When I covered the ads from Sunday’s Superbowl, I focused on the humorous, the absurd and the very moving. So I skipped the Coca Cola ad, which was high production enough but seemed about the same as their famous “teach the world to sing” ads. It was nice, it was somewhat touching, but I found it forgettable. It was a tribute to the diversity of our country and how we come from all over the world and are united in our love of sugary beverages. I thought Heinz did it better and funnier. Here’s the ad:
Only leave it to some ignoramuses on Twitter to make a big deal out of the fact that Coke dared to sing a patriotic song in different languages. People claimed that the song was in “a terrorist’s language” and the idiotic hashtag #speakamerican was trending. This is indicative of the type of people who would complain about this. They think “American” is a language. E! has some of the tweets if you’re interested, and they point out that of course more people were defending the ad and were calling out the detractors.
E! Online also lets us know that this commercial was “the first time a gay family has been included in a Super Bowl ad.” I guess they’re referring to the guys skating at around :45 in, but it’s hard to notice amid everything else in the ad.
As someone who lived in a foreign country for years, I just want to point out that it’s very likely that 99% of the people complaining about other languages speak only English. You hear that tired complaint from people who don’t know a second language. “Why can’t everyone speak English in America?” To that I ask, “have you even tried to speak another language beyond taking required classes in high school?” It’s easy to say “everyone should speak English,” when it’s all you know and you’ve barely tried to see what it’s like to learn another language.
But this is a commercial we’re talking about, how is it offensive to acknowledge that people speak other languages in our country, which is supposed to be a melting pot of different languages and cultures? I don’t get it.
Have you seen the long ad that Bob Dylan did for Chrysler? (That’s below) The subtext is American pride and patriotism, and Dylan’s voiceover says “You can’t import the heart and soul of every man and woman working on the line… let Germany brew your beer, let Switzerland make your watch… we will build your car.” Dylan also appears in the ad throughout, which seems unprecedented for him. Many people are saying that Dylan sold out, while others point out that he sold out years ago and this is kind of the culmination of that. He did a Victoria’s Secret commercial 10 years ago, after all.
Some people need to get a life! It’s just a commercial get over it! I wish more Americans will show this much concern about our economy or health care! On a lighter note the best commercial last Sunday was Budweiser’s “Puppy Love” . 🙂
The term “terrorists language” just really pisses me off. It’s such a dense statement. I agree, I wish more people would care this much about important things! SMH!
Someone would have a legit claim English is a terrorist language (Timothy McVeigh, for example).
I’m not going to get political here but I agree. It also infuriates me when people seem to equate terrorists with one particular race/religion/ethnicity. The same morons who don’t class what’s gone on in Ireland, Northern Ireland and the UK (as just one example) as terrorism.
(sorry for going OT)
+ 1
The same people complaining about this commercial and how we should only speak “American” probably order food from their local Chinese and Indian restaurants on the regular. They just need to realize how so many cultures have influenced America and made it better. Oh and the last I heard, terrorists come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and religions !
So true. When I was about 19, I worked at a Target in Nevada for the summer and a co-worker of mine, around my age, worked two full time jobs to help support his family who had immigrated from Mexico. He used to complain that the same people who would use racial slurs against him would come in to the store and buy Corona branded swim trunks. After working a full shift at Target, he would head over to another full shift at Taco Bell where he would have to serve people who were on their way home from a rally to build a wall along the border. They classified his mere existence as illegal without knowing anything about his immigration history, yet they were fine with buying crappy tacos from him when it served their needs.
Sorry for the lengthy story, but this ‘controversy’ boils my blood and that experience has always stuck in my mind.
@ Lee
Thanks for sharing. I hope that young man’s hard work paid off so he no longer has to be degraded by morons. I hate hypocrites.
+++ YES frenzy thank you!
a lot of people are just narrow and stupid and idiotic
I loved this Coke ad – it made me cry! We are a nation of immigrants and are, in fact, a nation with no official language. And that should be celebrated. So, yeah, how *dare* these people who speak another language celebrate America! The ignorance of some people is just staggering.
+1 Unless your ancestors were Native Americans, we are all immigrants.
+ a billion.
did the ad really have someone singing in cherokee?
actually even native americans came across the bering strait at one point sooooooooooooo we are all immigrants
Agreed, V4Real. To put a finer point on it, chris, America’s indigenous people were The First Native Americans.
I thought it was nice.
Isn’t America filled with different cultures and backgrounds?
To those idiots that were trending #speakamerican..
1: The only real American’s are the Native American’s if you want to get technical
2: American isn’t a language you dumb nitwits.
“#speakamerican”? LOL That’s deeply stupid. This entire “uproar” is, of course.
Maybe it’s because I’m a child of immigrants, but I don’t undertand how people can get upset over this commercial unless they’ve been living under a rock until, say, Saturday.
This ad is not even implying that the people singing other languages do not speak English, as well as their first language. It’s just showing pride in their diverse heritages.
Most people I know in this very diverse area of NJ and nearby Philly that speak their first languages in the home (Spanish, Indian, Vietnamese, Mandarin, etc) also speak English when they are out of the home.
People are so dumb. Their minds are numb.
Exactly!!
Thank you. Exactly.
+1
I read some of the hateful twitter-comments and people went out of their way to spread hate and prejudice, they did not even realize their own spelling mistakes while demanding the song only be sung in English. I did not know if I should cry or laugh.
To all the yahoos screaming about how we only SPEAK AMERICAN in this country-the indigenous tribes of this part of the continent would like to have a word with you.
Right! My first thought was, ‘like what? Chippewa? They want we should speak Apache?’
It makes me cringe when someone refers to “American” as a language or a skin color, as I noticed with the uproar over the Cheerios ad.
Ha! at the super bowl party we were at someone made the “speak American” comment, my husband said, guess you should brush up on your Cherokee…guy shut up quick.
I’m always amazed when people play that dumb “speak American!” card. Unless you are 100% truly Native American and have no ancestry from any other corner of the world, just sit down.
I loved the Coke ad in all of it’s intention. I do wonder about the translation of what is being sung. Were non-Americano words chosen based on their fit to the meter and scale of the song or were the words a fairly close translation of what the original American-o words were?
Honestly it doesn’t make me like the commercial more or less whichever route Coke took to create the script. My question is purely a nerdy inquiry.
I often wonder that about translated songs, say in musicals that are performed abroad.
It seems to be a little from both, the message stays the same but rather than being a direct translation which wouldn’t fit or make sense, the lyrics are changed to fit the music.
I’m Filipino and heard part of the lyrics in Tagalog (yay!) and it is a literal translation of the “above the fruits” part of the song.
It was pretty awesome hearing your native language in the commercial and I love how the commercial really celebrated diversity. So baffled by the backlash…
I loved the Ad and it spoke to me. I’m a naturalized American, born in a former British colony. English is my first language, but I speak my native language too. One of the things that irritaed me about many of the comments I read was that people don’t seem to realize that you CAN speak a second language and be “American”. How hard is that to understand? I wish more people had exposure to the rest of the world. Being bi-or tri-lingual is not a bad thing. I can’t understand how people can think it’s bad.
I think people that think only English should be spoken are in fact angry they can not understand whoever else is speaking. It’s all about fear. Since I come from a family that spoke only English and am now treading water in another language and culture, I feel I can say this. Does not mean the mentality is okay at all.
I agree and I hope you succeed in learning a new language 🙂
But there’s also an element of entitlement. “English is the be-all and end-all” and it really isn’t. Other languages are equally valid.
You are so right about it being based in fear. Most stupid/angry stuff like that is, and it’s really about their own shortcomings and insecurities.
THIS. My mom (with her many flaws) always told me that reactions, at their basest, are only love- or fear- responses. When you get into extreme reactionary territory, it’s all fear.
+ all of the above. it does help to recognize this. 🙂
I think it’s shocking that people don’t appreciate the fact that the idea of ‘America’ trancends language barriers. I’m Dutch, but the idea of America as the land of the free, land of opportunities, the American dream has become an extremely powerful and worldwide archetype over the last three centuries and I would think that this is something every American would be proud of.
I think people forget that at one time — a great many Americans DID speak 2nd and 3rd languages. The race to speak English stems from our immigrant past and we simply forgot to teach our kids the language of our grandparents (my grandfather or FarFar’s first language was Swedish and the rest of my grandparent’s were fluent or knew German).
Cute aside: In my mother’s church in Minnesota, there is a sign showing the times for both English and German services. Granted that was phased out but not as long ago as people might think.
Yeah, I wish racist idiots would stop making me want to buy Coke, because it’s gross. (So is Pepsi. I’m an equal-opportunity soda hater.)
I’m with you! That commercial was BEAUTIFUL, I don’t drink soda, but I want to buy some just to support the Coke idea.
I am reminded of Saturday morning cartoons and School House Rock educating us that the United States was “the great American melting pot”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32l3sTFRFX8
Singing the beauty of your country, regardless of language, is wonderful to behold.
Some of the same people who complain about this sort of thing and ‘immigrants’ are the same people who say they’re Irish or Irish-American when they’re fifth generation American. So it’s okay to hang on to some culture and heritage but others have to let go of theirs to assimilate into America. (BTW not knocking the Irish, just using that example because it pisses me off as a child of an Irishman).
I actually AM Irish-American. Born and raised in Ireland, naturalized American.
If the commercial only depicted “European Immigrants” I don’t think people would have been complaining, but as soon as they show the Arab woman wearing her Hijab, they got infuriated and out came the racist “terrorist” comments. The people making those comments probably like Greek/Italian/British immigrants I bet. Ridiculous on so many levels.
Unless they we’re Slavic. We’re only communists and prostitutes. You have to be the right kind of European.
@ SonjaMarmeladova
That’s horrible.
That was not Arabic. It was Urdu, so the girl was Pakistani, not Arab. Not everyone in a hijab is Arab; most Muslims in the world are Indian, Pakistani and Malaysian, not Arab.
@ 123
I never saw the commercial and only read the comments listed. I do know the difference between Pakistani, Indian, etc. as I am well travelled. The reason I mentioned “Arab” is because THAT is what those idiot racist Americans see when they look at a woman wearing a Hijab. They haven’t bothered to learn anything about anyone who isn’t “American”. It’s a total lack of education. Anyways, you totally missed the point of my comment.
That’s true in the case of my FIL who always brings up the fact that he is Irish.
Feebee, I know what you mean! I’m Irish, living in Canada (I emigrated 3 years ago) and every time we travel to the States we meet “Irish” people. I think a lot of the time though, people tell us that to identify with us and strike up a conversation. It’s a nice thing and doesn’t bother me. Unless they start pontificating on how they can “resolve the troubles” which has happened a few times (!), THEN I find it annoying!
I would have loved this commercial because of its diversity of the cast really reflecting the beauty of this country but it would have made more sense to have “America the beautiful” completely in English. I just dont understand the non -english part of it showing the melting pot of America when this country has people from all cultures and races speaking English and working together. It seems more like a global commercial rather than American because of the other languages and therefore kind of misses its mark in my opinion.
I thought the visuals were beautiful.
Can we love this country ONLY if we say it in English?
I feel like you’re trying to paint your distaste for a patriotic song being sung in other languages (by Americans, btw) under the pretty guise of “we all speak English and work together” umm…some don’t speak it and some do and there are even others who are learning it but are still more comfortable speaking their first language, that doesn’t mean people can’t love America nor does it make it wrong for them to sing love for our country in the language they are comfortable with.
May I ask how many languages you speak? You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. FTR, I am bilingual working on becoming trilingual in Hindi and then I plan to study Japanese, I loved that I could understand some of the words that were not in English.
Actually I speak Spanish (it was my minor in college) and in fact volunteer with the free ESL classes at my church. I think everyone should be at the very least bilingual and it makes me sad that American schools don’t immerse students in another language like Europe does.
There are a lot of spanish speaking immigrants in my area (its a farming area and there are a lot of poultry processing plants here so a lot of migrants are in and out of the area depending on the season) and there is a great bit of pride in my students voices when they can express themselves in English because they get to participate in the community.
In no way am I advocating #ENGLISHONLYINAMERICA I think of it as the “common language” i guess that brings people together in this country. This whole hoopla could have been avoided.
I don’t understand the statement that “America The Beautiful” being sung in languages other than English makes it “global.”
It’s not a global song, sung normally in other countries.
It’s sung by mainly Americans & many Americans speak languages other than just English.
Even during the time of the Founding Fathers & before them, English was never the only language spoken by all the European immigrants.
There was never a time in North American history, including before & after the creation of the United States, in which it was ever English-only.
Being able to speak English does not make one ‘more’ American.
Being able to speak another language & not having an Anglo-Saxon descendant does not make one ‘less’ American.
English is not the official language of the US. No language is. The Founding Fathers purposely never designated an official language.
English may be the majority language used here, but that does not mean that speakers of other languages should be considered less of an American than those who sing “America The Beautiful” in English only.
I understand what you are saying and it is not that we can only love this country if we say it in English. We just use english as a common language that we all can share and it brings us together. I absolutely believe that immigrants should retain their native language as well as become fluent in English which is the common language here. When you are in mixed company you should speak in a language that all understand. I have personally experienced bilingual people laughing and joking about the fact that some people cannot understand what they are saying as they proceed to talk trash. That is just plain rude. If you are unwilling to learn English, in my opinion, you do not want to be part of the ‘melting pot’. I think some people miss the point there.
Coke is an evil company, but this is a beautiful commercial. Anyone who thinks it doesn’t represent the very best about America has some deep-seated issues.
The one negative is that I wish they would have included at least one First Nation language, like Lakota or Cherokee.
This was my wish, as well.
Also, the author of “America the Beautiful” was a lesbian who lived with her wife for 25 years, until the latter’s death. She also left the GOP because of their rising xenophobia.
“America the Beautiful” is NOT our National anthem, and all the tweets screaming our Anthem was besmirched make me lol. Idiot bigots.
Yes. A “Boston Marriage,” they called it back then.
Anyway, I noticed that, too. It’s NOT the National Anthem. People who don’t know that shouldn’t be allowed to bitch about these kinds of things. If people have to learn that to become part of our country, we should know it, too.
FWIW I don’t care for ANY ads, but attacking this one seems ridic.
I thought the commercial was really touching. We were all immigrants here (native Americans notwithstanding) at one time, and we welcome people from all walks of life. I think that is one of the things that makes America special, and I actually felt a lot of pride while watching. I have neighbors from many parts of the world in our small community, and I think my kids really benefit from it. Yesterday, we got a ton of snow here, and I had children born in China, Pakistan, India, the Phillippines and the UK sledding down our hill with my boys. I don’t notice it most of the time, but it’s special. The flip side is they can curse in five different languages. 😉
There are ignorant people everywhere – good for the internet in calling them out!
What a sweet visual, all the kids sledding together.
🙂
Thanks! Sometimes I need a reminder to appreciate the things I take for granted. 🙂
We all do! It’s nice you could stop and appreciate it 🙂
I am not politically correct and I believe in the melting pot equation when we take a little of each culture that comes here and we incorporate it into the American culture. But I also believe that every nation should have just one language that unites us and in some way make us the same even if we pray to a different god or eat different food. And since it was an English speaking country that settled this land (or stole this land depending on where you sit) it has been English for over two hundred years. And yes I get that we are all immigrants but if we didn’t have something to unite us we would stay in our own little groups and then we are no longer a melting pot but as some sociologist call it a salad. And I don’t think I am prejudice when I say this. God knows when I travel I try and learn the tourist equivalent of each countries primary language. And if I decided to become a citizen of that land I would learn their language so that I could be a good citizen. I don’t see how everyone sticking to their culture and language makes us a strong country.
The first European settlers in North America were Spanish. St Augustine, Florida is the oldest continuously inhabited European settlement in the United States. And yes, we absolutely “stole” this land (and, you know, committed genocide for it). If we’re going by the “who was here first” rule, we’d be speaking a Native American language, then Spanish, THEN English, but I guess the English settlers thought it was just fine to “stick to their culture and language.”
There is nothing in the commercial to indicate that the people who sang in different languages don’t also speak English. Is the simple acknowledgement that this country is full of diversity REALLY that much of a threat to “American culture?” I mean, seriously?
I’m not American but I’m pretty sure genocide played a big role in your country’s establishment. So yeah, you guys pretty much STOLE from the Native American.
A lot of countries were built on genocide.
@ Dawn
I agree with you. Most countries have their “official language” and it does create a sense of unity & national pride. Nothing wrong with that. Remember what was done in Biblical times? Tower of Babel, anyone? If you want to divide & confuse the people…confound their language.
@ Mika…at some point everyone’s land was invaded & stolen.
I’m not making excuses — just stating the facts.
Everyone except the white Americans, right?
@ Nerd Alert
Read up…Whites have gotten their arses kicked as well. Apparently, no one is exempt.
Cecilia, you should ask your money back for that history degree. The tower of Babel is not a metaphor, BTW, it’s an allegory. Can’t be used as a historical example. And if you happen to live in California learn some Spanish, that’ll save the future confusion you mention.
Read up on what, specifically?
I mean this in a sincere way: you need to take a community course on American History. Your post is really mistaken. And, you’re not the only person in this thread I’m directing that at.
I have a Degree in History.
@cecilia if you do have a degree in history (as I have too) it makes me sad that you would use the tower of Babel as an example. The degree appears to have been lost on you.
@ Wilma…Metaphorically speaking, the Tower of Babel is very poignant in this conversation. As it appears you have not studied Ancient History, your smug comment falls flat.
@ sj
The Biblical story of the Tower of Babel provides one of the central metaphors of the book. In the story, the builders sought to build a tower that reached to heaven—a metaphor for the attempt to reach the infinite through finite means.
The relevance of a Bronze Age work of fiction to contemporary American realities is light, if not non-existent. I don’t see language diversity bringing disunity, but making us stronger, flexible, adaptable, and compassionate.
What next, Cecilia? The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe?
It’s telling that your history “examples” are coming from the bible. Get your “history” degree at a Christian University, did you?
“I don’t see how everyone sticking to their culture and language makes us a strong country.”
I appreciate that you stated your point in a clear and fair way, but diversity makes every population better, human or animal. This is just pure and simple Darwinism. The more diverse the population, the stronger the offspring and the stronger the community. When people come from far away, they bring food, language, and customs to your culture. There are a great many things you enjoy because foreigners brought them here.
It’s one thing to have a national language, but it sounds like you are advocating for these people to forget their native tongues. Just because they speak English at work or in public doesn’t mean they do all the time, and they shouldn’t. If you moved to another country, you say you would learn the language, but would you stop using English all together? How would you feel if someone there told you to? The people in the ad weren’t ordering sandwiches. They were singing a song about a country that celebrates diversity, for the most part.
All questions can be answered by observing nature…our natural setting, as opposed to all the man-made creations. Like wants to be with like. There is great comfort in that. Let’s see…we have Chinatown, Little Italy, Irish & German enclaves & the list goes on. That’s how country’s were born. There is nothing wrong in people taking pride in who they are or where they came from. Once people are divided, they are easily conquered.
Actually, in my field the saying goes “like dissolves like,” and Chinatown is NOT nature (*cough*man-made*cough*). You have a History degree? I have a science degree, so allow me.
In actual nature, packs and flocks are regularly divided to keep the species strong. Animals instinctively switch it up to make sure there’s not too much interbreeding and the offspring are stronger, leading to a stronger next generation. Animals are driven to make this happen.
I’m also a little confused by your point? Should we divide into Little Italy and Chinatown, or should we mix together and enrich each other? I mean, part of the reason people immigrate to begin with is because their beliefs won’t be persecuted and their diversity is supposed to be celebrated. I’m sure you’re familiar with the concept of a subculture and its benefits, so why would you want everyone to speak the same language? (If that IS what you’re advocating, your post read contradictory to me)
If I’m misunderstanding, please set me straight.
The People that make-up Chinatown ARE nature. They are the beings that chose to live with their own kind. I am certainly not talking about the buildings. Divide into Little Italy & Chinatown?? They already exist because like wants to be with like.
In actual nature, the flocks deal instinctively, with the survival of their own kind. Bee Colonies split off, as do ants, but you don’t see the red ants branching off & setting up camp in the midst of brown ants. Creatures have a distinct sense of who they are & who they are not. I think you misunderstood me. I think a mix of cultures is very favorable & enriching in many ways. I was speaking of basic tendencies within nature, which we are a part of.
@Cecilia: Your point gets lost because you compare divisions and sanctuaries that were created combat bigotry. Sure, we tend to take comfort in ‘like’ but strength and growth comes from challenges.
I knew you would go there, Cecilia. I just knew it.
Newsflash: humans are all the same species. I would concur with whomever advised you to get a refund on your collegiate degree.
In South Africa we have 11 official languages. It really couldn’t be any other way, we have too many different languages here. Most are Indigenous and some like English and Dutch which later developed into Afrikaans were brought in by settlers. I speak 2 languages and I understand 3. In my experience most people from countries outside America are multingual. English is my first language and honestly I speak it better then most Americans.
You write better than most Americans, too.
I don’t think it’s about sticking to your culture though, which in the way you wrote it seems to imply no embracing of American/English culture and language as well. You can still celebrate your history/culture, speak your native language, etc AND adapt to your adopted one as well, as most people do. The idea that everyone should give that up, and only speak English, because they now live in a different country is kind of crazy – if you and your whole family moved from the US to say…Italy, you would expect to learn Italian to get by in the community, work etc, but you wouldn’t stop speaking English to your family at home, right?
Right…but when in Rome…
This is why schools need to do a better job in teaching American history.
Europeans during the time of the Founding Fathers were from non-English speaking countries as well.
I noticed that people who are ‘uncomfortable’ with non-English languages used in the song never bring up the fact that there is no official language in the US. There never was one FOR A REASON.
Also, America was never a ‘melting pot.’ That’s a falsity. So to say that ‘it’s not a melting pot anymore’ is inaccurate. There has always been non-English speakers from various different cultures here from even before the creation of the US.
And during & after the creation of the US, we have still always had sets of different peoples living in the same country, with many still holding onto their own languages & cultures. This reality has not made this country weaker.
I don’t understand how condescending to people you disagree with contributes anything to the conversation. Arguing back and forth about who knows more about history and the validity of bible stories is nothing unusual in an American argument, but trying to make people feel stupid by preaching allegory vs metaphor is simply an attempt to denigrate.
I don’t agree with a lot of the comments here, but a full blown attack is never helpful. Maybe it’s because I’m a Chicago transplant to Atlanta, but I hear some of this stuff daily – politics, radio, citizens, etc. Believe me, I had to live here through the Palin years – I’ve suffered greatly. There’s just a better way to make your point without attempting to humiliate your opponent.
You forgot that the song was written by a lesbian.
What has that got to do with anything?
Because some people have criticized the fact that there’s a gay couple in the video. Thus their criticism is ironic because the writer of the lyrics was a lesbian herself.
These are the same people that cry racism! ignorance! prejudice! when the opposite happens. The whole argument on how we should speak ‘american’ gives me a headache. I know non-americans who speak better english than people born and raised here. Just another day in the life of good ol’ muuurica.
It’s such an entitlement thing. “How DARE you speak in a way I don’t understand!” Maybe if more Americans actually bothered to learn another language, like most of the rest of the world does, it wouldn’t be such an issue (and I include myself in that. I’ve been trying to get better at Spanish but man, learning a different language as an adult is hard. I wish the foreign language programs in schools were better, and started at a younger age.)
I came from a different country when I was 5, so growing up I had a lot of backlash as to why I don’t speak the same language etc. It’s annoying and frustrating and I could proudly say that now, I’m way ahead in life as an IMMIGRANT than half of the american’s I’ve met are. It really is such an entitlement thing. They don’t want you to get ahead of them but they want you to be on their level of interaction just to make it easier for them. Some people are so closed minded that even in school they would complain about taking another language. I speak 4 language, only one of them is my native language (not english) and I want to learn more. It’s hard and I’m kind of rusty sometimes but it’s so worth it when you go somewhere and can properly communicate.
I believe within the next 10 years, there will be more Spanish speakers in America, than any other language. I think learning Spanish or any language aside from a person’s mother tongue is a very strong asset to have to get ahead in life.
I fully agree. I don’t see the Nativist movement getting any traction any time soon, just a lot of Twitter gas, but if there’s going to be an official language in the States, there will have to be two, English and Spanish, in order to reflect and serve the major speaking groups.
It’s amazing that this ad is controversial in any way. Sad. And pathetic. But I guess some people always need something to be angry about.
I saw all those vile tweets regarding this commercial. Sometimes, i don’t know whether to laugh or cry. It pains me to see such ignorance. Miss Kansas also tweeted some racist, ignorant shit. MISS KANSAS! I hope her crown is revoked.
It sounds like a lot of people miss the entire “point” of America. The idea of patriotism is kind of stupid when you consider that we’re supposed to be a melting pot. Apparently “melting pot” to some means a big ol’ cast iron pot full only of Brunswick Stew!
Actually, the image of a “melting pot” would be that many things enter the pot, but one thing comes out. Many cultures, nationalities, religions, belief systems, etc go in, but what comes out when everything is melted together is an American. If one is to be truly patriotic, one has to accept that what makes an American is the sum of all of the cultures, nationalities, etc that went into the pot and be proud of that. I am Irish by birth. But I entered the melting pot when I became an American citizen and now I have a little bit of everything that makes an American, in spirit, at least.
America needs to describe itself the way Canada does, a “tossed salad”. Melting Pot means you put a bunch of different ingredients in and out comes one unified thing that looks, tastes the same. A tossed salad means you put a bunch of different ingredients in and they work together but keep their identity, no “melting” involved.
Which is exactly my point. It’s silly for some who puff our their chest and claim to be a proud American to turn around and stomp on the others around them who also take advantage of the same privileges while maintaining some of their own cultural differences.
I didn’t like the commercial, just like I didn’t like the beer one about giving a solider a parade when he got home, just like I CAN NOT STAND the Chevy truck ones where the son waits for his day while playing with the little trucks… It all is just so much emotional manipulation for products. I get that is kind of the point, but it bothers me. I like the fun, funny, cute, catchy commercials – like you are selling me on your new and unique idea. Not trying to pimp my emotions to trick me… Crazy, I am sure.
I feel you. I didn’t like it either, but I won’t attack it.
You’re not crazy. I hate how we celebrate “touching” commercials. It’s not a freaking Eulogy or Great American Novel, you know? It’s an empire manipulating emotions.
I saw only a few commercials, and surprisingly I hated the Anheuser Busch one with the Clydesdales and puppy. I’m a St Louis fan so I typically support the brand, and I love all things animals, but it was so over the top in manipulation. All I could think of was those Clydesdales would probably love to stomp that puppy. And I’m sure the little puppy would have been terrified.
Speaking of manipulative commercials – way back when there was a very manipulative commercial (phone company I think) that included a sweet old black couple weeping over their grandchild calling. It’s was such a huge hit, that eventually a competitor put out a commercial which was almost identical, but the poor old couple was crying over the phone bill. It was pretty funny.
Twitter is evil. that is all.
Seriously, this is the problem with social media. We can make a story out of the thoughts of a few idiots. As democratic as it is to give everyone a public voice, there really are quite a few people in the world who I’d rather tune out.
The problem is that it’s not just a “few” idiots. There are A LOT of racist morons out there who actually were upset by that commercial. They are teaching their children to hate as well. It’s a bigger issue than you think.
True story. I backed into a lady’s car at costco. I put and pretty good sized dent in the passanger door. We got out of our cars to talk and she didnt speak english. I tried to commucate with but we could not. Finaly frustrated we both got back in out cars and drove away. Saved myself two grand. Learn to speak english!
Good thing to know that your morals and goodwill end with non-English speakers. You could have called the police and they would have taken care of it but since you were in the wrong you chose not to do the right thing. Is this your American way?
The next time something bad happens in your life, that incident will come back to your mind. You get what you give in this world. It’s so gross that you’re proud of that.
Or you could try to learn a foreign language?
Zadie, not a reasonable request. I bet that at any given moment in any given Costco there’s some 20 languages spoken concomitantly. Costcos have the most diverse buyers.
Maybe you should learn to not back into someone elses car.
And while she’s learning English how about you learn to drive, mmmkay?
how about you learn to display some integrity.
bet you whine your spoiled ass off when it comes back around to you.
I don’t see how English was required when all one had to do was hand over insurance information & let the other driver figure it out back home with the help of a friend who does speak English &/or through their own insurance agent who might speak their language? But I guess one did not easily & simply want to turn over that information and was glad to find a way to avoid doing so in order to get out of being held responsible for one’s own actions?
But I guess the victory pat-on-the-back & bragging about getting away with doing something wrong to another is worth it to certain people?
If one’s handle on English is worth bragging about, then one had the ability to write down the insurance information in English and handed it over….
Was there a point to this story other than to let us all in on the fact that you can’t drive and have no manners?
I knew this would come up the second I saw the commercial. People are nothing if not predictable. I suspect Coke knew too. Bonus, now everyone is talking about their forgettable commercial.
My dad came to the US 40 years ago. Worked 2 jobs and went to night school to learn english. He met my very american mother and got married. Only speaks English at home/work/in everyday life. And yet he stills feel more comfortable watching movies/reading books in his first language. He speaks in korean to my grandparents, and with some of his friends. He sings various songs in korean (god bless america etc) I wish I had been taught the language (he says it ‘wasn’t encouraged’ for parents to do that in the ’70s), so when we could communicate better.
HOW DARE anyone say he’s not an American because he doesn’t speak English 100% of the time. I dare any of those bigots to come say that to me or him and see what happens. Ridiculous. Those people don’t know what America means.
I was going through some of the half assed tweets. Half the people screaming “Speak American” were also having fits that the “Star Spangled Banner” was the song. Just how “American” are these nitwits that they don’t even recognize was is/isn’t the national anthem?
And none of em look Native American to me!
It scares me, that these effing morons, are our future leaders. It really does.
I really loved this coke cola ad. All the languages used to sing America the Beautiful were lovely. The complaints are just B.S. And dumb. The ad made me want to learn a 2nd language. Now if only I did not have speech problems… I wish I was bilingual.
Oh, America. Who knew your country hinged on so little.
Have you ever noticed how many people in other countries speak their language as well as English? Everytime I hear people complain about other languages it makes me sad.
My FIL is boycotting coke. He is going to drink Dr. pepper. I really really want to say something to him. But I won’t cause waves.
There are lots of reasons to boycott Coke, but this commercial is NOT one of them. Your FIL needs to get with the times. I’m guessing he’s so “American” he’s never walked into a Chinese restaurant or Italian or any other ethnicity right? You should say something to him, in a polite way of course.
Also, let him take a closer look at an American one dollar bill…there is LATIN written on it. Is he ok with that?
Oh like I said above, his ancestors are from Ireland and he is so proud of being Irish. But I guess it’s okay for him to be proud of his heritage but no one else can be.
I really should say something but I don’t want to cause waves. My husband is so happy to have him back in his life that I would hate to cause any problems.
Yeah I guess if there is a bad history between your husband and his father and they are now just working things out and back in each other’s lives, it would be best for you not to say anything. I’m not sure if you have kids, but I wouldn’t allow your FIL to say those things in front of impressionable minds.
I loved the many languages of the people singing ‘America the Beautiful’. I don’t understand the outrage or the same people that don’t know that ‘America the Beautiful’ is not our nation’s anthem.
The problem with the Dylan commercial is that Chrysler sold out to a foreign buyer a while ago. The commercial is a lie and total hyprocisy.
Bob Dylan was before my time, but I’m sure some of his fans think he sold out. Many people had a fit years ago when Mercedes started using Janis Joplan singing Mercedes Benz in their commercials – totally missing the point of the whole song.
This may be totally Pollyanna of me, but some of these really negative comments about America being so shallow are bothering me. It’s completely unfair to judge an entire nation based on the ignorance of a few. Unfortunately, those few seem to get the most attention, when the vast majority of us completely disagree with them. But that’s not a an interesting story.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with having national pride – no matter where you live. The problems start when pride turns to bigotry. That certainly exists here, but I would also like to point out that there are bigoted idiots in every country on this planet. Many of us are good people who contribute good things to this world, and are trying to bring up our kids the same way.
So, for those of you who have posted and shared your story of coming here from another country, and have learned the language but still hold on to your own, that’s great! My family came here during WW2 from Eastern Europe. To this day, Yiddish finds it’s way into our daily conversation. But I would also point out that many of the words I use have also moved into mainstream English language. Ever have a computer “glitch”? Yiddish. Ever call someone a “schmuck”? Actually a really, really foul Yiddish word. Comment on some actor’s or comic’s “schtick”? Yiddish. We absorb a lot of foreign words into our own – that’s the beauty of it.
And for the record, I really hate the term “muuurica”. I don’t live in muuurica, and neither does anyone I know. And I don’t drink Coke – it’s like battery acid for your insides. But I still liked the darn commercial.
/end rant. Thank you.
Meh. It’s just Coca Cola stirring controversy to try and sell more extremely unhealthy soft drinks. The public are finally noting that their products are rubbish and sales are down in a lot of places. They’re desperate so they’re trying the controversy card. Nothing to see here.
It doesn’t register with me seeing & hearing people sing or talk in different languages is a problem. I’m used to it.
fantastic comments and thoughts.
thank you all.
even native americans aren’t from here. they crossed the bering strait. sorry. we are ALL immigrants.
I liked it, a very touching and thoughtful ad. How anyone could get anything negative from it is ridiculous.
The Dylan ad was the one that rubbed me the wrong way; it felt racist and frankly smacked of that same ” ‘MURRICCA!” xenophobia that likes to call itself patriotism. I mean, are we supposed to think the south Asians assembling our cell phones don’t have hearts, or souls, or pride, or families? I DO feel for American workers whose jobs have been exported, but the people who are to blame for that are shareholders who demand maximum profit and AMERICANS who demand minimum prices, no matter the cost in human suffering. As long as there are places in the world where people don’t have rights and can be forced to accept ANY conditions… That’s where jobs will go. And most of the people benefitting from this? They spray their tans on right here in good ol’ soul-filled Ammuurca. So shove it, ad agencies, car-makers, and Dylan.
For those who think that America did not loose her way after the 1950s, for those who see America beyond the scope of most older white Christian conservatives and for those who don’t spend the day on AM talk and Fox I say it was a good ad and represented a global company based in America and a celebration of American diversity.
Are people who speak in “foreign tongues” not proud of their nation, do they not serve in the military and are they not happy to be able to vote and have a voice perhaps something that they could not do in the previous country? They certainly are and they also pay taxes too, just like those who complain.
I think the same people who were offended by this ad by Coke were also offended by the Cheerios ad featuring the interracial couple. I can imagine a similar controversy brewing up if Coke released it’s ’70s ad “I Would Like to Teach the World to Sing” today.
The BS that gets Americans upset is getting more BS-ier with each passing year
Angry Idiots have hijacked the national discourse, you guys should try to fix that.