Don't Have People in Blackface at Your Birthday Party

Welcome to another edition of This Week in Racism. I’ll be ranking news stories on a scale of 1 to RACIST, with “1” being the least racist and “RACIST” being the most racist.

-An Australian girl currently known only as "Olivia" became internet infamous this week for posting a bunch of photos from her "Africa"-themed 21st birthday party. In Australia, I guess "Africa-themed" parties traditionally include plenty of racist caricatures of black people, dudes in gorilla costumes, and a dude in a KKK outfit. If you haven't had your eyeballs melted by these pictures yet, please prepare to lose your ability to see the majesty of human existence!

Still trying to figure out what a Klansman is doing at an African-themed birthday party. You can't tell a black person to "go back to Africa" if they're already there.

An elephant never forgets… unless we're talking about remembering to respect ethnic minorities!

Please note the title of the album on Facebook was "This is My Africa." I've never been to Africa, but if it's as lame as this party looks, then you can have it, baby.

The girl who threw the party issued a statement on her Tumblr, which was subsequently deleted. In the statement, she offered a rebuttal to anyone who dared be offended by her friends' decision to buy all the grease paint and Darque Tan oil in Australia and apply it to their faces:

"I am 100% sure that parties would be held that would be ‘Australian themed’ or American themed or even countries of the world, and in that instance I don’t believe anyone would be offended. People wear oktoberfest cotumes [sic] to parties and no one cracks it that they are not German?"

I am 100 percent sure that if I had an Australian-themed party, I wouldn't paint my face white. But that just might be because I hate costume parties. RACIST

-Kevin Reilly, the Editor-in-Chief of the Atlanta Journal Constitution has apologized in print for the folly of the silly-billies running their Twitter account that posted the following joke-em-up about Georgia Lottery winner Willie Lynch:

The apology came immediately, in both print and Twitter form.

The AJC apologizes for & deeply regrets the tweet that was posted earlier today. We are working to address this situation internally.

— AJC (@ajc) October 23, 2013

No one seems to know the identity of the culprit, but I'm almost certain there's a very confused, super disappointed internship coordinator in the greater Atlanta metro area out there. RACIST

-Remember the story about the Swiss clothing store that refused to sell Oprah a handbag because the clerk didn't believe she could afford to buy it? Well, shockingly, similar things happen here in the racially harmonious nation called America too, and to people who aren't even famous!

Barneys New York has twice been accused of racially profiling paying customers in the last week. 19-year-old Trayon Christian was detained by police after purchasing a $300 Ferragamo belt with money he earned from a part-time job. Despite having proper, valid ID and plenty of money in his bank account NYPD plain clothes officers handcuffed him and placed him in custody. Christian claims he was detained for two hours, while the police stated he was only held for 45 minutes. Christian has filed a lawsuit in conjunction with his accusation. The suit alleges Christian suffered "great physical and mental distress and humiliation."

The belt that got Trayon Christian arrested

Yesterday, another black youth stepped forward with a story of racially profiling at Barneys. Kayla Phillips, 21, told the New York Daily News that she was accosted by police after buying a $2,500 purse from the flagship Madison Avenue Barneys on February 28th. She purchased the bag with a sizeable tax refund she had just received that day.

“There were three men and a woman. Two of them attacked me and pushed me against a wall, and the other two appeared in front of me, blocking the turnstile,” she told the Daily News. “They kept asking how I could afford this expensive bag and why had I paid for it with a card with no name on it." Phillips is also planning to sue the NYPD for $5 million, though the suit is still pending.

The Daily News also said the NYPD has reported 53 cases of credit card fraud at the Madison Avenue Barneys alone. Identity theft is a real problem. I had my card stolen and someone in Canada spent $80 on snacks at a gas station before the bank closed my account. The number of people who have been victims of this crime is growing. Still, I don't think "being black" counts as probable cause in this country, unless someone decides to make "having a killer 15-foot jump shot" a crime.

This doesn't come at a great time for the outgoing Bloomberg administration, who has been flailing around to defend the NYPD's racially problematic Stop and Frisk policy. If these sorts of embarrassments don't cause the Mayor's office and the police to reconsider their tactics, then maybe nothing will. RACIST

The Top Racist Tweets of the Week:

This chink is trying to holler. Like, no me gusta young grasshopper..

— Anya Gamez (@AnyaGamez13) October 25, 2013

I'm not racist but I will Never trust a white person with dreads lol #sorry

— POPGATES™ (@IAMPOPGATES) October 21, 2013

My dad came home with tan for me and greeted me with hello wanna be nigger

— Aisling Cahill (@Aislingcahillxx) October 25, 2013

Yall know why Stevie Wonder cant read? … Cause hes a nigger.

— Chet Walken (@Walken4GOP) October 18, 2013

Shout out to that Beaner cholo kid who just got arrested at canyon. One less bean to deal with, dozens left to go. Just arrest them all.

— Danny Lux (@Im_Not_Brown) October 15, 2013

Judging by all the white people in here, Cracker Barrel is the most appropriately named restaurant ever.

— paola almeida (@iceScreamPaola) October 20, 2013

I would rather leave my kids with a pedophile than a nigger

— Jamie (@jamievandekamp) October 15, 2013

Last Week in Racism: Police Dogs in Los Angeles Are Super Racist

@dave_schilling