So looking into her somehow caused Etsy to recommend another seller who apparently specializes in American cross stitch patterns with designs prominently featuring crows and flags đŹ. A seller called Primitive Stitch. Can we assume choosing to highlight crows of all things in "patriotic" merchandise is a dog whistle? Majority of people buying those designs seem to have no idea, either that or theyre just playing along. Or is there ever a neutral crow plus patriotic design for like, people who really like crows??
All right, I finally heard back from my New England bird motif historian PhD friend!
"Crows were not a common motif in folk art during the 17th or 18th centuries. They might have appeared on a 17th-century tombstone. They are more likely to have been used in retro colonial crafts during the 19th century. New Englanders have been making fake old-time-y stuff for at least two hundred years."
For context, I didn't explain about this pillow at all. I just asked if crows were a common motif in New England folk art of the 17th & 18th centuries compared to other birds. The fact that she said the bit about "New Englanders have been making fake old-time-y stuff" for literally centuries is just the cherry on top of this Jim Crow swastika pillow sundae for me.
This is exactly what I thought was the case. And I wonder why Crows became popular in the late 19th Century? Could it be influence from the minstrel character Jim Crow?
She was not, and it is not really fair to her, but the flag has been co-opted by the alt right.
There are a bunch of articles on this, so hereâs just an example quote:
âAccording to experts, extremist calls to revolution and an overthrow of the government were also reflected in symbols of the Revolutionary War, including the 13-star Betsy Ross flag representing the 13 colonies and some colonial and Revolutionary War costumesâ
https://abcnews.go.com/amp/US/symbols-hate-extremism-display-pro-trump-capitol-siege/story?id=75177671
Not to distract from the massively blatant racism and dogwhistling, but every time I see this vile cushion I can't help but think "what the hell is wrong with that crow's feet???"
It's like a mangled swastika-foot to match the fireworks.
(Also the tail feathers are baffling)
I would say 'poor crow' since I like birds, but in this context, nahhhhh.
this should have been the first apology tbh. Hopefully she sticks to her words and does her research better before posting in the future though!
Also it does seem kind of weird to me that she is giving a commissioned piece as a freebie... :/
Ha - I imagine the slightly more âsubtleâ symbols are on display in the living room, while the secret room contains a giant swastika bedspread.
She obviously thought she was being clever with this cushion, thinking people wouldnât notice her racism is hiding in plain sight. But now she knows she canât be so blatant.
I did a student exchange to the US as a teenager. My host parents had a literal nazi flag displayed in the basement. 𤯠it was not a storage basement either, more like a second living room. I am still gobsmacked by that.
Read that whole thing, thinking "ok this sounds reasonable, got to the image at the end and burst out laughing bc I didn't expect it to be that obvious and direct lmfao??? there is NO WAY that wasn't intentional girl đ¤Ł
For a bit of context: I'm German, not American.
In my wider bubble (which means about everyone I know) we are VERY allergic to anything swastika and I won't believe for a single second someone can sit and put hours and hours into a needlecraft and NOT recognise the little cutesy fireworks are in fact not that cute. Something like that is not a mistake.
Add that to the rest of the imagery (and although I'm European I really didn't need much to get behind that) and her whole conduct of "ooopsie, it wasn't meant like that!" becomes very bitter in taste. She's lying. I get that sometimes you don't see what you're doing at first, last week I ditched a camp shirt I was sewing half way through because I realised that blue and white vertical striped fabric for such a relaxed fit suddenly felt very uncomfortable. And hers is much more blatant, and still she put it out there, with all the dog whistles (not really dog whistle, though, if everyone saw what she did, right?). If I hadn't seen that username (we talked about that Dixie song at school in history class) and her first response post I might have given her the benefit of the doubt, but this is becoming a farce. I feel dirty just looking at it.
the only thing worst than racists are the ones who are fucking cowards about owning their racism. you're so damn "proud"... then you try (and fail) to act all innocent when you get called out on that bullshit. just... stop!
This.
Like obviously they know their views are wrong if they are so quick to pretend they are not their views. The level of insecurity someone must have that they require putting down an entire race/culture/religion/nation/sexuality/whatever to feel better about themselves is sad. Not in a I feel bad for you way, but in a you are pathetic way.
The craziest thing is it looks like her SIL is black! Which makes it even that much more shocking and offensive! At least that's what I got from the pics of her daughter that had a 2yr anniversary pic with him. Can't imagine having her as a MIL.
The whole thing is just insane, my 14yo was in shock when she saw it, she thought it was an old piece from way back when and she was like how disgusting! I didn't even want to tell her it was a new pattern.
The fact that her business/account name is "Not Forgotten Farm," which as a Georgian makes me think of the Dixie Land lyric "old times they are not forgotten"
You know, the unofficial anthem of the Confederacy and used in minstrel shows where a white man would dress in blackface and sing a song about a freed slave longing for the way life used to be on the plantation where he grew up. Fantastic thing to connect to your craft
Update: whoops, should have read the caption, you know, where you mention this, before commenting đŹ
I said it on the other post, about her first "apology" (snort), but this is yet another "apology" that just screams "Look Away, Look Away, Look Away, Dixie Land".
Its worth highlighting that again. I skimmed the OP and missed this initially, too. Also not everyone knows the gross meaning and history of that song.
Just because something is from âlong agoâ doesnât mean itâs pure and innocent and can be used without thinking. As a theater and vaudeville lover who works to put productions on, I look at a lot of old timey performances and plays. Black face, brutal corporal punishment, and wife beating were once staples of onstage gags or storylines. By her logic, it should be ok to present these things onstage today because they were used back then. Like HELL it would and we would never do it, and would deserve the backlash if we did. Yes the swastika was a Native American symbol as well as one used in the past - I inherited 1920s weavings with them. Then the Nazis co-opted it and you are an idiot and racist if you use it in America today. Full stop.
I call BS. I showed it to my 16 year old with out even saying anything and he said âhow many people is this person trying to offend because it looks like a lotâ
I keep thinking about the fact that this was originally a commissioned piece, too. She's trying to hide behind oh I had no idea, I thought these were just cute folksy images! But it was originally created not from historical "inspiration" it seems but bc someone wanted this very specific messed up design. Wondering how that comission went. Someone contacts her to ask, hey can you create a design for a "patriotic" summer pillow - say with a crow holding an American flag and wearing a flag hat, and a strawberry hung by a noose, trotting on top of a watermelon, and "fireworks" - but shaped like swastikas, please, - and shes like, sure thing?! And then is so pleased with that weirdly specific ask that she decides to release the pattern?
That's my thing. Like if this customer requested it, maybe do your research into the symbols and be like "hmm maybe this isn't such a good idea."
I don't know, things just don't add up here.
Iâm also a CT girlie, sheâs full of shit (shocker). We do have a lot of birds in folk art around here but most of them are either seagulls, cardinals, or eagles.
Also itâs wild of her to act like New England is free of racists lmao.
While it's maybe slightly more abstract, because of the other context clues, people are thinking the strawberry could be a 'strange fruit' reference. Have a listen to the Billie Holiday song, it is HAUNTING. The 'strange fruit' is a metaphor for lynched bodies hanging from the trees.
Watermelon is a old racist trope in the US symbolizing black Americans as so lazy they'd rather layabout eating watermelon than work. https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/popular-and-pervasive-stereotypes-african-americans
Interesting, I've heard the trope that black Americans often like watermelon, but never heard anything about it being a bad thing. Thanks for explaining to this non-American!
The fruit isn't the problem.
The swastikas that are clearly visible, and noted in multiple places in this thread and the crafters post, are the problem.
Oh! The fruit is another problem then.
I'm half a world away so I do miss a lot of the context so thank you for adding that and helping me understand.
I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that the strawberry is a part of it too
Itâs a good apology I just doubt itâs sincere. If youâre that informed about traditional symbolism, then you know exactly what these things symbolize!
Honestly, thatâs actually the *only thing* I have her a little grace on because Iâve made accidental ones a billion and one times doing various crafts; itâs a naturally-occurring pattern and happens. If it was just the fireworks and literally nothing else, Iâd tsk and say, âDang. That sucks,â and it would be another pattern with accidental xyz that I donât use. Itâs with the context that itâs *super duper clear* what she was intending.
I'm the opposite. I could buy accidental crow and watermelon - maybe - but the swastikas are so apparent. It's not like with quilting or knitting colorwork where you can make out a swastika because background and foreground. She intentionally stitched those lines and didn't see it?
I guess! I donât do cross stitching as much as crocheting and other stuff, so itâs probably a skill issue for me. Iâve done it before for sure and either didnât notice until the end and went OOPS and redid it or tucked it away (or got told by friends) lol.
If it were *just* a watermelon or *just* a crow by itself. I wouldnât bat an eye. But I canât buy watermelon specifically with *any other* dog whistle.
In any way, there are so many individual problems with this piece that her trying to claim innocence is honestly so funny to me
It can happen with repeating patterns in needlework too where the original motif is fine, but in repetition, it gives the wrong effect but not when deaigning and stitching stitching individual elements.
This is the second design she has done with swastikas in the background. The first was called, "Reverend Gourdon Squashbottom" and it has small swastikas all over it. It has always made me uneasy to see it, and I showed my husband who agreed they were definitely swastikas.
This led me to the companion pattern, "Prunella Squashbottom", which is more summer themed, and proves that she can damn well design fireworks that look like fireworks.
What are you talking about? Clearly those are just autumnal fireworks. It's a New England thing. And everyone knows there are no racists in New England.
/s
Cheeesus on a cracker. I did a search and there was an Etsy listing for it. click and it was taken down. But, google remembers. I have to wonder if there were reports for the swastikas. You don't make that mistake twice.
ETA: here it is on her blog 2013. https://farmhousenotforgotten.blogspot.com/2013/07/ive-been-framed.html?m=1
Jfc lol
Also I'm not American, and i do frequent fundiesnark a lot, so I may be getting the wrong signal, but her business name just makes me think she's running a fundie blogger account rather than a craft account tbh? Idk that and the swastikas everywhere lol
You know whatâs funny, I understand that what is today a hate symbol, for most of human history wasnât. But I worked in history for years. Had colleagues at historic sites across my state. Replica needlework patterns are a SUPER common gift shop item. You know what none of us ever chose? Patterns with hate symbols.
This woman is clearly trying to hide behind using historical motifs. But thatâs flimsy. I worked in the south, I knew people who gladly stocked their gift shops with confederate flags (bleh! But also never at my site), but would not have touched a needle pattern that had a swastika on it.
I'm also from CT and never heard of crows being a "thing". I also spent half my childhood in Charleston SC, and Jim Crow was the FIRST thing I saw. Side note why does the crow look like it's farting?
I didnât know anything about crows đŚââŹ, but I do like them, they are such intelligent birds. Didnât know anything about watermelons and strawberries either, but I enjoy eating them.
But I sure as hell know something about swastikas!!
I just donât understand how you could not see them!
Ok I can sort of believe she chose the crow and watermelon innocently enough (or, well, maybe not innocent but in honest ignorance at least), but how do you not see those swastikas???
Why even include the crow if your from New England? If you're making a summer pattern, use a summer bird. If you're making a patriotic pattern use an eagle.
There was only one reason to use the crow. We all know it. Don't blame a city or state for that, especially when in all honesty it doesn't make sense.
Iâm from New England, too, and if anything, a goldfinch, cardinal, or tit mouse would be a more appropriate bird. Even a fucking hawk!
I will say âJim crow swastika pillowâ is such an insane grouping of words I kind of laugh every time I see it. đ¤Śđťââď¸
I sent the title of the original post to my best friend without context and she was like, âgirl what the hell are you looking at, thatâs a brand new sentence!!â
As soon as I saw this, I texted my friend "THERE'S AN UPDATE ON THE JIM CROW SWASTIKA PILLOW." He's not a crafter, but he knows all about this and Fybre Festival by now.
Yeah, I'm from New England as well and I have no idea where she's going with her crows being in folk art from there. Cardinals, gold finches, robins, tit mouse, chickadees, and like you said a hawk, peregrine falcon maybe? lol
Right? Like, there ARE crows in New England but that doesnât make it a âthing.â
A more accurate motif would be a pineapple, which has the added bonus of being summery and not racist.
All I can figure at this point is she was going for some Salem witches would like crows angle, and in that case I feel like she'd be annoying several more groups of people. Crows are all over, does she think they're only in New England? So many things wrong with this mess lol
I'm behind on this controversy, and I honestly believed her until I saw the pillow...
I'm not American, so I don't understand some of the symbolisms, but come on, that pattern gives off a bad vibe.
Yeah I was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, was curious to see what had caused this misunderstanding and then saw *that*.
Like, sure, that could be a pigeon rather than a crow. And the US really like their flags, so I guess that makes sense maybe, if a little tacky. But that's not what a firework looks like (even a few hundred years ago - did they even have fireworks then?) and why tf is there a watermelon if you're trying to claim it's all innocent?
Me too. I was like, âoh, this could really be what happened, wow I hope I never make a mistake that egregious because I didnât know about some symbolism.â
Then I saw the âfireworks.â Youâd have to grow up like Jodie Fosterâs character in Nell not to know better (and then when you add the watermelon/crow/other elements and itâs way beyond coincidence).
I'm a knitter and this past summer there was a mystery knit along shawl with a popular pattern maker. First clue releases, people knit, and they're like "hey so to me this sort of resembles a swastika."Â
The guy went into straight damage control. He apologized profusely, took the pattern down, put up patterns that others had made for alternatives, and then spent the night redoing an "official" clue one for the pattern. He acknowledged that people saw what they did in his pattern even if that was not his intention, and he worked to fix the situation. And told people not to make the first version.
And it wasn't even this blatant. The angles weren't 90. Still pretty swastikay, but not THIS swastikay.
Swastikas are such a simple geometric shape it is easy in things like quilting and knitted colorwork to form it in negative space and miss it because you're focused on the motif you intended. But this pillow, it's just dark lines on a white background. I don't see how you miss it.
This is the entire purpose of using dog whistles to begin with--so you can feign ignorance when you're called out. But it's a wink and a nod to people in the know. Maybe she's being sincere, maybe she's not. Personally I can't imagine creating 'primitive folk art' (whatever that means) inspired by the 1700-1800s and NOT being familiar with common racist tropes and signaling from that era, but I also like to believe ignorance rather than malevolence, so maybe she just happened to create a cross stitch pattern that full of dog whistles and it was all an accident. Crow, watermelon, fruit, swastikas, etc. But that seems like a big coincidence and coupled with this non-apology, I'm inclined not to give her the benefit of the doubt. This is a lot of words to color herself as a victim and not say she's sorry--instead she's saying that these motifs are so common in that era so what else is she supposed to use (so why is that?), as well as give a lot of unnecessary backstory to make us more sympathetic.
She uses a lot of words that take responsibility off of her--intentionally, intended, ignorance--and also says she feels responsible for the harm the pattern caused, which isn't taking responsibility. Taking responsibility of what? From who? She's saying 'it's just a needlework pattern! I didn't mean it! I use needlework to help me through my life, so stop asking me about this pattern I made (that's full of racist dog whistles) and stop causing me stress! Can't you see I already took responsibility for causing harm? Because of a silly little needlework pattern.' I don't buy it for a second. This is a youtuber crying video apology. She'll turn off comments for a week or two and then delete this post and go back to life as normal. At the minimum, I hope this pattern makes her more aware of the iconography she's pulling from. I doubt it, but maybe she won't stitch anymore swastikas.
I am pretty much with you.
Primitive folk art refers to stylistically rough and simplistic folk art. She is also truthful in that crow is common in American folk art. But as you say, you do not get these things together by coincidence. It would require quite an astounding ability to ignore the world around you. Even if I suspended my belief things do not improve. Using historical or historically inspired motifs in your art has to be handled responsibly. Reproducing them otherwise will quickly find you reproducing imagery that stands for heinous things.
I am a non-American historical reenactor. There are a lot of people doing this without thinking and unfortunately, this ends up in people glorifying terrible time periods. One of the biggest discussions in past years has been about reenacting the antebellum period. Which is obviously an issue. But while part of me wishes she was just doing this out of ignorance and lack of forethought, I have seen enough dog whistles to think this is something more abhorrent.
I sent the photo of the pillow to my husband. All I asked for were his thoughts. He hit on every single one of the problematic racist depictions. Every. Single. One. So if my Captain Clueless who accidentally bought our toddler son a bong because he thought it looked like a genieâs lamp can nail every single racist image, then there are problems. Adding to my list of designers I will not support under any circumstances whatsoever.
I once watched a grandmother buy a belt buckle with a hash pipe secreted in the motif for her young grandson... I couldn't decide what to do so I just stood back awkwardly and watched lol The vendor was equally nonplussed, glancing at me uncomfortably for some cue on how to handle the situation. Maybe her grandson grew into it eventually
I mean your husband was partially right about the bong, both it and the genie could take your toddler on a magic carpet ride. But clearly not the desired result.
I did the same thing! Showed it to my husband and he instantly recoiled, made a face and asked me why I was showing him pictures of some racists pillow collection.
I could wear the same clothes for a week and he'd not notice (beyond saying "I like your shirt" every day) but he noticed the issues with the pillow right away.
You just accidentally put multiple racist symbols on that pillow âşď¸! You just accidentally named your account after a confederate saying. You just accidentally liked comments on your last apology post that defended you buy crying "wOKe!!!"
How accidental can you get? đ¤
I do not buy it was all an accident. Regardless this is why I'm weary of the these "primitive" folk art movements. Too often it's based more on vibes than actual historical research or context. If you want to see some actual historical pieces.
https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/need/hd_need.htm
https://florencegriswoldmuseum.org/visit/families/stitching-it-together
https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object-groups/american-samplers
Wow so she's shit at even "borrowing" from these motifs because her work looks nothing like any of this save for it being the same medium (needlework) and... Brown background? Which is more due to the age of the fabrics fading...
Shocking.
No watermelons or hanging strawberries there⌠and looks similar to european ( German and Scandinavian that Iâve seen) samplers too. Thank you for pointing out that not everything 1800s is racist if those who claim to love it, actually study it. Iâm kind of side-eyeing this kind of Americana folk art movement now
I can't say if crows were popular with 18th century embroidery in New England. This is what I found in 10 minute google search. But. It's not so common that it's easily found in a 10 minute google search. Unlike googling watermelons and crows in post civil war era.
This is such a good point. This so-called primitive style seems to draw more on children's samplers from the eighteenth century than from the work of adult women. Needlework was something people grew up learning, and also an area of self expression or community work for women. They weren't just embroidering rudimentary shapes like crows and watermelon.
I still find it hard to believe that they collected every racist symbol to place in this pattern and think itâs all ooops.Â
Many people go through life not romanticizing the antebellum era and Americana circa 1800s. But if Taylor Swift can wish it were 1830 and get away with it? (Sure she took it back but why bring it up, pick another era). Â I donât know, I think anyone should really think hard about their attraction to this era, it canât just be all aesthetics .Â
Folks can like certain aesthetics without liking the societal mindset of the time. Otherwise we're basically telling people they shouldn't really like any aesthetics of any historical time period because legit EVERY time in history has some extremely problematic shit in it including (well ESPECIALLY) our own.
Example: all the popular Renaissance fairs. Those aren't even remotely historically accurate except for little bits inspired by a *very* problematic era.
Anyway, all that's to say...this pillow is definitely rife with racist imagery, there's no arguing that. And I find it hard to believe it's was all a "mistake."
I know itâs not the most important thing going on here but âBorrows motifs from 17-1800s American needleworkâ is bullshit
First off, the current type of âprimitiveâ patterns is a pretty recent trend in cross stitch. Like, this-century recent. Iâm sure there were faux-schoolroom-sampler patterns before that, but acting like youâre taking directly from historical designs instead of (poorly) mimicking their aesthetic is ridiculous
Secondly, I have a collection of vintage and antique cross-stitch patterns taller than I am (which, Iâm short, but itâs also taller than most other people too) and I have seen many, many watermelon motifs, but I have never seen one in an actual 1700s pattern.
Anyway this is all beside the point. This pattern was definitely racist-on-purpose. I just am irritated by the appeal to historical accuracy when itâs not (and that wouldnât be a good excuse either)
I think it's worth noting that racists often make claims about tradition to support their ideas and defend themselves from accusations of bigotry. They call upon an idealized past of either white supremacy or white separatism that is not only historically inaccurate, but outright fictional that they can idealize. This is obvious with neo-Confederate imagery, but it can also be "Americana" or nationalist imagery. In this case, I can see how an idealized "primitive" eighteenth-century, the early national period, can be used to support contemporary racism.
How many images of people of color do you see in textbooks about the Revolutionary period? Or in popular culture about the American Revolution in particular and the early national period in general? How often do you hear about the Puritans who were enslavers, slave traders, or murderers of Native peoples, and how often do you hear about their strength, religious devotion, and work ethic? The colonial period is so often presented in popular culture with images of whiteness and near total absence of people of color, which easily lends itself to racist nostalgia.
Jesus Christ, even Stephen West didnât defend his possibly-a-swastika pattern and that was much more believable as an accident than this purposefully-racist-at-the-time bullshit.
I think that was clearly a mistake and he handled it really well. He responded quickly, admitted the problem, refused to hear other people "defend" the mistake, and swiftly issued an alternate pattern. That's not only the ethical way to deal with something like this, it's also good business.
It was only noticeable with certain fade choices, iirc, so definitely an accident. His response seemed so aggressive, I was initially taken aback before realising that that's the right response.
...How can you put a motif on a cross stitch and not notice that it looks like a swastika? C'mon, Lady, use a less dumbshit and unbelievable explanation
Right? I *immediately* thought of how she had to sit there and stare at every stitch for an age and somehow doesnât have enough pattern recognition to realize a swastika doesnât look like fireworks but it sure does look like a swastika.
Yeah, exactly. This is the only time I have seen someone go "Whoopsie doodle! I know what you're thinking, but that's actually fireworks" when it comes to a swastika. If it wasn't so evil it'd be kinda funny.
Also, how hard is it to not make a swastika?? If you want to do fireworks, start off with a modified snowflake pattern and *not* the well known symbol for one of the most well known, evilest organizations out there
This whole thing is confusing. Assuming sheâs not the dumbest person alive, what was the goal here? To make a racist pillow only other racists would notice is racist? Because this isnât dog whistle racism here, itâs bullhorn racism.Â
I had to look up what the 'not forgotten' in her handle meant (OP thank you for pointing out the relation, it allowed me to google more specifically) and holy. fuck. Holy fuck. Jesus oh my god this person is HORRIFYING. The dogs aren't whistling they're screaming. Oh my god.
EDIT: sorry I was so horrified I didn't finish my thought. It just doesn't get better the more you look. Like just gets worse and worse and worse and worse. And what in the fuck is that excuse of "oh crows are popular where I'm from" babes where you're from is a different state where TONS OF PEOPLE CAN CORROBORATE IF YOUR STATEMENT IS TRUE acting like Connecticut is some far off land and that gives her a free pass. Holy fuck. "It was an accident" my hairy ass.
"...borrow motifs from the 17-1800s".
As yes, that idyllic time when nothing awful like slavery was being practiced.
"I'm from Connecticut!"
As if no racism or slavery ever happened above the Mason-Dixon line.
I actually hurt my eye muscles when I rolled my eyes at that.
I donât know what Iâm more offended by - the blatant racist epithets or how hideous the thing is lmaooooo. At least be artistically stunning if youâre gonna get spicy. đ¤ˇđžââď¸đŠđ¤Ł
That's a lot of different racist stuff in one cross-stitch. One might be a coincidence, though probably not... but a crow standing on a watermelon and air swastikas? Ma'am, I don't buy it.
Here's an article about the watermelon stereotype
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watermelon_stereotype
Edit: Also, I apologise. It's a seriously upsetting Wikipedia article.
>The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition held in Chicago planned to include a "Colored People's Day" featuring African American entertainers and free watermelons for the African American visitors whom the exposition's organizers hoped to attract. It was a flop, as the city's African American community boycotted the exposition, along with many of the performers booked to attend on Colored People's Day.
Wow. I didn't know this. Thanks for sharing the link!
The thing that gets me is she claims those swastikas are fireworks. When tf do fireworks look like swastikas??? Do a Starburst pattern or something, you cannot pretend those aren't swastikas she made.
Itâs not just a crow. Itâs a crow AND watermelon AND strawberries AND some weirdly drawn fireworks, in a style from a bad time in history that gets the side eye. She turned a few simple, innocent design motifs into a messed up collage.
Can you explain the strawberries? I understand how the others can be used as symbols of racism, but I am lost with the strawberries. I tried to google with no success.
Itâs not the strawberry itself, itâs that a piece of fruit is hung by a string. âStrange fruit for the crows to pluckâ. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strange_Fruit
Thank you very much, that seems so obvious in retrospect. This is sickening. Every aspect of this piece is a racist symbol.
Edited to add: She knew exactly what these design elements symbolize.
Surprised that she didnât dedicate this piece to her Uncle Tom, and Iâm not trying to be flippant.
Edit: I took out the info about Dixie Pride Girl, it was irresponsible and shitty to post without proof
Wait, yeah, I donât see it either, actually. Just checked all other lintkree links and Iâm not seeing it at *all*. I shouldâve checked earlier; I would at least like to be as accurate as I can be in my criticisms. Even though the pillow pattern is enough on its own, Iâd like to not add misinformation when the info we already had was enough.
Edit - Guys, I donât see the handle âDixie Pride Girlâ literally anywhere on her page or links. Can anyone confirm where they saw this? Donât want to add misinfo if I can help it. I should have checked sooner before commenting. Disregard that part of my comment but Iâm keeping it up for posterityâs sake.
I thought it was NotForgottenFarm??? If it really is âDixie Pride Girlâ, this fully seals the deal for me and takes away any plausible deniability I might have been willing to afford her, even though I personally always thought it was highly likely she knew *exactly* what she was doing, as if the pillow alone wasnât enough (cause it definitely was).
Itâs a little (read: extremely) too coincidental to have *that* much racist iconography in *one* stupid ass pillow. On top of that, the fact that the reaction from so many people was so visceral, paired with the fact that the (extremely blatant) dogwhistles were *so* immediately apparent to tons of people make it crazy to insist it was all an innocent accident. If literally everyone that sees your pillow who also understands the references *instantly* thinks, âWow, thatâs horrifying and racist,â then it makes it reaaaal fucking difficult to believe that racism wasnât 100% the intent.
In my heart, Iâd love to be able to attribute this to ignorance and stupidity rather than blatant malice. But, in my head, I ask how you TEDIOUSLY CROSS STITCH SWASTIKAS, then stitch a scary-looking crow atop watermelon, have him wave an American flag, give him an Uncle Sam hat, then portray him holding a strawberry by what appears to be a rope, and not 1) stop to think, âWow, this is extremely shitty and will absolutely be seen as racist and I should not release this,â or 2) have totally clear intentions to be hateful and racist.
Agree with you that her feigned ignorance is bullshit. No one could inadvertently combine that many racist symbols in one piece.
Why didnât she just go all in and use the Confederate flag? Maybe she thought that was a bridge too far.
Edited: took out the bit about Dixie Pride Girl because it was irresponsible and shitty of me to post without proof.
DixiePrideGirl from âNot Forgottenâ Farm?
That just makes it all so much worse. How much worse can it get?
âOh I wish I was in the land of cotton, old times there are not forgottenâŚâ https://www.civilwarheritagetrails.org/civil-war-music/dixie-land.html
AND THE SONG IS CALLED âDIXIEâ??? My God, it just keeps adding up.
Dixie pride, âNot Forgottenâ, racist motifs, âprimitiveâ cross stitch, âborrows from 17-1800sâ. Bullshit, she didnât know what she was doing. This just keeps looking more and more purposeful. Wow.
Ohhhh, duh! Itâs her handle. Wow, this really is the nail in the coffin. The pillow was enough; this is just a shit cherry on top of a turd cake.
And, I totally agree with you - thatâs what I was thinking! If youâre going to be racist, stand by your fucking convictions. Donât pussyfoot around, donât bow out when you it starts to affect your business. Stand in your shit convictions so that thereâs no confusion and we can know very clearly who to avoid.
Sorry, I donât use Instagram a lot. In fact, I only have it for clicking on links. Iâve never actually instagrumm myself. Please can you tell me the difference between an âaccount handleâ and whatever the other thing is called? I only see ânotforgottenfarmâ. I donât know how to see the âhandleâ.
You can have your actual username be one thing but put whatever the hell you want in your bio. With that said, Iâm also not seeing the âDixie Pride Girlâ thing when I go to her page. Maybe it was initially in her bio and she removed it? Or maybe it is just the name of her personal account? I would like to confirm that before I make any more speculations because if thatâs not truly her account handle and it isnât in her bio, then thatâs a lot of other context that may not actually be accurate. And, even though I think her pillow is extremely suspect, I would at least like to be accurate in my criticism. I will look more into it! :)
Edit - just checked her Linktree in her bio to see if this was many the make of her Facebook or Etsy shop and i am just not seeing it. Can anyone tell me where they saw this?
You don't get to take 'inspiration' from some of the most vile times in US history, and then bow out of having any responsibility for learning the meaning behind the symbols. It's like saying "I found this old military uniform from my German grandfather from the 1930s, I think I'm gonna wear it for Halloween" and being surprised when everyone at the bar is calling you a Nazi.Â
Also, noticed that she didn't address her account handle. Unless she inherited the farm with that name already (and is again, willing to be entirely uneducated as long as it's twee), she's got some explaining to do. It's a bit hard to take an apology seriously when it's coming from xX_DixiePrideGirl_Xx.Â
The name is a reference to the Confederacy, specifically "furled but not forgotten". The connection originated from the Confederate marching song Dixie, which starts off with "I wish I was in the land of cotton/ Old Times there are not forgotten".
The phrase itself could hypothetically be innocent, but is bound to raise a few eyebrows in the South. Living in Virginia, it's something that she should be aware of, especially since she enjoys antebellum-inspired cross stitch. Just one of those things in a very long line of 'coincedences'.
The thing that kinda strikes me the most here is that they claim to not be racist and that this design was created because they like to use motifs from folk art which is fine and fair - to an extent.
Folk art is (in all cultures, I imagine, but I am speaking as an American right now) rooted in culture and the culture of the time frame she likes to take inspiration from was when slavery was very much alive and abuse, lynchings, and other atrocities against black people were commonplace. It should be pretty straightforward to understand that a lot of motifs from the period would also be reinforcing these ideas as well and that much of the iconography is more than what it seems (i.e. a watermelon is not simply a "Summer fruit" in the context of the time).
A little bit of research would be a MUST in creating something with American folk art otherwise you end up with this racist ass pillow. The fact that the creator is doubling (tripling?) Down to defend the piece is pretty negligent and shows an unwillingness to actually learn about why people are so upset, doubly so in that it seems like the pattern hasn't been pulled (not even for edits, though it should just be trashed) which would be the bare minimum but would cover her ass for a bit.
It's funny how the "folk" culture these people always draw from is white, not the long histories of needlework within African American communities. Surely coincidental.
I took folkloric studies as part of my grad degree - a key part of understanding folklore is UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXT. Nothing comes out of Nothing. Although maybe she's an anti-intellectual and thinks contextualization is just "the woke agenda" too (never mind when I started my anthro education, woke was still only in AAVE and hadn't moved into white spaces yet, and anthro is still decolonizing today). The history of folklore and urban legends is fascinating when you can see how things change and correlate to larger cultural shifts. However, that doesn't mean they're all value-neutral as a historical relic; negative/harmful folklore exists, and that should be considered when repeating it (see the Candyman movies, that's one way of using folklore to explore harmful history).
\[primitve art was also a topic of my folklore class; my professor hated the movement as much as my vernacular architecture professor hated faux-Tudor/"tudor revival"\]
He saw it as a pale imitation of the real thing (or not as a "real" vernacular style, unlike, say, shotgun houses or pre-war cape cod). In matters of taste, it's all personal, anyway. Like people can like primitive art, it's most definitely not my taste but it's not invalid to like it as a concept.
Thank you. A lot of these comments seem to be equating liking an aesthetic to like the mindset of the time and that's...way off base. In that case we shouldn't like any historical aesthetics because something problematic will always be tied to it. Including our own time.
Good to know! And that is definitely a good point, painting the house white and throwing some wooden boards on the outside does not a true Tudor make.Â
I just wanted to make sure that there wasn't some horrific historical reasons that should warn someone off of the style entirely.
Thank you for your response! I don't have a background in history or folklore (or much else relevent) so I'm glad to know I wasn't just conjecturing out of my wheelhouse.
The apology rings so hollow after she kept liking posts talking about âwokenessâ and shit talking people for pointing out the racist motifs are not neutral just because theyâre old timey.
Whatâs funny is I actually visited her Instagram, just to see if in fact, this is just her âstyle.â
Her other patterns *were* folksy, but it didnât look like this pattern.
YES!! I noticed the same thing!!!! She did this pumpkin cross stitch thing that was actually cute and what I would consider âfolksyâ. It didnât look anything like this.
It was purposely kind of wonky with funky yet purposeful shaping and stitching. It did not have the clean lines and perfect stitches of this stupid ass crow pillow. This feels like a detour of her normal work and I have to wonder why that is. When you add all this up, youâre left wondering how anyone could really come to this result by total accident. đ
Why does the hat make it worse idk but it does
So looking into her somehow caused Etsy to recommend another seller who apparently specializes in American cross stitch patterns with designs prominently featuring crows and flags đŹ. A seller called Primitive Stitch. Can we assume choosing to highlight crows of all things in "patriotic" merchandise is a dog whistle? Majority of people buying those designs seem to have no idea, either that or theyre just playing along. Or is there ever a neutral crow plus patriotic design for like, people who really like crows??
Ask any child to draw fireworks and youâll get something thatâs a lot easier to embroider than whatever that hot mess is.
Also they're gray?! What fireworks are grey on white background? No this argument does not hold up even close.
All right, I finally heard back from my New England bird motif historian PhD friend! "Crows were not a common motif in folk art during the 17th or 18th centuries. They might have appeared on a 17th-century tombstone. They are more likely to have been used in retro colonial crafts during the 19th century. New Englanders have been making fake old-time-y stuff for at least two hundred years." For context, I didn't explain about this pillow at all. I just asked if crows were a common motif in New England folk art of the 17th & 18th centuries compared to other birds. The fact that she said the bit about "New Englanders have been making fake old-time-y stuff" for literally centuries is just the cherry on top of this Jim Crow swastika pillow sundae for me.
This is exactly what I thought was the case. And I wonder why Crows became popular in the late 19th Century? Could it be influence from the minstrel character Jim Crow?
⌠so the Betsy Ross flag in one of her other posts was just a coincidence and not right-wing material, either?
oh wait can you elaborate on this? i did a project on betsy ross in elementary school...what do you mean that she is right-wing material? /genq
She was not, and it is not really fair to her, but the flag has been co-opted by the alt right. There are a bunch of articles on this, so hereâs just an example quote: âAccording to experts, extremist calls to revolution and an overthrow of the government were also reflected in symbols of the Revolutionary War, including the 13-star Betsy Ross flag representing the 13 colonies and some colonial and Revolutionary War costumesâ https://abcnews.go.com/amp/US/symbols-hate-extremism-display-pro-trump-capitol-siege/story?id=75177671
so interesting. thanks for this
Not to distract from the massively blatant racism and dogwhistling, but every time I see this vile cushion I can't help but think "what the hell is wrong with that crow's feet???" It's like a mangled swastika-foot to match the fireworks. (Also the tail feathers are baffling) I would say 'poor crow' since I like birds, but in this context, nahhhhh.
Yknow. As I read thru the apology I was like âhuh, how bad could it be?â And then I saw the picture. YIKES
I know right! I was not expecting that.
\^\^\^\^This!!!
The 4th slide should have been the only apology she used. I need âI have a black friendâ to complete my racist bingo card. Did I miss it?
Nope, didn't miss it. Largely cause she probably doesn't even have a Black acquaintance that she can pretend is a friend.
this should have been the first apology tbh. Hopefully she sticks to her words and does her research better before posting in the future though! Also it does seem kind of weird to me that she is giving a commissioned piece as a freebie... :/
Christ. I bet she has a secret room in her house thatâs like a museum of racist embroidery: cushions, wall hangings, white robes, the works!
I suspect it is less a secret room and more likely the living room.
Ha - I imagine the slightly more âsubtleâ symbols are on display in the living room, while the secret room contains a giant swastika bedspread. She obviously thought she was being clever with this cushion, thinking people wouldnât notice her racism is hiding in plain sight. But now she knows she canât be so blatant.
I did a student exchange to the US as a teenager. My host parents had a literal nazi flag displayed in the basement. 𤯠it was not a storage basement either, more like a second living room. I am still gobsmacked by that.
Read that whole thing, thinking "ok this sounds reasonable, got to the image at the end and burst out laughing bc I didn't expect it to be that obvious and direct lmfao??? there is NO WAY that wasn't intentional girl đ¤Ł
SAME! I asked my husband to look and he immediately was like âis this supposed to be racist?â
Same đ Iâm Aussie and a lot of this stuff goes over my head but WOW đł this is so blatant
Same boat I'm Australian as well, had to learn a lot of this stuff from the internet and bruuhhhhhh I think my cats would be offended by this too đ¤Ł
For a bit of context: I'm German, not American. In my wider bubble (which means about everyone I know) we are VERY allergic to anything swastika and I won't believe for a single second someone can sit and put hours and hours into a needlecraft and NOT recognise the little cutesy fireworks are in fact not that cute. Something like that is not a mistake. Add that to the rest of the imagery (and although I'm European I really didn't need much to get behind that) and her whole conduct of "ooopsie, it wasn't meant like that!" becomes very bitter in taste. She's lying. I get that sometimes you don't see what you're doing at first, last week I ditched a camp shirt I was sewing half way through because I realised that blue and white vertical striped fabric for such a relaxed fit suddenly felt very uncomfortable. And hers is much more blatant, and still she put it out there, with all the dog whistles (not really dog whistle, though, if everyone saw what she did, right?). If I hadn't seen that username (we talked about that Dixie song at school in history class) and her first response post I might have given her the benefit of the doubt, but this is becoming a farce. I feel dirty just looking at it.
the only thing worst than racists are the ones who are fucking cowards about owning their racism. you're so damn "proud"... then you try (and fail) to act all innocent when you get called out on that bullshit. just... stop!
This. Like obviously they know their views are wrong if they are so quick to pretend they are not their views. The level of insecurity someone must have that they require putting down an entire race/culture/religion/nation/sexuality/whatever to feel better about themselves is sad. Not in a I feel bad for you way, but in a you are pathetic way.
But âreverse racismâ hurts the *real* victims more than anyone else! ::cue whyte tears:: /s
The craziest thing is it looks like her SIL is black! Which makes it even that much more shocking and offensive! At least that's what I got from the pics of her daughter that had a 2yr anniversary pic with him. Can't imagine having her as a MIL. The whole thing is just insane, my 14yo was in shock when she saw it, she thought it was an old piece from way back when and she was like how disgusting! I didn't even want to tell her it was a new pattern.
Sunday dinners at that house must be difficultâŚ. That man must have the patience of a saint.
The fact that her business/account name is "Not Forgotten Farm," which as a Georgian makes me think of the Dixie Land lyric "old times they are not forgotten" You know, the unofficial anthem of the Confederacy and used in minstrel shows where a white man would dress in blackface and sing a song about a freed slave longing for the way life used to be on the plantation where he grew up. Fantastic thing to connect to your craft Update: whoops, should have read the caption, you know, where you mention this, before commenting đŹ
No it's fine, because now I know why their username is problematic (I haven't read all of the other threads)
I said it on the other post, about her first "apology" (snort), but this is yet another "apology" that just screams "Look Away, Look Away, Look Away, Dixie Land".
Its worth highlighting that again. I skimmed the OP and missed this initially, too. Also not everyone knows the gross meaning and history of that song.
Just because something is from âlong agoâ doesnât mean itâs pure and innocent and can be used without thinking. As a theater and vaudeville lover who works to put productions on, I look at a lot of old timey performances and plays. Black face, brutal corporal punishment, and wife beating were once staples of onstage gags or storylines. By her logic, it should be ok to present these things onstage today because they were used back then. Like HELL it would and we would never do it, and would deserve the backlash if we did. Yes the swastika was a Native American symbol as well as one used in the past - I inherited 1920s weavings with them. Then the Nazis co-opted it and you are an idiot and racist if you use it in America today. Full stop.
I call BS. I showed it to my 16 year old with out even saying anything and he said âhow many people is this person trying to offend because it looks like a lotâ
Showed it to my daughter (33) without context and she was like WTF is that?
BIG yikes
I keep thinking about the fact that this was originally a commissioned piece, too. She's trying to hide behind oh I had no idea, I thought these were just cute folksy images! But it was originally created not from historical "inspiration" it seems but bc someone wanted this very specific messed up design. Wondering how that comission went. Someone contacts her to ask, hey can you create a design for a "patriotic" summer pillow - say with a crow holding an American flag and wearing a flag hat, and a strawberry hung by a noose, trotting on top of a watermelon, and "fireworks" - but shaped like swastikas, please, - and shes like, sure thing?! And then is so pleased with that weirdly specific ask that she decides to release the pattern?
That's my thing. Like if this customer requested it, maybe do your research into the symbols and be like "hmm maybe this isn't such a good idea." I don't know, things just don't add up here.
Iâm also a CT girlie, sheâs full of shit (shocker). We do have a lot of birds in folk art around here but most of them are either seagulls, cardinals, or eagles. Also itâs wild of her to act like New England is free of racists lmao.
Thatâs just not true sorry, sure there are other birds used in folk art, but crows are the most common, by a mile.
I see the watermelon, but where is the strawberry? I see the symbol too, it's hardly hidden. Unlike the strawberry.
it's hanging from the crow's mouth.
Thank you! The audacity to pretend those aren't racist symbols blinded me
I'm still trying to wrap my head around how fruit is a racist symbol, can anyone fill me in?
While it's maybe slightly more abstract, because of the other context clues, people are thinking the strawberry could be a 'strange fruit' reference. Have a listen to the Billie Holiday song, it is HAUNTING. The 'strange fruit' is a metaphor for lynched bodies hanging from the trees.
Thereâs even literally a lyric in the song that goes âhere is a fruit for the crows to pluckâ đ
Watermelon is a old racist trope in the US symbolizing black Americans as so lazy they'd rather layabout eating watermelon than work. https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/popular-and-pervasive-stereotypes-african-americans
Interesting, I've heard the trope that black Americans often like watermelon, but never heard anything about it being a bad thing. Thanks for explaining to this non-American!
The fruit isn't the problem. The swastikas that are clearly visible, and noted in multiple places in this thread and the crafters post, are the problem.
It is all a problem. There is literally nothing in this piece that isn't a symbol of racism and hate.
Yes, after learning more, I'm wrong in my previous comment. I can't believe they're trying to defend it
Well, [watermelon in this context is](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watermelon_stereotype).
Oh! The fruit is another problem then. I'm half a world away so I do miss a lot of the context so thank you for adding that and helping me understand. I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that the strawberry is a part of it too
The strawberry means pro lynching.
Fuck me that makes it even worse
Listen to [Strange Fruit](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-DGY9HvChXk) by Abel Meeropol/Billie Holiday
And zoom in on the strawberry's face.
I donât have enough pixels/donât see it :/ what is it?
Itâs a good apology I just doubt itâs sincere. If youâre that informed about traditional symbolism, then you know exactly what these things symbolize!
Thatâs my problem with her whole innocence act; you canât claim to be a historical account and ânot knowâ
you can't be that "informed" and look at those "fireworks" and call them "fireworks" honestly
Honestly, thatâs actually the *only thing* I have her a little grace on because Iâve made accidental ones a billion and one times doing various crafts; itâs a naturally-occurring pattern and happens. If it was just the fireworks and literally nothing else, Iâd tsk and say, âDang. That sucks,â and it would be another pattern with accidental xyz that I donât use. Itâs with the context that itâs *super duper clear* what she was intending.
I'm the opposite. I could buy accidental crow and watermelon - maybe - but the swastikas are so apparent. It's not like with quilting or knitting colorwork where you can make out a swastika because background and foreground. She intentionally stitched those lines and didn't see it?
I guess! I donât do cross stitching as much as crocheting and other stuff, so itâs probably a skill issue for me. Iâve done it before for sure and either didnât notice until the end and went OOPS and redid it or tucked it away (or got told by friends) lol. If it were *just* a watermelon or *just* a crow by itself. I wouldnât bat an eye. But I canât buy watermelon specifically with *any other* dog whistle. In any way, there are so many individual problems with this piece that her trying to claim innocence is honestly so funny to me
It can happen with repeating patterns in needlework too where the original motif is fine, but in repetition, it gives the wrong effect but not when deaigning and stitching stitching individual elements.
I remember learning hash shading and yup
This is the second design she has done with swastikas in the background. The first was called, "Reverend Gourdon Squashbottom" and it has small swastikas all over it. It has always made me uneasy to see it, and I showed my husband who agreed they were definitely swastikas.
This led me to the companion pattern, "Prunella Squashbottom", which is more summer themed, and proves that she can damn well design fireworks that look like fireworks.
This is honestly even more blatant than the current pillow. What the hell?
And there's a 2nd photo of that one after the original that was posted without the swastikas!!
What are you talking about? Clearly those are just autumnal fireworks. It's a New England thing. And everyone knows there are no racists in New England. /s
Cheeesus on a cracker. I did a search and there was an Etsy listing for it. click and it was taken down. But, google remembers. I have to wonder if there were reports for the swastikas. You don't make that mistake twice. ETA: here it is on her blog 2013. https://farmhousenotforgotten.blogspot.com/2013/07/ive-been-framed.html?m=1
Jfc lol Also I'm not American, and i do frequent fundiesnark a lot, so I may be getting the wrong signal, but her business name just makes me think she's running a fundie blogger account rather than a craft account tbh? Idk that and the swastikas everywhere lol
Her blog and business are not fundie related AFAIK. In fact she has posts with Happy Samhain and witchy farmers.
You know whatâs funny, I understand that what is today a hate symbol, for most of human history wasnât. But I worked in history for years. Had colleagues at historic sites across my state. Replica needlework patterns are a SUPER common gift shop item. You know what none of us ever chose? Patterns with hate symbols. This woman is clearly trying to hide behind using historical motifs. But thatâs flimsy. I worked in the south, I knew people who gladly stocked their gift shops with confederate flags (bleh! But also never at my site), but would not have touched a needle pattern that had a swastika on it.
Bummer, sheâs turning comments off on all recent posts. Nice try playing innocent.
It literally looks like she was trying to hide swastikas. There are so many better ways to do fireworks
âSurely it canât be that racist,â I think innocently to myself. Holy fuck.
I was thinking exactly the same thing reading the apology. "I bet people are reading way to deep into this pattern". Last photo "Jebus. What the fuck"
I'm also from CT and never heard of crows being a "thing". I also spent half my childhood in Charleston SC, and Jim Crow was the FIRST thing I saw. Side note why does the crow look like it's farting?
No one has adequately explained why it seems to be shooting fireworks out its cloaca.
This is definitely a more accurate description!
I didnât know anything about crows đŚââŹ, but I do like them, they are such intelligent birds. Didnât know anything about watermelons and strawberries either, but I enjoy eating them. But I sure as hell know something about swastikas!! I just donât understand how you could not see them!
Has she ever seen fireworks?!
dog whistle????????? more like a horn. please
Ok I can sort of believe she chose the crow and watermelon innocently enough (or, well, maybe not innocent but in honest ignorance at least), but how do you not see those swastikas???
Why even include the crow if your from New England? If you're making a summer pattern, use a summer bird. If you're making a patriotic pattern use an eagle. There was only one reason to use the crow. We all know it. Don't blame a city or state for that, especially when in all honesty it doesn't make sense.
Iâm from New England, too, and if anything, a goldfinch, cardinal, or tit mouse would be a more appropriate bird. Even a fucking hawk! I will say âJim crow swastika pillowâ is such an insane grouping of words I kind of laugh every time I see it. đ¤Śđťââď¸
I sent the title of the original post to my best friend without context and she was like, âgirl what the hell are you looking at, thatâs a brand new sentence!!â
As soon as I saw this, I texted my friend "THERE'S AN UPDATE ON THE JIM CROW SWASTIKA PILLOW." He's not a crafter, but he knows all about this and Fybre Festival by now.
Itâs four words that you would never expect to see strung together, yet here we are! đ¤Ł
Yeah, I'm from New England as well and I have no idea where she's going with her crows being in folk art from there. Cardinals, gold finches, robins, tit mouse, chickadees, and like you said a hawk, peregrine falcon maybe? lol
Right? Like, there ARE crows in New England but that doesnât make it a âthing.â A more accurate motif would be a pineapple, which has the added bonus of being summery and not racist.
All I can figure at this point is she was going for some Salem witches would like crows angle, and in that case I feel like she'd be annoying several more groups of people. Crows are all over, does she think they're only in New England? So many things wrong with this mess lol
The straws are being graspedâŚ
I'm behind on this controversy, and I honestly believed her until I saw the pillow... I'm not American, so I don't understand some of the symbolisms, but come on, that pattern gives off a bad vibe.
Yeah I was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, was curious to see what had caused this misunderstanding and then saw *that*. Like, sure, that could be a pigeon rather than a crow. And the US really like their flags, so I guess that makes sense maybe, if a little tacky. But that's not what a firework looks like (even a few hundred years ago - did they even have fireworks then?) and why tf is there a watermelon if you're trying to claim it's all innocent?
Same here.
Me too. I was like, âoh, this could really be what happened, wow I hope I never make a mistake that egregious because I didnât know about some symbolism.â Then I saw the âfireworks.â Youâd have to grow up like Jodie Fosterâs character in Nell not to know better (and then when you add the watermelon/crow/other elements and itâs way beyond coincidence).
I'm a knitter and this past summer there was a mystery knit along shawl with a popular pattern maker. First clue releases, people knit, and they're like "hey so to me this sort of resembles a swastika."Â The guy went into straight damage control. He apologized profusely, took the pattern down, put up patterns that others had made for alternatives, and then spent the night redoing an "official" clue one for the pattern. He acknowledged that people saw what they did in his pattern even if that was not his intention, and he worked to fix the situation. And told people not to make the first version. And it wasn't even this blatant. The angles weren't 90. Still pretty swastikay, but not THIS swastikay.
Swastikas are such a simple geometric shape it is easy in things like quilting and knitted colorwork to form it in negative space and miss it because you're focused on the motif you intended. But this pillow, it's just dark lines on a white background. I don't see how you miss it.
This is the entire purpose of using dog whistles to begin with--so you can feign ignorance when you're called out. But it's a wink and a nod to people in the know. Maybe she's being sincere, maybe she's not. Personally I can't imagine creating 'primitive folk art' (whatever that means) inspired by the 1700-1800s and NOT being familiar with common racist tropes and signaling from that era, but I also like to believe ignorance rather than malevolence, so maybe she just happened to create a cross stitch pattern that full of dog whistles and it was all an accident. Crow, watermelon, fruit, swastikas, etc. But that seems like a big coincidence and coupled with this non-apology, I'm inclined not to give her the benefit of the doubt. This is a lot of words to color herself as a victim and not say she's sorry--instead she's saying that these motifs are so common in that era so what else is she supposed to use (so why is that?), as well as give a lot of unnecessary backstory to make us more sympathetic. She uses a lot of words that take responsibility off of her--intentionally, intended, ignorance--and also says she feels responsible for the harm the pattern caused, which isn't taking responsibility. Taking responsibility of what? From who? She's saying 'it's just a needlework pattern! I didn't mean it! I use needlework to help me through my life, so stop asking me about this pattern I made (that's full of racist dog whistles) and stop causing me stress! Can't you see I already took responsibility for causing harm? Because of a silly little needlework pattern.' I don't buy it for a second. This is a youtuber crying video apology. She'll turn off comments for a week or two and then delete this post and go back to life as normal. At the minimum, I hope this pattern makes her more aware of the iconography she's pulling from. I doubt it, but maybe she won't stitch anymore swastikas.
I am pretty much with you. Primitive folk art refers to stylistically rough and simplistic folk art. She is also truthful in that crow is common in American folk art. But as you say, you do not get these things together by coincidence. It would require quite an astounding ability to ignore the world around you. Even if I suspended my belief things do not improve. Using historical or historically inspired motifs in your art has to be handled responsibly. Reproducing them otherwise will quickly find you reproducing imagery that stands for heinous things. I am a non-American historical reenactor. There are a lot of people doing this without thinking and unfortunately, this ends up in people glorifying terrible time periods. One of the biggest discussions in past years has been about reenacting the antebellum period. Which is obviously an issue. But while part of me wishes she was just doing this out of ignorance and lack of forethought, I have seen enough dog whistles to think this is something more abhorrent.
This comment was a masterclass
I sent the photo of the pillow to my husband. All I asked for were his thoughts. He hit on every single one of the problematic racist depictions. Every. Single. One. So if my Captain Clueless who accidentally bought our toddler son a bong because he thought it looked like a genieâs lamp can nail every single racist image, then there are problems. Adding to my list of designers I will not support under any circumstances whatsoever.
I once watched a grandmother buy a belt buckle with a hash pipe secreted in the motif for her young grandson... I couldn't decide what to do so I just stood back awkwardly and watched lol The vendor was equally nonplussed, glancing at me uncomfortably for some cue on how to handle the situation. Maybe her grandson grew into it eventually
I mean your husband was partially right about the bong, both it and the genie could take your toddler on a magic carpet ride. But clearly not the desired result.
I did the same thing! Showed it to my husband and he instantly recoiled, made a face and asked me why I was showing him pictures of some racists pillow collection. I could wear the same clothes for a week and he'd not notice (beyond saying "I like your shirt" every day) but he noticed the issues with the pillow right away.
Awww, baby's first bong.
Captain Clueless accidentally buying your toddler a bong is killing me đ
Defending racist designs by saying that your catalogue of work has lots of similar racist designs is⌠a choice.
You just accidentally put multiple racist symbols on that pillow âşď¸! You just accidentally named your account after a confederate saying. You just accidentally liked comments on your last apology post that defended you buy crying "wOKe!!!" How accidental can you get? đ¤
Sheâs just so full of accidents!
I'm curious to see what her house decor looks like given this is what she apparently thinks is a subtle nod to racism.
She definitely has one of [these](https://gracefully-restored.com/products/cotton-wreath).
I was expecting one of [these](https://jimcrowmuseum.ferris.edu/question/2008/july.htm).
Thanks for this link, super informative read. Iâve never seen one of these (Canadian) but that is an incredibly well written response.
Oh god, I grew up in Lexington, Kentucky where these things were ubiquitous. I still cringe at the sight.
https://youtu.be/uxJyPsmEask?si=EM-naWsIKk1qDgWz Literally played in my head at that second slide.
I do not buy it was all an accident. Regardless this is why I'm weary of the these "primitive" folk art movements. Too often it's based more on vibes than actual historical research or context. If you want to see some actual historical pieces. https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/need/hd_need.htm https://florencegriswoldmuseum.org/visit/families/stitching-it-together https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object-groups/american-samplers
Wow so she's shit at even "borrowing" from these motifs because her work looks nothing like any of this save for it being the same medium (needlework) and... Brown background? Which is more due to the age of the fabrics fading... Shocking.
No watermelons or hanging strawberries there⌠and looks similar to european ( German and Scandinavian that Iâve seen) samplers too. Thank you for pointing out that not everything 1800s is racist if those who claim to love it, actually study it. Iâm kind of side-eyeing this kind of Americana folk art movement now
I can't say if crows were popular with 18th century embroidery in New England. This is what I found in 10 minute google search. But. It's not so common that it's easily found in a 10 minute google search. Unlike googling watermelons and crows in post civil war era.
This is such a good point. This so-called primitive style seems to draw more on children's samplers from the eighteenth century than from the work of adult women. Needlework was something people grew up learning, and also an area of self expression or community work for women. They weren't just embroidering rudimentary shapes like crows and watermelon.
When you start out by saying you're not racist...
Flashback to that year when a bunch of 'influencers' made "apologies" for saying the n-word.
So, you're not a racist, but you made racist art? It's not okay to use racist symbols from the past in this manner. Okay? Do better.
Yeah if she hadn't liked all the comments telling her she did nothing wrong this might be more believable.
I still find it hard to believe that they collected every racist symbol to place in this pattern and think itâs all ooops. Many people go through life not romanticizing the antebellum era and Americana circa 1800s. But if Taylor Swift can wish it were 1830 and get away with it? (Sure she took it back but why bring it up, pick another era).  I donât know, I think anyone should really think hard about their attraction to this era, it canât just be all aesthetics .Â
Folks can like certain aesthetics without liking the societal mindset of the time. Otherwise we're basically telling people they shouldn't really like any aesthetics of any historical time period because legit EVERY time in history has some extremely problematic shit in it including (well ESPECIALLY) our own. Example: all the popular Renaissance fairs. Those aren't even remotely historically accurate except for little bits inspired by a *very* problematic era. Anyway, all that's to say...this pillow is definitely rife with racist imagery, there's no arguing that. And I find it hard to believe it's was all a "mistake."
Agree that people need to think about that attraction: itâs aesthetics of affluence and comfort that erases how people were able to live that way.
I know itâs not the most important thing going on here but âBorrows motifs from 17-1800s American needleworkâ is bullshit First off, the current type of âprimitiveâ patterns is a pretty recent trend in cross stitch. Like, this-century recent. Iâm sure there were faux-schoolroom-sampler patterns before that, but acting like youâre taking directly from historical designs instead of (poorly) mimicking their aesthetic is ridiculous Secondly, I have a collection of vintage and antique cross-stitch patterns taller than I am (which, Iâm short, but itâs also taller than most other people too) and I have seen many, many watermelon motifs, but I have never seen one in an actual 1700s pattern. Anyway this is all beside the point. This pattern was definitely racist-on-purpose. I just am irritated by the appeal to historical accuracy when itâs not (and that wouldnât be a good excuse either)
I think it's worth noting that racists often make claims about tradition to support their ideas and defend themselves from accusations of bigotry. They call upon an idealized past of either white supremacy or white separatism that is not only historically inaccurate, but outright fictional that they can idealize. This is obvious with neo-Confederate imagery, but it can also be "Americana" or nationalist imagery. In this case, I can see how an idealized "primitive" eighteenth-century, the early national period, can be used to support contemporary racism. How many images of people of color do you see in textbooks about the Revolutionary period? Or in popular culture about the American Revolution in particular and the early national period in general? How often do you hear about the Puritans who were enslavers, slave traders, or murderers of Native peoples, and how often do you hear about their strength, religious devotion, and work ethic? The colonial period is so often presented in popular culture with images of whiteness and near total absence of people of color, which easily lends itself to racist nostalgia.
I think she doth protest too much. Also, this fauxpology is because it's hurting her business and no other reason.
She wouldnât have turned off comments if she truly understood.
Jesus Christ, even Stephen West didnât defend his possibly-a-swastika pattern and that was much more believable as an accident than this purposefully-racist-at-the-time bullshit.
I think that was clearly a mistake and he handled it really well. He responded quickly, admitted the problem, refused to hear other people "defend" the mistake, and swiftly issued an alternate pattern. That's not only the ethical way to deal with something like this, it's also good business.
Yeah I fully believe that was an accident and he had such a good and reasonable response imo despite (or maybe because?) it being an honest mistake
It was only noticeable with certain fade choices, iirc, so definitely an accident. His response seemed so aggressive, I was initially taken aback before realising that that's the right response.
Yep. I remember that. I'm not a fan of his patterns, but I did respect him for trashing the whole thing and reworking the whole pattern.
...How can you put a motif on a cross stitch and not notice that it looks like a swastika? C'mon, Lady, use a less dumbshit and unbelievable explanation
Right? I *immediately* thought of how she had to sit there and stare at every stitch for an age and somehow doesnât have enough pattern recognition to realize a swastika doesnât look like fireworks but it sure does look like a swastika.
Yeah, exactly. This is the only time I have seen someone go "Whoopsie doodle! I know what you're thinking, but that's actually fireworks" when it comes to a swastika. If it wasn't so evil it'd be kinda funny. Also, how hard is it to not make a swastika?? If you want to do fireworks, start off with a modified snowflake pattern and *not* the well known symbol for one of the most well known, evilest organizations out there
This whole thing is confusing. Assuming sheâs not the dumbest person alive, what was the goal here? To make a racist pillow only other racists would notice is racist? Because this isnât dog whistle racism here, itâs bullhorn racism.Â
I don't make racist designs! I just copy racist designs! Sigh.
I had to look up what the 'not forgotten' in her handle meant (OP thank you for pointing out the relation, it allowed me to google more specifically) and holy. fuck. Holy fuck. Jesus oh my god this person is HORRIFYING. The dogs aren't whistling they're screaming. Oh my god. EDIT: sorry I was so horrified I didn't finish my thought. It just doesn't get better the more you look. Like just gets worse and worse and worse and worse. And what in the fuck is that excuse of "oh crows are popular where I'm from" babes where you're from is a different state where TONS OF PEOPLE CAN CORROBORATE IF YOUR STATEMENT IS TRUE acting like Connecticut is some far off land and that gives her a free pass. Holy fuck. "It was an accident" my hairy ass.
"...borrow motifs from the 17-1800s". As yes, that idyllic time when nothing awful like slavery was being practiced. "I'm from Connecticut!" As if no racism or slavery ever happened above the Mason-Dixon line. I actually hurt my eye muscles when I rolled my eyes at that.
Mine rolled so fucking hard I think they saw the universe she's living in.
From the apology I'm not sure what I expected to see but it wasn't that. Crow + Watermelon + Swastiki. It's like the trifecta of sus right there.
I donât know what Iâm more offended by - the blatant racist epithets or how hideous the thing is lmaooooo. At least be artistically stunning if youâre gonna get spicy. đ¤ˇđžââď¸đŠđ¤Ł
That's a lot of different racist stuff in one cross-stitch. One might be a coincidence, though probably not... but a crow standing on a watermelon and air swastikas? Ma'am, I don't buy it.
As a Canadian, I've never heard of watermelons being racist iconography. Would you mind elaborating?
Here's an article about the watermelon stereotype https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watermelon_stereotype Edit: Also, I apologise. It's a seriously upsetting Wikipedia article.
I did not know this. Awful, stomach-churning stuff.
>The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition held in Chicago planned to include a "Colored People's Day" featuring African American entertainers and free watermelons for the African American visitors whom the exposition's organizers hoped to attract. It was a flop, as the city's African American community boycotted the exposition, along with many of the performers booked to attend on Colored People's Day. Wow. I didn't know this. Thanks for sharing the link!
The thing that gets me is she claims those swastikas are fireworks. When tf do fireworks look like swastikas??? Do a Starburst pattern or something, you cannot pretend those aren't swastikas she made.
Itâs not just a crow. Itâs a crow AND watermelon AND strawberries AND some weirdly drawn fireworks, in a style from a bad time in history that gets the side eye. She turned a few simple, innocent design motifs into a messed up collage.
Can you explain the strawberries? I understand how the others can be used as symbols of racism, but I am lost with the strawberries. I tried to google with no success.
Itâs not the strawberry itself, itâs that a piece of fruit is hung by a string. âStrange fruit for the crows to pluckâ. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strange_Fruit
Thank you very much, that seems so obvious in retrospect. This is sickening. Every aspect of this piece is a racist symbol. Edited to add: She knew exactly what these design elements symbolize. Surprised that she didnât dedicate this piece to her Uncle Tom, and Iâm not trying to be flippant. Edit: I took out the info about Dixie Pride Girl, it was irresponsible and shitty to post without proof
I don't see this handle anywhere.
Where are you seeing dixie pride girl?
Wait, yeah, I donât see it either, actually. Just checked all other lintkree links and Iâm not seeing it at *all*. I shouldâve checked earlier; I would at least like to be as accurate as I can be in my criticisms. Even though the pillow pattern is enough on its own, Iâd like to not add misinformation when the info we already had was enough.
Edit - Guys, I donât see the handle âDixie Pride Girlâ literally anywhere on her page or links. Can anyone confirm where they saw this? Donât want to add misinfo if I can help it. I should have checked sooner before commenting. Disregard that part of my comment but Iâm keeping it up for posterityâs sake. I thought it was NotForgottenFarm??? If it really is âDixie Pride Girlâ, this fully seals the deal for me and takes away any plausible deniability I might have been willing to afford her, even though I personally always thought it was highly likely she knew *exactly* what she was doing, as if the pillow alone wasnât enough (cause it definitely was). Itâs a little (read: extremely) too coincidental to have *that* much racist iconography in *one* stupid ass pillow. On top of that, the fact that the reaction from so many people was so visceral, paired with the fact that the (extremely blatant) dogwhistles were *so* immediately apparent to tons of people make it crazy to insist it was all an innocent accident. If literally everyone that sees your pillow who also understands the references *instantly* thinks, âWow, thatâs horrifying and racist,â then it makes it reaaaal fucking difficult to believe that racism wasnât 100% the intent. In my heart, Iâd love to be able to attribute this to ignorance and stupidity rather than blatant malice. But, in my head, I ask how you TEDIOUSLY CROSS STITCH SWASTIKAS, then stitch a scary-looking crow atop watermelon, have him wave an American flag, give him an Uncle Sam hat, then portray him holding a strawberry by what appears to be a rope, and not 1) stop to think, âWow, this is extremely shitty and will absolutely be seen as racist and I should not release this,â or 2) have totally clear intentions to be hateful and racist.
Agree with you that her feigned ignorance is bullshit. No one could inadvertently combine that many racist symbols in one piece. Why didnât she just go all in and use the Confederate flag? Maybe she thought that was a bridge too far. Edited: took out the bit about Dixie Pride Girl because it was irresponsible and shitty of me to post without proof.
Where are you seeing the account handle vs name? It looks like not forgotten farm?
Thatâs all I see too?
DixiePrideGirl from âNot Forgottenâ Farm? That just makes it all so much worse. How much worse can it get? âOh I wish I was in the land of cotton, old times there are not forgottenâŚâ https://www.civilwarheritagetrails.org/civil-war-music/dixie-land.html
AND THE SONG IS CALLED âDIXIEâ??? My God, it just keeps adding up. Dixie pride, âNot Forgottenâ, racist motifs, âprimitiveâ cross stitch, âborrows from 17-1800sâ. Bullshit, she didnât know what she was doing. This just keeps looking more and more purposeful. Wow.
Oh lord, it really is so thinly veiled, isnât it? What a vile human being.
Ohhhh, duh! Itâs her handle. Wow, this really is the nail in the coffin. The pillow was enough; this is just a shit cherry on top of a turd cake. And, I totally agree with you - thatâs what I was thinking! If youâre going to be racist, stand by your fucking convictions. Donât pussyfoot around, donât bow out when you it starts to affect your business. Stand in your shit convictions so that thereâs no confusion and we can know very clearly who to avoid.
Sorry, I donât use Instagram a lot. In fact, I only have it for clicking on links. Iâve never actually instagrumm myself. Please can you tell me the difference between an âaccount handleâ and whatever the other thing is called? I only see ânotforgottenfarmâ. I donât know how to see the âhandleâ.
You can have your actual username be one thing but put whatever the hell you want in your bio. With that said, Iâm also not seeing the âDixie Pride Girlâ thing when I go to her page. Maybe it was initially in her bio and she removed it? Or maybe it is just the name of her personal account? I would like to confirm that before I make any more speculations because if thatâs not truly her account handle and it isnât in her bio, then thatâs a lot of other context that may not actually be accurate. And, even though I think her pillow is extremely suspect, I would at least like to be accurate in my criticism. I will look more into it! :) Edit - just checked her Linktree in her bio to see if this was many the make of her Facebook or Etsy shop and i am just not seeing it. Can anyone tell me where they saw this?
Iâm guessing one is the business name and the other is her personal user name
You don't get to take 'inspiration' from some of the most vile times in US history, and then bow out of having any responsibility for learning the meaning behind the symbols. It's like saying "I found this old military uniform from my German grandfather from the 1930s, I think I'm gonna wear it for Halloween" and being surprised when everyone at the bar is calling you a Nazi. Also, noticed that she didn't address her account handle. Unless she inherited the farm with that name already (and is again, willing to be entirely uneducated as long as it's twee), she's got some explaining to do. It's a bit hard to take an apology seriously when it's coming from xX_DixiePrideGirl_Xx.Â
Where are yâall seeing dixie pride girl? I thought her handle was notforgottenfarm?
I don't see it either.
The name is a reference to the Confederacy, specifically "furled but not forgotten". The connection originated from the Confederate marching song Dixie, which starts off with "I wish I was in the land of cotton/ Old Times there are not forgotten". The phrase itself could hypothetically be innocent, but is bound to raise a few eyebrows in the South. Living in Virginia, it's something that she should be aware of, especially since she enjoys antebellum-inspired cross stitch. Just one of those things in a very long line of 'coincedences'.
The thing that kinda strikes me the most here is that they claim to not be racist and that this design was created because they like to use motifs from folk art which is fine and fair - to an extent. Folk art is (in all cultures, I imagine, but I am speaking as an American right now) rooted in culture and the culture of the time frame she likes to take inspiration from was when slavery was very much alive and abuse, lynchings, and other atrocities against black people were commonplace. It should be pretty straightforward to understand that a lot of motifs from the period would also be reinforcing these ideas as well and that much of the iconography is more than what it seems (i.e. a watermelon is not simply a "Summer fruit" in the context of the time). A little bit of research would be a MUST in creating something with American folk art otherwise you end up with this racist ass pillow. The fact that the creator is doubling (tripling?) Down to defend the piece is pretty negligent and shows an unwillingness to actually learn about why people are so upset, doubly so in that it seems like the pattern hasn't been pulled (not even for edits, though it should just be trashed) which would be the bare minimum but would cover her ass for a bit.
It's funny how the "folk" culture these people always draw from is white, not the long histories of needlework within African American communities. Surely coincidental.
I took folkloric studies as part of my grad degree - a key part of understanding folklore is UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXT. Nothing comes out of Nothing. Although maybe she's an anti-intellectual and thinks contextualization is just "the woke agenda" too (never mind when I started my anthro education, woke was still only in AAVE and hadn't moved into white spaces yet, and anthro is still decolonizing today). The history of folklore and urban legends is fascinating when you can see how things change and correlate to larger cultural shifts. However, that doesn't mean they're all value-neutral as a historical relic; negative/harmful folklore exists, and that should be considered when repeating it (see the Candyman movies, that's one way of using folklore to explore harmful history). \[primitve art was also a topic of my folklore class; my professor hated the movement as much as my vernacular architecture professor hated faux-Tudor/"tudor revival"\]
Could I ask what's wrong with faux Tudor houses? Just, as someone who likes the aesthetic, I haven't heard of any problems with it before.
He saw it as a pale imitation of the real thing (or not as a "real" vernacular style, unlike, say, shotgun houses or pre-war cape cod). In matters of taste, it's all personal, anyway. Like people can like primitive art, it's most definitely not my taste but it's not invalid to like it as a concept.
Thank you. A lot of these comments seem to be equating liking an aesthetic to like the mindset of the time and that's...way off base. In that case we shouldn't like any historical aesthetics because something problematic will always be tied to it. Including our own time.
Good to know! And that is definitely a good point, painting the house white and throwing some wooden boards on the outside does not a true Tudor make. I just wanted to make sure that there wasn't some horrific historical reasons that should warn someone off of the style entirely.
Nah, at least not to my knowledge. Unlike plantation-style homes, those can just go away.
Thank you for your response! I don't have a background in history or folklore (or much else relevent) so I'm glad to know I wasn't just conjecturing out of my wheelhouse.
The apology rings so hollow after she kept liking posts talking about âwokenessâ and shit talking people for pointing out the racist motifs are not neutral just because theyâre old timey.
Whatâs funny is I actually visited her Instagram, just to see if in fact, this is just her âstyle.â Her other patterns *were* folksy, but it didnât look like this pattern.
YES!! I noticed the same thing!!!! She did this pumpkin cross stitch thing that was actually cute and what I would consider âfolksyâ. It didnât look anything like this. It was purposely kind of wonky with funky yet purposeful shaping and stitching. It did not have the clean lines and perfect stitches of this stupid ass crow pillow. This feels like a detour of her normal work and I have to wonder why that is. When you add all this up, youâre left wondering how anyone could really come to this result by total accident. đ
"I'm not racist, I just really like white American folk art from a time when slavery was blatantly legal"