Confederate States of America

Last night, whilst Dean was watching Top Chef, I watched The Confederate States of America, a mockumentary produced by Spike Lee. The premise was what would have happened if the Confederacy had won the Civil War. The movie was both disturbing and funny (as it was meant to be).

In the mockumentary, France and England aid the South against the North, and win the war. Many people don't know that France and England nearly did aid the South (for economic trade reasons).

In between fake history (like Abe Lincoln captured and tried for war crimes and eventually exiled to Canada), news, commercials, and the Chattel Shopping Network (where you can buy slaves over the telephone), there were real racist products and places that were interspersed throughout. Only, you didn't realize they were real products until the end of the movie, when they showed it to you.

For example, Niggerhair Cigarettes and Darky Toothpaste were marketed well into the 20th century, some as late as 1980. The Coon Chicken Inn was a restaurant shaped as the head of a man in blackface. The entrance was his mouth. This restaurant operated until the 1950s.

And still today there remain racist products -- Aunt Jemima syrup and Uncle Ben's rice to name just 2. See a brief slide show at Slate.