On the other hand I understand Hamilton was seeking black dancers only at one point, whites need not apply. This is OK?
4
@Harriet KatzThere are always the exceptions, women who can handle such a jobThis is a joke right -
For some lightness - That is some screen name! I bet you were relieved no one else had picked that screen name before you did!
1
I note that their first "black" dancer was a slightly tanned woman of obvious white ancestry.
I brought my teenage daughter to see the show a few weeks ago. We were at least as offended by the prominent corporate sponsorship integrated into the production, and by a scene of Jesus’ birth embedded into what was essentially a high-decibel commercial.
My daughter (white) commented on the lack of diversity. I don’t think they’ll be able to keep the show this white for much longer - young people are growing up in a different world and expect to see their reality reflected in popular art.
Those who claim the show is white because dancers of color don’t audition are perhaps forgetting that it takes dedicated dance training. Making that training available to underprivileged sectors of society is the first step.
3
Has anyone here ever auditioned to be a Rockette? I am a dancer but sadly, I am not tall enough. I have auditioned for their ensemble though--
I assure you, their audition process is long and arduous. There are strict height and body requirements. They need to be able to do the eye high kicks, multiple piroettes etc. Maybe next year you should go to the audition and see who shows up. If their are people of color who fit the bill then we can talk.
5
The comments people have made here are an interesting litmus test on how people feel about racial diversity, inclusion and, integration.
It's obvious that there are many people comfortable being in all-white environments, and simply don't care about having a more diverse cast.
There are people who think that the Rockettes are a sexist and racist anachronism.
There are people who simply don't care one way on the other another and simply want to enjoy the holiday spirit the show inspires.
No matter how you feel about this, our country is becoming more racially diverse. While the Rockettes show doing great now financially, one has to wonder how well the show will do ten to fifteen years in the future, when the country will be even more racially diverse than it is now?
5
How many persons of color live in Ginia Bellafante's lovely building in Brooklyn Heights?
6
I now feel that the majority of our Rockettes who are artists should feel bad that they were born white and in a racist dance company do throw away your joy of success hard work and talent.
To be back to reality ,perhaps pressure should be on the higher ups in this company to seek Rockettes of color ?
1
No, those white dancers should not feel bad. It’s not about them- it’s about the intentional exclusion of dancers of color. What about the dreams, hard work and talent of dancers of color. They deserve the same opportunities too.
5
I'm amazed that this article didn't mention that Russell Merkert named the troupe "The Roxyettes," because they were dancing at the Roxy Theatre just a block away. Then Radio City made him an offer he couldn't refuse, and the moved over, eventually changing the name to "The Rockettes."
When I went to the Moulin Rouge in Paris in 1988, all female performers were basically clones. Same height, same body type, same breast size, same breast projection, same skin color etc. Why ? I can't really say why, but the uniformity of the performers somehow added to the sizzle of the show.
It is probably the same case with the Rockettes; as minor skin color variations don't detract from the intended uniformity of the production, yet major skin color differences might.
3
Sorry. I can’t get past the fact that we still have women dancing around in bodysuits in 2018. Could we imagine men in skimpy clothes, with plastic smiles and perfect hair, dancing around like Barbie dolls?
7
For pete's sake. I'm a Black woman. Does everything in the Times these days have to push a "diversity" agenda?
Understand that becoming a Rockette is HIGHLY competitive. Something like 1000 women compete for only around 60 spots. Next, to be a Rockette you need to be between 5'6" and 5'10" tall, be in shape and have professional dance experience. With these qualifications, most white women will be phased out here, never mind women of color. Did the Times bother to ask how many women applied, what are their backgrounds and how many were given the job? That would give you a sense of why there are so few of any race that will get the chance to be a Rockette.
I remember the days when there were ZERO Rockettes, and by design. At least Radio City has acknowledged this and taken steps to diversify and enhance recruitment since. But there's only so much that these companies can do unless there's a rush of minority applicants. Until then, I have no problems with a "whiter" Rockettes lineup.
21
Your picture shows 2 of the 18 Rockets are black. That's 11 %. I believe about 12 % of the population is black. There don't appear to be any Asians (? 1) or clear Hispanics.
8
Articles like this tend to increase the hatred directed at black women, because "we" are often used by the media to push for "inclusivity," even when/if the issue is not directly impactful to black women.
If the Rockettes are mostly white, and you want them to diversify, why not use the fact that Asian, Hispanic, Native American and Middle Eastern women do not appears to be included in the line up?
Quite frankly, I'm tired of black women being used to denounce the lack of diversity, because more often than not, we experience nothing but vitriol from the larger society, when such stories are written.
Honestly, most black women that I know who love dance, simply buy tickets to see Alvin Ailey or the Dance theatre of Harlem. I've yet to meet one black woman who cares about diversifying the Rockettes. Perhaps this is a concern for other "women of color"....
18
if they were all Asian Hispanic or Black it would be a beautiful display of culture . But its all white and we cant have anything and there must be exclusion. Yeah, I know the histor,y but come on, quit acting like nothing has changed. At what point is history just that, history? And when can we judge people of today with the values people of today? We don't need to judge us by the worst of our history all the time. we don't equate every Hispanic with the moral failings of their conquistador ancestors and keep indigenous people away from all people with Spanish ancestry for fear of some hidden rape agenda because of a history of rape among conquistadors. I know that is a stretch. lol. but its kind of that ridiculous. its 2018. we can quit acting like we all white people are flexing our privilege like its 1800 and get defensive judging us in today's values while ascribing us values of white people of old. we live in the same world. relax.its just a show there's plenty of diversity in entertainment.
4
“Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.” And sometimes a Christmas show is just a Christmas show. I don’t think we should read too much into this.
Write a story about how the troupe deliberately avoids casting women if color and then you’ll have a real story.
Until then, for me, it’s just a (very fun) Christmas show.
17
PC rules the day--what nonsense! The Rockettes are supposed to represent precision uniformity--there's nothing racial about it. Several decades ago, Tommy Tune and Twiggy appeared on Broadway in a show where there were two dance troupes--black dancers and white dancers and nobody was up in arms. I watched the Rockettes on TV perform in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade and the one black dancer obviously affected the uniformity.
4
@Lola, so black dancers just wouldn’t fit in, right?
9
So many of the responses below only affirm the persistence of White Nationalism and its propaganda that 1. No people of color are qualified. 2 No people of color apply. 3 There is no implicit bias against people of color. 4. Why do people of color claim this kind of inequity is racist instead of just accepting it as “normal?” 5. Tradition matters more than correcting social ills, so relax everyone. 5. Stop trying to create a world that we don’t want to see or live.
11
@Dolcefire Are there white guys on the Harlem Globetrotters?
2
Let’s see. African Americans make up 12.9% of the US population according to WolframAlpha. 8 out of 80 Rockettes is 10%. Great work arguing the margins and looking for oppression under every rock NYT. Ms. Bellafante plays right into every conservative talking point about the left becoming untethered and undermining every innocuous tradition until the world looks exactly the way Ms. Bellafante thinks it should. If only we would all listen to her rants and follow her directions, we would be so much better off.
11
@Wevnyc 10% are women of color. The expression ‘people of color’ refers to all non-white people, not solely African Americans. Closer to 40% of America is non-White. 10% vs 40% is quite a story about racism.
9
Good that black tourists and black residents of NYC are not spending their money at this dated attraction. If the audience is as hostile as many of the comments here, it is dangerous for black women to appear on a Rockettes stage.
7
Maybe just maybe this isn’t a gig women of color want ? There’s better money to be made in Vegas Hollywood or even in a Broadway show ? It’s just a thought. The jazz world is starting to face the same demographic as it is becoming increasingly white. The Rockettes are rooted in a different history than most young people want to be a part of.
7
@Jeffrey Maxcy, so is NASCAR, and that is not doing them any favors.
1
Tks! I wondered what was going on when The Rockettes danced at the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade this year. It was very noticeable. They need to get with the diversity of NYC and the country!
5
It is definitely problematic that the troupe of 40 Rockettes is over 90% white, especially in New York where people from hundreds of cultural backgrounds reside. I myself watched them at Macy’s Thanksgiving parade and was taken aback that only one out of the 40 was not white, especially when there have been years in which there have been 3 or 4 non-Caucasian Rockettes in recent years past (still pretty bad in multicultural representation but better than just one).
I do give MSG credit, though, in owning up in their response that their track record on multicultural representation in their flagship brand is abysmal at best this year. It leads me to believe that they might get serious about addressing it in the years to come. Their target audience is families and there are more non-Caucasian children being more in this country than Caucasian ones. If their flagship dance troupe doesn’t start becoming more representative of these kids’ everyday world, then MSG’s going to lose a lot of money.
3
It's a style of a bygone era like Busby Berkeley. It's emphasizes the powerful artistic effect of uniformity. That said, a job with the Rockettes is one of the best dance gigs in NYC. What's more important? The artistic ideal? or equal opportunity for a good job by members of non-white races? Personally, I'll go for equal opportunity. The choreography and costumes scream uniformity. Let's skip the skin color part, OK?
6
I had a friend who worked for a while as a Rockette shortly after she'd arrived from Lithuania. If there's such a thing as "white privilege, she certainly didn't partake at that time. Also, it's worth remembering that "white" encompasses as many diversities as "African."
4
The show is a spectacle and who doesn't love a spectacle every now and then. They should all be six feet tall and wear identical wigs. Enjoy it while it lasts, a few years down the road they will probably have to make room for a few men in the line, won't that be a sight to behold.
14
I say shut it down! We cannot allow this travesty to continue. C'mon New York, let's mobilize!
3
Here we go again. If you want to look for racism then you may think you found it. Perhaps the Rockettes are actually hired based on their abilities. And just perhaps, there were not that many black females that had the ability to be a Rockette. Or perhaps not many black women tried out to be Rockettes. There may not have been more black female performers but that doesn't mean it's racism. I am beyond sick & tired of these people who choose to take a situation like the Rockettes show and make it racist. Everyone has a right to their opinion to make such a racist statement out of the Rockettes show without more information is not only very irresponsible but downright problematic for those who really want to see true equality among all races. But of course it's much easier to make accusations and innuendos. And until that stops there will never be true equality.
13
Next: a piece on the black singers, dancers, and puppeteers in Broadway ‘s THE LION KING and black voice actors in Disney’s “live-action” version of the movie.
12
This argument is ridiculous. What about the NBA? Maybe write an article about how underrepresented whites, Asians etc. are in basketball? You can go profession by profession. Blacks are overrepresented in community and social-service occupations (as well as barbers and postal-service clerks). Asians make up a large share of computer workers, medical scientists, and personal appearance workers—a category that includes manicurists, makeup artists, and facialists. Hispanics are overrepresented in construction, maintenance, and agriculture work.
But yes, minorities are underrepresented in high paid professional jobs like tech, law, medicine, etc. And that’s a problem. But making a stink about the color of who kicks their legs just to write an article about how unfair the world is? I’m sorry. There’s much better ways to focus your energy if you really do care about diversity.
17
Ms. Bellafante, instead of assuming that female black dancers are even interested in being part of this old-fashioned, boring, touristic garbage, should have asked around and gotten their opinion. Frankly I don't know that any dancer considers this more than a paying gig.
I don't see a lack of opportunity for participation in the arts in the Black community. On the contrary, I see a community that puts tremendous value on culture - its culture above all. And black culture has defined American culture in general way more than have the Rockettes.
5
I always like seeing the Radio City Christmas show here the Rockettes perform their famous dance routines and for many of us natives it's is an annual tradition. I would hope that the dancers are picked by merit and that no woman be shunted aside for their race or color. It would be interesting to know how many women of color apply to dance and why there are so few dancers of color who perform as Rockettes. There must be an underlying reason but this reporter didn't seem to adequately address this as to the Rockettes present day hiring processes.
9
@Realist please explain what a woman's height or weight have to do with merit.
3
@E. Gordon Berroa Short women are/were often excluded from chorus line type positions because there is a need for uniformity in a chorus line and because they aren't/weren't as easy to see from a distance. Same for Vegas show girls. Same for runway work in fashion shows, where uniformity of size helps.
1
Ok, call me a racist and bigot too. Really, go ahead. I like the Rockettes as they used to be; White! Actually I'm not racist. I've seen the Rockettes perform many times. I was born and raised in NY and mom and dad would often take my sister and I to see shows at Rockefeller Center and to see the Rockettes too. As I very young kid I often wondered why those women kicked up their legs in unison and why it was fun for them. In the 1950s the Rockettes were white. Just like Christmas was white and our schools were white and so was church or synagogue. All my classmates were white and so were my other friends.
Then suddenly I was in central PA and everything was in living color. I didn't want to wrestle the black boys on the wrestling team because I thought the blackness would come off. I didn't want to touch them. I was afraid. So, do I really want the Rockettes to be pure? White? No, I don't.
I was brought up in a world of bigots and racists. That is what almost rubbed off. That is what I hate and what I'm afraid of. I'm afraid of the racists who want a world that must never be. I don't care if the Rockettes are multicultural. Black is beautiful. So is soft yellow. So is the dancer who's skin is a mix of racial beauty creating a skin color that defies a name. It's not white. I don't care. She's extraordinarily beautiful. And enjoying herself.
I also have a half sister. She's a wonderful combination of beauty and brains and I love her. I hate racism and the purist bigots.
15
There should be women of different body types. All the women are thin. Weight discrimination is a big issue. They're all young too. Ageism is not cool. Many older women can kick up a storm. Are their any transgender people in the troupe? That question should have been addressed in the article. Are the women permitted to wear a hijab if they wish. I hope so. Finally, why no men? Women are not the only sex with good legs.
33
@Mandrake Why must they all be humans? Speciesism is pernicious in our culture.
5
@Mandrake, Why not add a Rockette in a wheel chair?
5
Why does it matter if they are all white?
Free will , free choice, the people buying tickets to sold out shows over the last 50 years don’t seem to mind . Perhaps some people simply want to be entertained and don’t scrutinize every situation for some element of racial imbalance. Merry Christmas
41
@Giovanni
Is it really free will to the dancers that want to be Rockettes when they are being excluded based on their race?
2
New York City was segregated when I lived there. I remember looking for a coop in 1998 - The agent told his colleague in Hebrew the unit that I was interested in would never sell to a black woman. Up until that point we’d communicated in English - when I spoke up because I am in fact Israeli - the agent just told me I should have been clear about being “one of us” - or “mishelanu” in Hebrew. They red line neighborhoods and many venues of distinction in NYC.
15
To the last line of the article --"The road to enlightenment is long" -- I offer this post-script: "And its builders are bent." [Full Stop]
3
Saw the show last year when visiting NYC. It was pricey. Maybe black folks with lower incomes can’t afford the show.
5
@Carol Parks
I am a black person who has seen many off and on Broadway shows in NYC. I saw this show once and was so BORED that I will never see it again. My aversion to the show has nothing to do with my race-I just have better taste. It is geared towards tourists who think it is another activity to tick off of their list of things to do in NYC.
15
@Carol Parks what about “black folks” with large incomes? Ever wonder why they don’t see the show? Perhaps because no one looking like them in the line up?
5
@Carol Parks Not all Black people have Lower income! Plenty of Professionals that can afford to go. Also their are plenty of white people with lower incomes unable to afford the show. Maybe black people don't attend is because they are NOT well represented by the Rockettes. I live in Texas & California. I Love Cali because people are not racists like in Texas.
4
Wondering what Megan Kelly thinks.
5
As a dancer ......
I bet it is a dream to dance w the Rockettes
How many women of color are encouraged to audition or apply for scholarship to the company?
I say go for it ladies if that is your goal.
Or better yet start an all inclusive precision troupe and roadshow the Spectacular.
About time.
1
Grinning women kicking their cookie cutter legs in the air - over, and over, and over. And people pay money to see that.
As my mother would have said, “And there’s starving children in this world!”
Never could understand the attraction.
13
why write about this. why can't we just enjoy the moment. why does everything need to be political. Let's all take a break
44
@Julia The answer is that things are political because there is injustice. This group was formed in a time when social Darwinism was the vogue. White women of an exact height and weight symmetrically presented as beauty and superiority. All others need not apply. Just like the confederate monuments, the rockettes are a different kind of monument. Sometimes you just have to move past the past and you can’t do that without creating a bit of discomfort. So no break.
13
Does everything have to be a point of contention?
Unless there is a law or a regulation or a company policy that states "black women cannot be hired for the Rockettes" - I wish I didn't feel that this is like the tree huggers.
Tiresome.
32
Even Jesus is presented as a white man with blue eyes, a historical fallacy given that he was from the Middle-East. I suppose compared to this 2000 year old fantasy imagery, the Rockettes are doing better.
11
Aren't the Rockettes supposed to be precision high kickers, same-same, clone-ishly fascinating? No need to think. Perfect order. All done. Like messy humanity has been tidied up and given a respite from inevitable wrinkles, stiff joints, and eventual death.
Then there's Riverdance.
Seems to be a white thing.
10
@Sally
I don't know about Riverdance; I know of some Celtic groups, Breton family performances, and so on. Celtic this that and the other. The Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, Beyonce's Formation. Whatever. I've always thought the Rockettes were weird, so I don't watch or worry about them. They aren't bothering anyone. No one is making me pay attention to them.
7
Thanks for noticing ! - I was really shocked to see the marching
band that was said to represent the best musicians in our
country had 1 person of color that I could see !?- oh ,and, they
played " Respect " !!!
most of the college bands looked almost totally white also !!
4
You haven’t convinced me that it’s important to have diversity in a group of women dancing around in their underwear.
21
@Mo. diversity is important only in those activities of which you approve?
1
Some shows are culturally associated with certain races more than others. The audiences and traditions reflect this. Some shows will represent greater diversity and some less, but it doesn’t mean that they are necessarily racist or prejudiced. Watching a line of woman dancing in unison doesn’t seem that interesting to me. If a predominately White, older audience is willing to pay a high price year after year to see the rocketts, good for them. If the shows organizers think they can sell more tickets with woman that look a certain way, I don’t care. I won’t go to the show because I better things to do, but I won’t bemoan the lack of diversity any more than I do shows that reflect a non-white cultural heritage.
9
@Bender Bending Rodriquez
"If a predominately White, older audience is willing to pay a high price year after year to see the rocketts, good for them."
This seems like a self-fulfilling prophecy, no? Maybe the audience wouldn't be so white if the Rockettes weren't so white. Also, has it occurred to you that many of those older people are bringing their children and grandchildren? What message does an all-white troupe send to those young viewers?
3
I absolutely noticed this when I went two years ago. My understanding is that the Rockettes make very little money, so maybe this is also a case that the only people who can afford to do it are white and get some financial support? Not sure, but throwing that out there. It's also completely possible it's just pure discrimination.
2
Just discrimination. It used to be one of the best gigs for a dancer.
3
I am inclined to agree that taking an all white dance troupe and adding one African American could be distracting to some audience members. It’s just sad that the solution they arrived at wasn’t to add more than one instead.
4
The Rockettes are not a state run organization, there are no quotas for who dances for them. I suspect that if their audience wants a more diverse cast, they will vote with their feet and the message will get through. However, to wring our hands over the lack of POC rockettes is a bit overboard. Will the Times also publish an article about the lack of diversity within Beyoncé’s dancers?
35
@Hello World Beyonce's dancers are more diverse. And I would love to see a line of Queen Bey Rockettes!!
3
As I biracial woman (light Jamaican father and English mother), my skin is very light, my eyes green and my hair long, and very light. On any given day, many people don't notice that I am biracial which has given me an interesting perspective of US culture. My culture is distinctly British which is another reason that I tend to "slip through the racial crack" so to speak. I have heard all sorts of derogatory remarks about how ugly women of color (other than Asians who are actually considered white in the US) are. I just don't get why Latino and African-American women are considered less than other women (Whites and Asians) because they are stunning. I consider myself to be so plain and always wished to have more skin pigment.
2
The thing that really stands out is the bias against short women. (note: that's a joke). I saw the Rockettes once and it was the longest week of my life. The racism is the least of it. Boring would have been a vast improvement over what I saw on stage. It was like something out of 1940. All I could think the whole time was "when will they update the stories for this thing?"
10
There are plenty of all-black dance troupes. We say that's consistent with diversity. The Rockettes are the Rockettes. Must we have a uniform heterogeneity in every private performance troupe? If they are purposely excluding candidates on the basis of race or ethnicity, that would be illegal I believe.
20
The Rockettes have other problems, too. Annual re-auditions, dancing on a steel stage; ask a former Rockette. The organization might need some visioning work.
6
@Elisa
The musicians in the pit have the same issues-re-auditions every year, random firings.
2
I'm not surprised that the Rockette's website doesn't mention Jennifer Jones in the organization's timeline. It would just highlight the embarrassingly late date of their integration, which is hardly worth celebrating.
4
Also time for a "black Santa" in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and at Radio City Musical Hall Christmas Show!! Long overdue.
4
The Rockettes represent white privilege. And, in a country where there are obvious gradations on the privilege ladder, white women are the second most privileged group of all.
3
Really? With all the horrors today the Radio City Christmas Show is just trying bring a little joy and comfort to the holiday season. Is it perfect? Certainly not; but it’s a hell of a lot better than most stuff we see daily. Seems like they are trying to be more inclusive to all colors and ethnicities. Progress has been made. But I bet you couldn’t wait to pick on them. Why is it ok for headlines to single out “too white”? That line about the camels - ever consider that your ridiculously provocative statement only feeds the fire for racial tensions? Seems to me you’ve run out of original ideas or are simply too ignorant to write about real solutions to our world’s problems. Ba humbug.
19
I have seen this show countless times, and have taken my family, my students and my in laws to the show. We do it to enjoy the music, the holiday spirit of the show, and of course, the Rockettes. If I had to discuss how many NY things lacked diversity over the years, I'd be pretty tired. Nevertheless, I am always happy to see the one or two or even three brown dancers performing, because it speaks to the possibilities. I see much bigger battles to fight in this day and age. Now can I get back to enjoying my holidays?
19
As a little Black girl growing up in Ohio, I watched the Macy's Thanksgiving parade religiously. Still do. I distinctly remember one Thanksgiving, while watching the Rockettes with glee and adoration, I announced to my mother than I wanted to be one when I grew up. My mother very calmly explained to me that I could never be a Rockette because Black girls weren't allowed. It was one of two times she told me I couldn't do something because of my race. The other was years later when I wanted to go into advertising.
As a child I assumed Black girls weren't allowed in order to maintain the uniform precision and look of the performance. I remember being disappointed, but it didn't take away from my love of the Rockettes. Fast forward to 2015 and I joyfully took my daughters (ages 8 & 10) to NYC for the parade and of course the Christmas Spectacular. My husband was bored, and we all thought 30 minutes could have been cut from the show, but I still enjoyed myself and was excited to finally see them in person.
I guess my point is that as a Black woman I don't always have to see myself reflected on stage in order to enjoy a performance. Maybe I've just been conditioned all these years to not expect to see people of color included. However, I DO worry about what it communicates to my daughters. My youngest daughter always seems to notice the absence of people who look like her and asks why. Instead of my mother's answer from years ago, I tell my daughter she can be the first.
48
@Tamara Of course it is good to not limit children, particularly Black children but I personally would find it difficult to support any institution (or company) that seems to be bent on insuring whiteness as beginning and end of being a human being. I think in the past Black people couldn't even hope to pursue their dreams in the way white people have been able to. Things have changed however, it is still odd that there are these types of barriers at this late date given the changing nature of this nation.
3
I read this article with great interest. While watching the Rockettes at the televised Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, I purposefully looked for diversity among the dancers, and thought there were two black women. As an organization, the Rockettes are behind the times and, in my opinion, need to diversify.
10
@Amye I also wonder why it seems so difficult to add a more diverse group of women to an institution like this.
4
I, too, counted two.
1
Oh please, can’t anything just be nostalgic and sweet in these times? Must we pick apart everything, until it’s left joyless or uncomfortable?
I’m ethnic and a Democrat, and politically involved.
But, my daddy (may he Rest In Peace) took us every year to the Rockefeller Center Christmas show. We never felt discriminated. It was the sweetest, most fun Christmas pastime, along with The Nutckacker at Lincoln Center, and ice skating at Rockefeller Center. Yes, all dancers and most attendees were white, but I never felt any sense of being different.
We were all New Yorkers, and happily enjoying the Christmas bounty of culture our city provided.
Can’t we just stop identity politics, please, just give us a break for the Holidays.
Happy Holidays to all my fellow New Yorkers!
49
@Lily, when you mention "a break for the Holidays" -
To be sure, the definition of what’s positive and what is negative varies - based on training, background, so many other things, though, sometimes even just point of view, or for lawyers, very often it's which side of the matter brings the most fees.. Example: With my own law school background, it feels like every time I (or some colleagues) try to apply what they actually taught in school, to try to get people to use the law to stop people violating laws like (for example) Human Rights or consumer rules, what I hear, even from my spouse and lifelong friends, is “Why concentrate on the negative?” as if I'm in favor of putting negative energy into the world. It seems to make you unhappy to get in their heads, see what they do.
But to me, and I think many others, part of having a hopeful, positive, optimistic view is that when you encounter something like unlawful bias or consumer fraud, unless you feel it’s all truly hopeless, you work hard to change it.
I think trying to get a law observed or a wrong righted is a positive step, and so I was taught for three exciting years, Of course, yes, it necessarily means you are focused on the negative – but trying to combat the negative, which you can’t do without focusing on it, dissecting it and understanding why.
"The Holidays" being T'giving to Christmas is a shopping/economic concept, isn't it? The whole year should be about goodwill towards everyone, maybe?
12
@Freddie
Freddie, I’m a lawyer, too. I was the first woman practicing law, a solo practice, in West Harlem. I do more pro bono than anyone I know. And, I’ve done class action discrimination cases in California, of course representing the plaintiffs.
I’m just asking to put aside our divisive issues, just for the Holidays. Below is proof of some of my work.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ooVn9hWZtac
14
@Lily, bur the law firms for the scofflaws are still putting in 60- or 70-hour weeks all December! (I like to quote the non-sequitur "5 days a week, 24/7," LOL!)
So is this NYT story about you? I remember reading this, as I‘d just that year made a change from lawyer to CPA work. I was HLS 1983, then NYU LLM in 1992, and loved stories like this, finding ways to simultaneously make a living and make a difference to real lives. !
https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/30/nyregion/harlem-journal-at-the-travel-agency-a-lawyer-finds-a-niche.html
(I had a disability that made it IMHO unwise for me to strive to be a risk-taking boss. I loved the trenches, saw trickle-down happening; we’d find a company “extra” tax savings, I was an expert at that on state and city level; and then, the “extra” almost always got shared by cos. keeping their workers happy at holidays, so it got to the regular folks squeaking by as well as the rich!
My own dream was to be like Bernard in Death of a Salesman and just once argue before the Supremes But a prof about two months into law school explained a bit tongue-in-cheek, playwright Arthur Miller was a little off it’s the subject matter not the attorney that gets you to argue there, and if you’re there because your client wants to appeal, it usually means you lost for them at the levels below, LOL; if you’d won below, no need to appeal to the Supremes. He was having fun, we were a table of 1Ls having lunch - but logical as I learned cases!
2
This is the same lament that we hear in all forms of recruiting: police officers, public school teachers, doctors, politicians, etc etc It is clear that many of these institutions are doing everything they can to recruit minorities, and have been failing for decades. Not from lack of trying, but from lack of enough good candidates. Everyone knows this, but nobody addresses it at the appropriate level: kids. Unless we address the sorry state of the developmental stages of minority children, we will keep reading these articles. Minority kids have the same potential at birth as any other kid, they just need to be born into loving, nurturing, healthy, self-supporting family environments. We have normalized single-parent households, uneducated parents, poverty, and lack of role models to this inevitable end.
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@Steve Scarich You make a seemingly sympathetic argument (I wish hiring could be fair, but those poor black folk are just doomed from birth!) but underneath is hefty dose of simple racism. "Not from lack of trying, but from lack of enough good candidates." I'm sure if the Rockettes really wanted to find well-trained, right-sized black dancers they could. And plenty of police departments DO have racially diverse ranks.
There are lots of "single-parent households, uneducated parents, poverty, and lack of role models" in white, rural America too. I guess the fact that there are teachers and police officers in those places is just...excellent recruiting?
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@Elizabeth A Thank you. I saw someone else make this same argument regarding Facebook and the tech industry and it reminded me of the attitude that exists in other industries. They say (so obviously disingenuously) they are looking for qualified Black people but can't seem to find them then when people come a long they find reasons why they aren't "right" for the position. Funnily enough, rules, requirements etc. seem to be able to be bent for any manner of white person however, if you are Black you have to fit a very particular criteria... a criteria that shifts depending on the white person doing the recruiting. It basically comes down to am I comfortable with Black people and often the answer in organizations that have very low numbers is no. Even when they deign to add one or two the hostility can be palpable. You'd think that at this late date this would have receded into the past however, many white people prefer their environments be as white a possible and don't you dare raise your voice about being mistreated (or ignored). From some of the other comments I've read here it seems like more than a few are very comfortable with things continuing as they have been in the past and you are the bad guy if you even broach the subject much less try and make a change for the better.
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@Steve Scarich, way more recruiting needs to be done at historically black colleges, which produce a goodpart of the African-American professional class. There. Done.
4
All exellent points and worth noticing.
However, there's another way of looking at the Rockettes that is perhaps broader, and a case can be made, if we are able to step outside of the racism and misogyny (she doesn't mention the hyper-sexualization of the dancers) of the show as an expression of the machine age of the mid 20th century.
The all white dancers are not the main point. It's their UNIFORMITY that is the message, because the machine age was the age of factory workers. They were expected to be extensions of the machines they worked with and the show is an attempt to celebrate that necessity by enshrining it in 'art', a visual statement and attempt to 'normalize' precise mechanical behavior, the aesthetics of the assembly line.
Take a look at China and Korea today, both 'factory' cultures in this historical moment, and you will see the Rockettes aesthetic expanded and performed on a massive scale. The Chinese Olympic ceremonies a few years ago come to mind.
The dancers could be all white, all black, or all Chinese. The race is irrelevant. It's the uniformity that is the point. And the point is lost if the visual line is 'disturbed'.
Just as important is the sexualization of the women. I think this was the part of the show that was for the Dads, and was a compensation to them for taking the kids to what -- to Dads -- would be a boring kids show. Something for the whole family!
A more innocent, and innocently malevolent, but beautiful in its own way, show.
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Should a review of anything really -- any art collection, musical performance, sporting event, restaurant review or even a Yelp review of your local laundromat -- include a discussion of the demographic makeup of the artists or service providers?
Doesn't this review strike some as, well, superficial?
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@Mmm No, actually it doesn't.
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@Mmm While I have real problems with this column, it's a column, not a "review," addressing with Ms. Bellafonte honing in on aspect of it.
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I recently was in New York for the first time in my life (I'm 72 yrs old). Having grown up watching the Macy's Day Parade and other programs with the Rocketts I wanted to see them. As I live in the SW where we certainly have lots of diversity I was suprised to see the mono-colored line. But what suprised me more and made me uncomfortable, was the awkward nativity scene stuck in the middle of the program. I was embarassed by it. It was just weird and took away from my enjoyment of the program.
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@Pat Belletto. Right. How awkward to interrupt a CHRISTmas show with a depiction of the true meaning of Christmas.
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@Pat Belletto People who pay to see a Christmas show know what to expect. I'm Jewish, and I don't want to see dancing menorahs!
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If dancers have color been excluded they should sue and let’s all make noise but could we stop making everything something we should be ashamed of. We should push for more for a diverse troop but let’s not do that and destroy the show in the process.
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To "Justice Holmes" - "they should sue" sounds good - but the fact is that at least in commercial NY theater circles, where it sets to turn out everybody knows evertbody and talks to everybody about who is a "troublemaker" - Even bringing a State government Human Rights action can get you "blacklisted" and being considered "a handful." In Sao many normal businesses, standards are relatively objective, and someone can bring a pretty clear argument that they were "overlooked" only due to having fought for Human Rights in the past.
But in arts, ALL evaluations are subjective, not who's the best, but who's right for the role or job and (indeed quite logically) who will fit in look-wise for the stage pictures the director wants or voice blend well with the others in the impulse and discretion of the music director and often the composer. Truly, questions of who's more qualified for that part or position are impossible to show, and might even be irrelevant to who's cast - absent a person actually saying in a smoking-gun email "I don't want to deal with them because they've brought a Human Rights issue in the past."
(That said, the question of systemic boas is really not who's accepted the jobs, but a look at who's been offered the jobs. The employer has no control over who accepts after they've made the offers.)
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@Freddie Isn't this how so many industries are rife with gender related issues that spawned the #metoo movement? If you make a pt. of it, you get blacklisted. As long as the group with power maintains in opposition to inclusion other than fight the discrimination these problems will continue to be until it becomes economically costly in some way shape or form.
to FDRT (this is 2 of 2)
if you don't like it" approach whenever challenged; pretty much knee-jerk setting an example to others, I must assume it's because it's not criminal just civil, and their victims can either never afford to fight them on a level playing field, or somehow never work on Broadway after they take action. (Think actor Joel Vig from "Hairspray," who had the nerve to want to come back to his job after surgery from an onstage accident. The case law read like Shylock and the merchant, just instead of killing the merchant, they killed the actor's career, the legal $ spent more than a settlement would have cost, and using the "Hairspray" investors' money.))
The Weisslers very notoriously behaved cruelly towards an actor who'd been with "Chicago" over 20 years rather than just pay the measly $35,000 required to buy him out under the Equity contract. They care only about liability, not the death they inadvertently caused.
It's horrible. It sounds awful that I'm saying this, but far more awful that it's unmistakably true. That the stats are there and irrefutable But it sure didn't start in 2016 with Trump. Again, violence is NEVER OK, but how is this happening in the open?
Broadway Producers So Rich and White and Male (Women producers OK if really really rich)
https://combat-all-that-chat-bullies.blogspot.com/2018/09/to-jack-viertel-and-city-center-and.html
No one will listen to this in the community because the blacklist for them is sure.
I’m normally quite skeptical of the diversity police, because it’s an approach that involves so much counting, and dividing up of people by skin tone. But I have to admit that, based on public performances, the Rockettes seem to be sticking to the merest token numbers for non white dancers. It does seem very odd. Of course their customer base is people in town from the heartland and mid-west, as well as well-to-do suburban types. So that explains it really; which is not the same as justifying it. That said, if you look at a dance company like Alvin Ailey it’s mostly dancers of color of course, and it makes you wonder if it’s ok for them to pick dancers based on skin tone and demographics, whether it shouldn’t be fair play the other way around too?
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@Stephen. You make some interesting and valid points for discussion. I wish we could have a rational and reasoned discussion about race. It would be a delightful change.
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@Stephen Alvin Ailey always intended his company to be multiracial and made a point (as the company still does today) of hiring dancers based on their abilities rather than ethnicity. That said, when they started in the late 50s, the company was one of the very few that would hire people of color.
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@Stephen
You do realize that companies like Alvin Ailey and The Dance Theater of Harlem were formed in large part due to the fact that Black dancers weren't given the same opportunities as white ones, don't you?
As for "diversity police" -- it's not about that, as it is about being aware...and yes, also enlightenment.
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This is not surprising because The Rockettes, like Broadway, the Cinema and entertainment in general, has a much longer history of segregation and disenfranchisement than it does of diversity and inclusion.
And most of those attending their shows aren't looking for that one, or maybe two persons of color because they're largely there to be entertained by people who look like they do.
Apparently that road to enlightenment is far longer than previously thought possible.
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@N. Smith So other people don't have a right to their own tastes and preferences in how their spend their time and money?
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@N. Smith The left's obsession with trivial issues like this has made them & their supporters deservedly a national laughing stock. This is politically disastrous & just plays into the hands of Fox News. And progressives still can't figure out why their ideas never get traction in this country. This is why. It is what it it...anachronistic nostalgia. People get over it. If you don't like the racial make-up of the Rockettes then don't go. Problem solved.
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@me No, not if it involves bias in the public/commercial space. Seems like that should be obvious.
1
I noticed the increase in women of color while watching the Macy's parade. Nice to see. I continue to look for greater diversity. The Rockettes have become an American institution, therefore they should reflect America and all of its beautiful colors.
5
I wish I could go to the Rockettes' "Christmas Spectacular!" And I really wish I could see them at 11:00 a.m. on a weekday.
I'm with Josiah -- I noticed several women of color in the Rockettes' performance on the televised Macy's parade and I was pleased to know the Rockettes are no longer lily white. Does Ms. Bellafante have irrefutable proof that women of color have been rejected based on their race? How many audition and what is the ratio of applicants based on race?
If some dancers are rejected because of race that needs to change, but my hunch is that the directors base their decisions on the ability to tap dance, kick high and pivot in a line.
Sounds like the Rockettes aren't Ms. Bellafante's preferred method of entertainment. There's lots to do in NYC -- may I suggest she attend an event she finds less offensive?
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It's nice to know that even in this complicated day and age, a person who sets out in the morning looking to be offended by something, can always have his/her wish granted. Happy Holidays!
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I think it's nice to know that a person who sets out to view the world with their eyes wide open can sometimes see things that others ignore or are oblivious to.
Happy Holidays to you too.
6
I saw the Rockettes on NBC's coverage of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and immediately noticed the heterogeneity. My wife also remarked about it. I am fond of the Rockettes and all the nostalgia, but at a certain point, nostalgia becomes anachronistic. It just looked a bit weird. If Rockettes owners are reading this, hear's a direct message: stop this discriminatory practice; it's out of place and time in NYC in 2018.
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@Josiah What if other people disagree with you? Is everyone obligated to follow your particular tastes and beliefs? I am not especially a Rockettes fan, but I don't demand that others obey my dictates and have the same tastes I do.
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@me Wake up! Wake up! There has been ongoing discrimination on Broadway for decades. Are you really saying that discrimination and not allowing people of color work in a particular area is a personal taste and belief? Whoa. This program is a bastion. It needs to change. There are young black, Hispanic, Asian, and other women who excel in ballet, jazz, and tap who might want this kind of work. If qualified like all the other women in the line and Ms. Jones, hire them!!
4
@me
What if they do disagree? If a person like Josiah, both a citizen and a customer, cannot express his preference to a product provider and call upon them to provide what he wants in the marketplace, what kind of a society is this? Not a free one.
If you have a different preference, express yours, don’t try to bully him into silencing his.
2
Remembering in the musical "Company" there's a character who always wanted to live in Radio City, and thought it was a wonderful city outside New York.
When I saw Josh Groban before he had Broadway credibility, the downstairs section at Radio City seemed like 4,999 women and me. A lady in the row ahead wondered quite loudly what brought me there, and with light in hand ready for waving during "You Raise Me Up." I said I'd heard of him because of hearing Barbara Cook raving about him and I'd never heard him live before.
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@Freddie "thought it was a wonderful city outside New York" You mean it isn't?
1
You’d be amazed to know that this anachronistic, sexist, out-dated event has absolutely no relevance in 2018 to anything. And to those letter-writers who reference girls: they’re “women” dancing, unless they are under age 18.
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And yet people still come to see it. Long lines for tickets every year.
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@Female "No relevance"? It's entertainment! If we eliminated all the entertainment that lacked 'relevance' think what we'd be left with. It's called 'escapism' and, as such, a necessary element in our daily lives and a lot better than opiods or some other kind of drug. Now, isn't that relevance?!
8
Agree with your viewpoint wholeheartedly! This should go the way of beauty pagaents.
3
I hope that any diversity is not in the objective requirements to do their jobs. Race should have no place in that. Now it is expensive and traditional so you might expect the audience to mirror those things.
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@vulcanalex
Honest revealingly Confederate sentiment.
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@vulcanalex
You miss the point: Diversity isn’t part of the job, but being white appears to be. The Rockettes leadership admitted as much as recently as the Reagan years. The authors point is that while they have stopped saying it, they mostly still do it. And casting line dancers based on the color of their skin is precisely making a space for race where it should have none.
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@vulcanalex There are a bazillion capable and beautiful dancers in this country from which to chose troupe members. So from that respect, why not make a deliberate effort to reflect more diversity in the cast?
12
i am all for diversity, but i also dont believe the fine people that produce the christmas spectacular are intentionally racist. many of the girls are repeats year after year - that means change is slow. let's also remember minorities are just that - minorities. while 10% might be a low figure, the troupe will most likely never be half black / latina, nor should it be.
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@AC agreed.
11
@AC Even 8 years ago, "as of 2010, New York City is 44% white, 28% Latino, 25% African American, and 13% percent Asian American." Contrary to your assertion, whites are the minority here. So yes, it has been intentionally racist not to reflect that.
12
@AC
"...the troupe wil most likely never be half black/latina, nor should it be."
Why should it not be half black/latina?
7
They can easily fix this problem, they just don't chose to swing the pendulum as hard as they need to. There are countless dancers of color who would be amazing assets to the Rockettes...you just have to allow them to get past the audition bias
51
Unfortunately, this is not surprising --
Regardless of the fact that we are now in the 21st Century - Christmas in the United States of America remains a "white" holiday --
If you really want to see an extreme example of this - tune your television set to the Hallmark Channel - where the world is peopled with attractive, perfectly-groomed white people --
Imagine a world where everyone looked like Mike Pence --
Yes - one does see an occasional black person appear on the Hallmark Channel -- and my wife - who is black - likes to point out that - "Even the black people are 'white' on that station" --
Christmas is presented as a "white" holiday in America -- except of course when it comes to advertisers who make sure to market their products - such as luxury cars and jewelery - to their black consumer base - who will be spending their gift dollars - just the same as white people...
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@Howard G, Well "Santa Claus" and all related Christmas holiday images were all created by white advertisers, to sell their products to the white customers they were trying to market towards. Even minorities have had these images foisted upon them, which in 2018 should be unacceptable. The idea of a black Santa joining the Rockettes on stage is apparently too much of a movement towards inclusion, that the feelings of the managers and the owners could possibly suffer through.
12
@Fred
How exactly is Santa Claus and Christmas “foisted” upon “even minorities?”
Modern Christmas started as social reform agitation from artists like Washington Irving, Charles Dickens, and Clark Clement Moore and was then turned into advertising fodder by Coca-Cola and others after it “went viral” to use today’s parlance.
While it’s memes are as inflected with racial bias as any other American cultural tradition (how could it be otherwise?), I can’t for the life of me figure out what you find so particularly or stand-out white about Christmas.
The fact that traders want to sell to anyone regardless of race and will use the same calendar based appeal for all is one of the triumphs of liberal democracy, not a matter of somehow singling out and outraging racial minorities.
14
@Howard G Politics aside, Mike Pence looks good to me. And I have a right to my own opinion and tastes, and so do Hallmark's many, many viewers.
2
If we ignore the obvious racist leanings of corporate America we will continue to marginalize minorities. I would like to address M, Katz's remarks with this brief true story. I worked for Seventeen Magazine in the early 80's. In passing re an up coming story about Bill Cosby's daughter the Ad Director said to me " We never will put those people on the cover again, we tried it last year and newsstand was dismal" . So it must of been the Black teenage girl on the cover, not the story lines or a host of other reasons why covers bomb. I see the same unenlightened thinking with Mr Katz's remarks. Is it possible there was simply a subtle racism that lead to having one Black dancer out of 40, and to point this out as wrong will assure the reelect Donald Trump? Really?
34
"NYC was still 3 years away from electing its first black mayor". A one-term leader and the worst mayor in NYC history I might add.
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@Jim Tagley
One term, yes. Worst in NYC history just shows ignorance of NYC history. Worse than the traitor who literally conspired with the Confederates against the United States in time of war? Or the rogues galleries of totally corrupt embezzlers, drunks, and gangster puppets we had regularly for over a century?
It seems to me that Mr. Dinkins looks bad in part because of an accident of history. The revolutionary Charter reform required when the US Supreme Court struck down the system of government used for generations by NYC meant that every Mayor starting with Giuliani had vastly eaxpanded powers and authority. The poor guy who came right before this Executive Branch Big Bang naturally can only look impotent by comparison.
8
@Jim Tagley
"A one-term leader and the worst mayor in NYC..."
Said the person from Naples, Florida.
As a native New Yorker, I'd like to add that David Dinkins wasn't the worst one we've had -- there's plenty of room for Rudy Giuliani on that list.
14
@Jim Tagley: You must never have heard of Jimmy Walker, among others.
9
I went to the show last weekend and also noted that there was only one woman of color in the lineup. For a show in NYC, that seemed really weird to me.
37
@Annie, I really don't know the numbers, but it seems you can only measure bias based on how many offers are made, not how many actually accept the job. For many, being a Rockette really is a dream come true. But just about any show in NYC offers more opportunity for steady work and individuality than being a Rockette. Example: the cast of "Moulin Rouge" in Boston
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1TeNJiIeM0
- the concept allows even so many shapes and sizes, and every cast members or chorus person seemed to have some "moment," even if some sharp funny lines, where a character they were playing was noticed as an individual at some point in the show.
1
It's the constant insistence on forced heterogeneity that will assure the re election of Donald Trump and, thus, the destruction of our democratic republic.
32
How is pointing out facts, and making a recommendations and suggesting balance and equality the equivalent of "forced insistence"? Surely we're evolved enough to see the difference and do the right thing?
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@Daniel Katz
Maybe the current insistence on change is in response to the "constant insistence" of forced homogeneity in the past.
If Trump is re-elected it's upon those who voted for him. It's a little tiring to hear that liberals/minorities/progressives (take your pick) are to blame for Trump's election because they were so annoying in their demands that they drove people to vote for Trump.
If people did not insist on change we would still have segregation and only WASPs would be in the top echelons.
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@rxft
Very good point, and makes mine sort of silly. However, I still worry about "pushiness" having an effect opposite of it's intention; all the while agreeing with your argument.
23