Essay 269

Late-breaking MultiCultClassics Minutes…

• Walgreens is becoming a regular newsmaker on this blog. After facing accusations of racial discrimination on numerous occasions, the drugstore chain is now charged with religious discrimination. Three pharmacists allegedly refused to fill prescriptions for emergency contraceptives, and the company placed them on unpaid leave. An advocacy group complained the pharmacists were “effectively fired” — although Walgreens insists they violated a state rule requiring the prescriptions be filled. “The Pharmacy America Trusts” may soon be changed to “The Pharmacy America Busts.”

• Coca-Cola changed its slogan to “Welcome to the Coke side of life.” The new campaign will probably feature supermodel Kate Moss.

• A report in USA Today showed Black Baby Boomers are heading south. Meanwhile, Mexican immigrants are moving north. It must be a fucking nightmare for White folks.

• California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger heard lawyers argue over the fate of Crips gang founder Stanley Tookie Williams. Now let’s see which role Schwarzenegger will play — The Terminator, Kindergarten Cop or The Running Man.

• A new cable TV show will let a Black family and a White family switch racial identities through the art of makeup. The series will debut in March on FX. But the Black family will probably launch a spin-off with BET.

• A San Francisco cop has been suspended for producing movies for a Christmas party that included a racy takeoff on Charlie’s Angels. “It is shameful, it is offensive, it is sexist, it is homophobic and it is racist,” proclaimed Mayor Gavin Newsom. The movies will probably run on FX soon.