Originally Posted by JV

Damn. That's a shame. She oughta be canned immediately, with or without any sort of apology she oughta not be working with children.

Slightly OT: Nagin's "chocolate city" comment wasn't so bad. See the Paliament song by the same name, which was basically about Washington DC's emergence as a majority black city with a black Mayor. Black Americans don't have a second language like hispanics or other ethnic groups, so colloquial English is easily understood by whites, asians, etc. when it is spoken, and sometimes taken too literally.

Black people in New Orleans contributed over hundreds of years and made the city what it is today, same as the French and Spanish did in its early days. It's the same as the Mexican influence in the Southwest, Chinese in Seattle and San Fran, the many immigrants from all over in NYC, Chicago, etc. Take away that ingredient and you have a completely different flavor.

Nagin was certainly talking to the people who would know what the phrase meant when he used it. I'm sure if a hurricane hit Salt Lake City and the mayor came out and said Salt Lake must remain a "Vanilla Village" it wouldn't have the same connotation, because he'd be coining that phrase (or stealing it from me if he reads this forum), and not appropriating it from a pop culture reference or song or book, etc.

My .02 which ain't worth a penny.

JV