Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively apologize for getting married on a plantation. It only took 8 years and mass anti-racism protests.

[TP-DK]

I'm not from the US and I kind of assumed that all plantations were kind of like "remodeled" or changed to be like normal mansions to live in, but a quick Google search seems to show they have been turned into memorials / historical landmarks. Is it like that for most of them?
When I first read the title I thought it was like someone renting out their house that just happened to be a plantation long ago, but if it's a historical landmark and it's being advertised as an old plantation it's just fucked up.

How does that even work "Come hold your wedding at this lovely plantation that used to treat black people worse than insects. If you look to the left there's a beautiful view of the field where the slaves used to drop dead like flies because of starvation, perfect place for a dinner table."

 

[DeathyBoy]

I'm not from the US and I kind of assumed that all plantations were kind of like "remodeled" or changed to be like normal mansions to live in, but a quick Google search seems to show they have been turned into memorials / historical landmarks. Is it like that for most of them?
When I first read the title I thought it was like someone renting out their house that just happened to be a plantation long ago, but if it's a historical landmark and it's being advertised as an old plantation it's just fucked up.

How does that even work "Come hold your wedding at this lovely plantation that used to treat black people worse than insects. If you look to the left there's a beautiful view of the field where the slaves used to drop dead like flies because of starvation, perfect place for a dinner table."

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At a stretch they could've have just thought it was a beautiful place to get married.

But that's at a stretch. No way do a Hollywood couple not vet the place they're getting married at.

 

[Dice]

How does that even work "Come hold your wedding at this lovely plantation that used to treat black people worse than insects. If you look to the left there's a beautiful view of the field where the slaves used to drop dead like flies because of starvation, perfect place for a dinner table."

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lol, I imagine they don't advertise it, but who knows how that convo goes. :s

 

[McScroggz]

Good shit. I don't know which plantation they got married on but as somebody that lives in this Deep South I can tell you plantations aren't marked with a "home of slavery" sign. Some are just fancy houses and aren't even called plantations (though that word is still used unfortunately). Confusingly, and maybe this has been done on purpose to whitewash, the term plantation is used for newer things. So as obvious as it is to us to draw the connection between plantation and slavery, I can see a naive person not making those connections.

I certainly hope nobody makes the argument that getting married on one is somehow a tacit endorsement of racism or anything like that.

 

[DeathyBoy]

Good shit. I don't know which plantation they got married on but as somebody that lives in this Deep South I can tell you plantations aren't marked with a "home of slavery" sign. Some are just fancy houses and aren't even called plantations (though that word is still used unfortunately). Confusingly, and maybe this has been done on purpose to whitewash, the term plantation is used for newer things. So as obvious as it is to us to draw the connection between plantation and slavery, I can see a naive person not making those connections.

I certainly hope nobody makes the argument that getting married on one is somehow a tacit endorsement of racism or anything like that.

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Of course not. But they clearly need to use a bit more common sense.

 

[ShyMel]

I'm not from the US and I kind of assumed that all plantations were kind of like "remodeled" or changed to be like normal mansions to live in, but a quick Google search seems to show they have been turned into memorials / historical landmarks. Is it like that for most of them?
When I first read the title I thought it was like someone renting out their house that just happened to be a plantation long ago, but if it's a historical landmark and it's being advertised as an old plantation it's just fucked up.

How does that even work "Come hold your wedding at this lovely plantation that used to treat black people worse than insects. If you look to the left there's a beautiful view of the field where the slaves used to drop dead like flies because of starvation, perfect place for a dinner table."

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White people just see the big old mansions and completely disregard the torture that occurred on the property.

 

[rjinaz]

Yeah to me it would be like wanting to get married in front of a cemetary. Except, you know, with the plantations you're also dismissing the racist history to have pretty pictures. Disgusting.

 

[Jegriva]

Cool. How does that change anything ?

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I am pretty sure some organizations could do A LOT with 200k US dollars...

 

[McScroggz]

Of course not. But they clearly need to use a bit more common sense.

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Definitely. I think that's part of the problem.

Plus A LOT of "Southern Pride" that is thinly veiled racism that has caused many arguments.

I don't think it's as much ignorance as it is simply not even making the connection in the first place. Which, that's fucked up.

 

[Deleted member 6949]

It takes a Hollywood power couple level of narcissism to look at what's going on and make it about your wedding.

 

[Alucrid]

Good shit. I don't know which plantation they got married on but as somebody that lives in this Deep South I can tell you plantations aren't marked with a "home of slavery" sign. Some are just fancy houses and aren't even called plantations (though that word is still used unfortunately). Confusingly, and maybe this has been done on purpose to whitewash, the term plantation is used for newer things. So as obvious as it is to us to draw the connection between plantation and slavery, I can see a naive person not making those connections.

I certainly hope nobody makes the argument that getting married on one is somehow a tacit endorsement of racism or anything like that.

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people make "modern" plantations with all the aesthetics that people love but without the actual historical baggage of being a relic from the antebellum south. of course profiting off cosplaying as a slave plantation doesn't actually make it better than using real slave plantations for the same purpose.

 

[McScroggz]

people make "modern" plantations with all the aesthetics that people love but without the actual historical baggage of being a relic from the antebellum south. of course profiting off cosplaying as a slave plantation doesn't actually make it better than using real slave plantations for the same purpose.

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Yeah it's something I'm really uncomfortable with here. People in the South care about heritage and are very prideful and I think building "new plantations" is a twisted way of acknowledging heritage while also trying to rehabilitate the word plantation. Unfortunately I imagine for a lot of people it works as intended.

 

[TSM]

The feeling I got during the 5 years I lived in central Louisiana was that these plantation home's main draw is for people to get a taste of what life would have been like for white people if the north had not won the civil war. I was asked many times if I wanted to go visit the "beuatiful" plantation houses and declined. They are repugnant, and people that glory in them know exactly what they are up to.

 

[lt519]

This apology seems like it's better than, well, not apologizing.

Publicizing their donation seems... self-serving, to say the least. Just donate and feel good about the help you're providing. Don't milk it for the views and distraction.

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The problem is if they didn't announce their donation you'd have everyone down their throat about it being lip service and responding (like in this thread) with the "Brand" tweet. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. So they are just getting out in front of that rhetoric, "look we're not all talk, here's the donation we made," is basically a must for any rich/brand at this point. In the end it's raising awareness and counter-programming all the kids that follow them that dream of growing up and having a wedding on a "beautiful" plantation.

People can be skeptical of their intentions, but it doesn't take away from this being a good message to raise awareness.

 

[BlackNMild2k1]

So it's a new house, on just a few acres of land, with no history of slavery?

What exactly is the problem with building a house in a neo-classical style?

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I don't know all the history of the land, I just know that the "island" is majority black owned in the marshlands of the South. But to move into the middle of a bunch of black people out in the country in the South, and build a house that represents the times that most of the neighbors would rather not have a daily visual reminder of, doesn't come across as a potential problem, then I'm not really sure what to say.

The same reason that RR and BL would want to apologize for having their wedding at a historical Plantation house 8 yrs ago, is the same reason why a bunch of multi-generation southern black families may not want a new one built next door.

 

[CloseTalker]

It takes a Hollywood power couple level of narcissism to look at what's going on and make it about your wedding.

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There's probably a level of them knowing that if they said anything about BLM and didn't address their wedding, people would instantly throw it in their faces. Better for them to just address it themselves, it's a smart move.

 

[SRG01]

Yeah, and I think retroactively reflecting on that makes it absolutely forgivable. But at that moment someone points it out to you've got to start questioning - not 8 years later!

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Anecdotally: during our Prime Minister's blackface controversy, I was surprised at how many people in my circle did not know what blackface even was, let alone understand why it was a problem when it was explained multiple times. It was one of the most eye-opening experiences of my life. People were simply not as progressive or self-aware as I thought they were.

 

[nekkid]

Bet they don't take their wedding photos down...

 

[canseesea]

....

no one is unaware of this

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By and large though, most white people tend to believe that it doesn't count as racist if there wasn't a clear ill intent when most institutional harm is allowed by ignorance and misunderstanding.

 

[Fisty]

Isn't Reynolds from Vancouver? Like, ya really went out of your way dawg

 

[entremet]

I think redemptive acts are a good thing. We need to give people a space to grow and admit wrongs.

 

[Deleted member 6730]

How is an American who learned about the Civil War and slavery in school "misinformed" about plantations?

 

[DiipuSurotu]

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively donate $200K to NAACP amid George Floyd protests

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively have donated $200,000 to the National Association of Colored People (NAACP) Legal Defense Fund in the wake of protests taking place across the U.S. following the death of George Floyd.

ew.com

 

[TheAuldTriangle]

Imagine having your wedding in a fucking plantation house.

An actual house of horror and here some folks are having their weddings there.

Lack of awareness speaks volumes for the rich and famous.