRISH AND PROUD OF IT!!!!
I am a bit perplexed on why exactly business owners Rob & Marc Lasky specifically blamed the lack of advertising in the parade program as the reason that they were being picketed by a group of twenty Irish American individuals. The group, which appeared to be mostly members of the Ancient Order of Hibernians or the Newport Irish Heritage Association choose to picket the business because they were insulted by shirts which clearly portray people of Irish decent in a bad light. It is my understanding that members of this group approached the owners to express their displeasure but it fell on deaf ears. My understanding is that the business owners even failed to understand why exactly some people would find the shirts offensive. In my opinion, the mere selling of the shirts is less offensive to me than not even understanding why they are offensive to Irish – Americans.
I am a member of both the Newport Irish Heritage Association and the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Both of these organizations espouse promoting Irish heritage as well being very involved in supporting many community efforts. I am also the Chairman of the Newport Saint Patrick’s Day Parade Committee, a completely separate, legally incorporated organization. We in no way are related to either of these fine Irish-American organizations. Indeed, there are some people on the Parade Committee who belong to one or both of these groups, as well as other civic groups in our fair city. In addition, there are others who are members of neither group. The Parade Committee in no way, shape, or form organized or caused this demonstration. It takes all the Parade Committee members time to just organize such a large-scale, world-class event. But then again, I believe the Lasky’s knew this yet still decided to create this red herring. Because that is what it is, a red herring that takes the focus away from the real problem (shirts that are offensive to a proud ethnic group). Actually, if it was up to me I would have let the Lasky’s sell the offensive shirts in their front window for all to see and let the people judge.
Ironically, two of the individuals that were in the picture with this article I know are vocal supporters of using local businesses. I have heard them a number of times preaching the virtues of using local businesses in these difficult economic times.
As for advertising and how it relates to the parade, there are not enough people in Newport to picket businesses that chose not to support it. As a Parade Committee, we concentrate on educating all people we know in supporting the businesses that do make a contribution – not the reverse. The parade itself is a great event which highlights local schools, civic organizations, police departments, fire departments, musicians, local businesses, and many other positive aspects of Newport and our neighbors. There is a reason it is a popular event with both tourists and locals alike. To make the statement that every other participant in the parade is drunk just shows Mr. Lasky’s ignorance. What makes it most disappointing is that I have patronized Mr. Lasky’s businesses many times over my years of growing up and living in Newport. On some occasions, I have recommended the shop to others. It saddens me that he chooses to skirt the issue and instead introduce a completely illogical conclusion
The Parade Committee has worked hard over the years to turn this event into a family friendly event which is fun and benefits the community as a whole. We have asked the City Manager, the Chief of Police and the local Municipal Court Judge not to tolerate any bad behavior from spectators or participants and to crack down by issuing tickets and severe fines to anyone that misbehaves. We have developed strict rules for all participants and have even banned groups from the parade which do not follow them. We have started the Family Day immediately after the parade to give people the opportunity to attend a non-alcohol event which is family oriented and kid-friendly. As with any large events, there will always be a minority who do not follow the rules. However, it is not due to a lack of the Parade Committee trying to make this a more family oriented event.
Selling shirts that stereotype the Irish as drunks sends the wrong message to people visiting Newport and it is especially distasteful during Irish heritage month, a month in which we all celebrate the wonderful impact the Irish have had on this great city and the nation as a whole. Why is it that no one from the media that printed these accusations by the Lasky’s sought an official comment from me, the Parade Chair?
Because I would like to end on a positive note, I would like to say I am extremely proud of my City. I am proud of the fact that the Parade gets to highlight some of the things that are great about living here. We thank all the businesses that help to make this a great event, for without them there would be no parade. We thank the City for helping us make this a more family friendly event. It is great that the Lasky’s pulled the shirts but it should not have taken guys protesting to have them finally take action. I wish everyone a Happy Saint Patrick’s Day and hope everyone will come out and enjoy the parade.
Sincerely,
Dennis P. Sullivan
Parade Chairman
The comments that the Lasky brothers made about the fine men, women and children who march in the parade are far more offensive than any t-shirt. Also, if you look at the parade book from last year – no ad was taken from the Lasky family at all. Although in 08 they did take out a small ad. That lame excuse was a way for the Lasky’s to deflect their poor judgement which happened to offend many of the proud Irish and their friends that live in Newport. The parade is and always will be a great family event to look forward to in March. The city should be thankful for the wealth of economic development it brings here.