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Jay-Z Claims Rocawear Didn't Pull "Occupy All Street" T-Shirts
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 13, 2011
Modified Nov 13, 2011
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 13, 2011
Modified Nov 13, 2011
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A day after Jay-Z's clothing company Rocawear pulled the $22 "Occupy All Streets" t-shirts that didn't contribute a cent to the Occupy Wall Street movement, the man himself has given an XCLUSIVE to GlobalGrind, a website owned mostly by Russell Simmons. "We didn't pull the t-shirts," Jay-Z said via email. If so, where are they?
A more interesting and thorough read is the article penned by Michael Skolnik, GlobalGrind's co-president and "Political Director to Russell Simmons." Skolnik's piece veers from celebrity worship, to righteous indignation, to a bizarre pep rally for Occupy Wall Street in which he invokes the word "WE" to describe himself and presumably Jay-Z and Russell Simmons as being part of the 99%.
The corporate-controlled media is so thirsty for the blood of the celebrities that they try to find silly and frivolous things to separate great messengers from the people...You can own your old-school corner of the media, but you cannot own our future...We are sick and tired of the media treating the Occupy Wall Street movement like it is some rag-tag group of hippies who are camped out in a park...WE are the generation that has to live with the consequences of decisions made by politicians who are completely controlled by greedy corporations. WE make up the majority of the 99%.
So, the next time you think you can try to divide us with your lazy, so-called journalism, remember "it wouldn't be wise to bet against the kid."
Yeah! These protesters aren't poor hippies camped out in the park: they're middle class, college-educated people with disposable income who can afford to buy $22 t-shirts for their family and friends. Treat them with the respect that any other prized demographic would deserve.
And don't even TRY to put "lazy, so-called journalism" past the crack team at GlobalGrind. Their "exclusive," sentence-long email statement they obtained from a celebrity who is a close friend and business parter of the celebrity who owns the website was PAINSTAKINGLY obtained! Does anybody else smell Pulitzer?
We're off to pre-order 1,000 "Occupy All Streets" t-shirts before the price jumps to $300. One of them is going to the Red Sox's David Ortiz, because he seems like a guy who can appreciate an ironic turn of phrase on a t-shirt.
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Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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