State Senator David Carlucci may have Italian heritage, but racially insulting Saint Patrick's Day merchandise still gets his Irish up.
According to The Journal News, Carlucci is calling on the Palisades Center in West Nyack, New York to insist a store on its premises stop selling merchandise that insults Irish Americans.
In the event that the store overlooks its calls, Carlucci is asking that shoppers simply stop shopping at a venue that they say clearly supports this degrading behavior.
Carlucci joined the Rockland County Ancient Order of Hibernians and concerned community members on Friday to denounce the sale of offending T-shirts, hats and other clothing that revels in drunkenness and rampant sexism.
'We are going to vote with our pocketbook,' said Carlucci. 'We are not going to support an organization that allows this offensive material.'
The group has reportedly singled out a store named Spencer’s, a chain store located in the mall, which they say has refused to stop selling items that openly mock Irish culture and feed into outrageous ethnic stereotypes.
Protesters pointed to items of clothing they had earlier purchased Spencer’s, including green t-shirts that read, 'Everyone loves a drunk slut,' 'Rub my jugs,' and 'Buy me a shot. I’m Irish and hot.'
'What’s up with shirts deriding women?' asked Pat McAndrews of Nanuet who was at the rally. 'I’m appalled. It’s disgusting.'
Around her people held up signs that said, 'No nationality deserves insults - boycott stores that attack Irish Americans' and 'Irish culture is not for sale.' Another sign read: 'We say it’s disgusting, vulgar, filthy, hateful. The mall says it’s just a joke.'
That last sign was reportedly a reference to the Palisades Center management, who failed to remove the merchandize after complaints were received. The mall failed to understand what the fuss was about, the protestors said.
'They didn’t know what the issue was. It was disheartening,' said George Leahy.
The mall did return a call for comment to the Journal News.
Carlucci isn’t the first New York politician to tackle the now annual issue. Last year the Rockland County Legislature adopted a resolution calling on the Palisades Center mall management and retailers to stop selling the offensive items. T-shirts were reportedly pulled from shelves, only to be put back on display a few weeks ago.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.Will Hamilton | Mar 13, 2013, 04:33 AM EDT
The T shirts have now been withdrawn and replaced with one that more closely reflects Irish culture. The new T shirt features a catholic priest raping a child partially hidden from view by the Popes cloak. The Plastic Paddies will be happy at last.
Smyrnian | Mar 06, 2013, 07:14 AM EST
Did everyone know that Stevenstar "IS IRISH BORN & BRED, LIVES THERE, WAS BORN THERE AND HE HAS AN IRISH PASSPORT? Thought so...must havecheard that a million times like it carries some special dispensation to opine on all things American. Having spent a whole year in Chicago he must have amassed an amazing knowledge and insight into American culture. So he met an obsessed person there who had no clue if Irish culture? So what? I have been in the US many years and can't recall ever meeting anyone like he describes. Come on Stevenstar, drop the self-righteous crap and realize you are not by far the only one here with 'legitimate' Irish credentials, whatever that means.
seanomelb | Mar 05, 2013, 05:34 PM EST
sorry for the mispelling lousy keyboard.
jamieLM | Mar 05, 2013, 09:05 AM EST
@StevenstarAllCaps, that's a "story" all right. You are so full of it... Btw: the word is "quite", not "quiet" and we Americans are so glad you're back in Ireland, too.
seanomelb | Mar 05, 2013, 01:59 AM EST
If you don't stop shouting stevenstar I'll have to see an otologist. I'll find you a good pschologiost on the way.
1MADCELT | Mar 04, 2013, 08:16 PM EST
THIS IS DISTURBING. TO MANY TIMES I SEE AND HEAR THIS TYPE OF CRAP BEING DONE TO US. this has got to stop. too often it seems that people are degrading and defaming our character. I guess its easy to forget who it was that saved your butts during the u.s. civil war, easy to forget the sacrifices we made for this country, who do they think they are fooling with????? do they really want to anger one of the largest population groups in the u.s. to action? a classaction law suite sounds in order. on behalf of all irish and irish-americans living in the u.s.. god, spencers would crap their pants if that were to happen. Hell, lets sue their butts off!!!
STEVENSTAR | Mar 04, 2013, 07:38 PM EST
LET ME TELL U ALL A STORY.!!!.. IM IRISH BORN & BRED, I LIVE HERE, I WAS BORN HERE AND I HAVE AN IRISH PASSPORT. IN 2010 I WORKED IN CHICAGO FOR A YEAR. FOR A TRAVEL COMPANY...EVERY DAY AT WORK THE AMERICANS TOLD ME I DRESSED VERY 'EUROPEAN'.. IE SMART TROUSERS, WHITE SHIRT SPORTS JACKET, & LOVED MY IRISH ACCENTS :) OH BOY THEY LOVE THE IRISH ... ANOTHER GIRL WHO WAS AMERICAN WORKED IN THE OFFICE ALSO.. SHE CAME TO WORK EACH DAY WITH A HUGE GREEN SHAMROCK ON HER TRACKIE TOP, TRIED TO SPEAK WITH A FALSE IRISH ACCENT AND HAD PICTURES OF IRELAND ON HER DESK, INCLUDING A LEPRAUCHANS AND SOME LUCKY CHARMS.. SHE ALSO TOLD ME SHE HAD A DRINK PROBLEM BECAUSE SHE WAS OF IRISH DECENT !! ....THE WOMEN 'FRIGHTENED ME' HER OBSESSION WITH ALL THINGS IRISH & MOST OF IT WAS THIS FAKE HOLLYWOOD FANTASY IMAGES IN HER HEAD.SHE HAD NEVER EVEN BEEN TO IRELAND.BOY !! WAS I GLAD TO BE BACK IN IRELAND AGAIN... AMERICANS NEED TO STOP THIS OBSESSIVE BEHAVIOR BECAUSE IT SCARES US REAL IRISH QUIET ALOT!!! PLEASE REMEMBER THAT !!
anglo-norman | Mar 04, 2013, 05:31 PM EST
If the Irish didn't drink to excess on St Patricks Day then you wouldn't have this stereo-type. As I said earlier the Irish are only too happy to live up to it.
Smyrnian | Mar 04, 2013, 04:57 PM EST
Sully - Anglophile knows who he is.
ancavker | Mar 04, 2013, 03:18 PM EST
STEVEN: PLease give your Man Utd Jersey back. Stopt stealing other people's culture.
WoundedKnee | Mar 04, 2013, 02:38 PM EST
Ken from Dublin: You remind me of the pig in Animal Farm who defended his bosses when every other animal could see he was blatantly lying. Your claim that there would be "outrage" in Ireland if offensive T-shirts were on sale shows you to be an amadan. It's mostly the Irish who buy them, and it's Irish --and foreign migrant retail workers--who sell them. What fantasy world are you living in?
anglo-norman | Mar 04, 2013, 12:38 AM EST
StevenStar- St Patricks Day was started in America.
STEVENSTAR | Mar 03, 2013, 10:14 PM EST
WHY ARE AMERICANS SOOO DRAMATIC ... IM IRISH I LIVE IN IRELAND AND I CANT FOR THE LIFE OF ME THINK WHY AMERICANS THINK ITS ACCEPTABLE FOR THEM TO GO AND ROB OUR SPECIAL DAY AND CULTURE .. WHY DONT YOU CELEBRATE YOUR OWN CULTURE AND LEAVE OURS ALONE ... CHEERS !!! & WELL SAID KEN IN DUBLIN !!
seanomelb | Mar 03, 2013, 05:52 PM EST
Portia your post is flawed and downright insulting. Photographing a singular incident anywhere can be misrepresented or sometimes sed to demonise those photographed. Get some commonsense.
Seanmor | Mar 03, 2013, 04:03 PM EST
Several years ago a NYC TV station interviewed a group of you ladies who were drinking beer on the street on 17 March. the Female reported said to one of these beer drinkers, "You don't look Irish - are you". Between sips of booze the pretty young lass answered: "No, I'm German but I like to celebrate other hoidays the proper way. So I eat lots od pizza on Columbus Day and I dring lots of beer on St. Patrick's Day. There is a wide perception among Irish and non-Irish that boozing goes hand-in-had with St. Patrick's Day and other Irish events. But a few of us have reached our seventies without ever touching a drop.
IrelandNorth | Mar 03, 2013, 03:10 PM EST
I complained last year to the Scottish manageress of a recently British acquired "T-Shirt Print" shop in Saint Stephen's Green Shopping Centre about a tee-shirt which read: "So Irish - my liver hurts!" Told her I was Irish and didn't drink alcohol. Told me somewhat scaldily that they sell it because tourists buy them. And that Irish people complain because they are British traders. Ends justify means, sans ethics or morality, it seems?
sully1167 | Mar 03, 2013, 09:55 AM EST
Smyrnian, who is an Anglophile?
WoundedKnee | Mar 03, 2013, 09:46 AM EST
It's Irish people like Ken from Dublin who share the blame. They sell this filth. And buy it. It's all economics. If Pennys weren't making money on this trash they wouldn't sell it. The last time I was there around St Patrick's Day, the Dublin Pennys stores were selling T-shirts which showed a guy stretched out on the floor, apparently in his own vomit. The caption read "I rish I had an another drink". There was also the one which showed a young woman in a state of undress--green underwear of course--with the caption Irish Today Hungover Tomorrow. And these are the two I remember, there were several others. And Ken from Dublin condones this! Get some self-respect, Ken, if you don't respect yourself why sould anyone else respect you? And if you work for Pennys make a complaint to your union. Ask the sales staff to refuse to handle racist garbage.
WoundedKnee | Mar 03, 2013, 09:40 AM EST
I complained about an anti-Irish T-shirt on sale in my local K Mart a few weeks back. Too be fair, the (black) manager took my complaint seriously, and showed much more underestanding of the T-shirt's nastiness than did the (Irish) manager in Dublin's Pennys two years ago when I complained abouit even more offensive material on sale there. I must check whether that K Mart shirt is still off the rails. Pennys ought to be ashamed of themselves, but then again so should every Irish person who buys that garbage. The Irish are a bit like a kid I knew at school. He so wanted to be liked that he let the other kids insult him, play tricks on him, makes nasty jokes about him. But guess what? The other kids still hated him! Wake up, Irish, and learn some self-respect!
Smyrnian | Mar 03, 2013, 08:54 AM EST
Seanmor - Thank you sir for your service. Portia - Clearly you are an idiot.
graham | Mar 03, 2013, 08:47 AM EST
Thank you Sen.Carlucci..... the Irish in Nanuet and Nyack should let the mgmt of the whole mall know that if Spencer will not stop selling this insulting material people will take there business elsewhere. money talks. Thev Irish have contributed in so many positive ways to our great country and attempted for so long to get out from under the heel of England I think celebrating our heritage one day a year can be tolerated with a wee bit of grace. Pity those that don't have some Irish blood. My parents were Irish and I claimed my citizenship and proud of it. A big box store here in the US had shirts on sale with four clovers and didn't know shamrocks have only 3 leaves . made in China labels ignorance abounds
Portia_O'Neill | Mar 03, 2013, 05:36 AM EST
The truth hurts. Internet social media sites display an astonishing array of photos showing Irish people drunk out of their minds. While they are an embarrassment to sober Irish people, there's no denying that Irishness is often expressed by displays of people engaging in drug and alcohol abuse.
warlocks | Mar 03, 2013, 01:03 AM EST
yes i agree its time to stop insulting the Irish ! even though i'm only a 1/4 Irish 1/4 German 1/4 Italian 1/4 French & 4 Generation American my wife is Irish American as well as my Kids . we are all American and proud of our Irish Roots. we demand respect ! Erin go Brah
Maggie47 | Mar 02, 2013, 10:05 PM EST
Seanmor, Thank you for serving the greatest country on earth!
Seanmor | Mar 02, 2013, 07:42 PM EST
Thanks to Senator Carlucci for giving us his suport on this very offensive issue. The anti-Irish shirts remind of the mannequins I saw on the widows of a huge women's clothing strore at Clark Air Force base near Manila in early March, 1964. The dresses and other gardments on these mannequins were all green and none was the least offensive. If fact, I was very happy to these and other items that refelected positevly on Ireland and her culture. (About a week later I was discharged from the Marine Corps, having HONORABLLY served for 4 years as an Irish citizen).
seanomelb | Mar 02, 2013, 06:22 PM EST
Wee willy hamilton from that quisling scottish state dares to insult the Irish. What a moron
Smyrnian | Mar 02, 2013, 05:51 PM EST
Anglophile - Give it a rest. Please.
sully1167 | Mar 02, 2013, 05:41 PM EST
He is not even Irish, why does he care? Votes? Opportunist? St. Patricks day has become everybody's holiday now anyway. It makes no difference to drunks of any nationality.
anglo-norman | Mar 02, 2013, 05:15 PM EST
But the Irish relish living up to this stereo-typing...
nosoupforU | Mar 02, 2013, 02:33 PM EST
Been to the store Kenny?
WoundedKnee | Mar 02, 2013, 12:02 PM EST
Ken from Dublin: What do you mean, give you a link? You think the whole world is on the computer? Get your ass into Pennys and look for yourself. I'm 4000 miles away, I can't hold your hand.
johnozed | Mar 02, 2013, 10:45 AM EST
Much ado about nothing from the childlike state senator. Don't like 'em? Don't buy 'em. Don't wanna see 'em? Don't look.
Will Hamilton | Mar 02, 2013, 10:09 AM EST
Real Irish people know Ireland is a botched kip that no T Shirt, no matter how bad, could properly represent. Today we have another overseas jobs fair packed out with people who want to get out of the Republic of Botched. Meanwhile people are considering strike action, not for a pay rise, but just to protest their pay being lowered. And Plastic Paddies can't think of anything better than talking crap about T Shirts.
WoundedKnee | Mar 02, 2013, 09:28 AM EST
The good Senator should take a quick trip across the Atlantic. If he checks out what's on sale in the big Dublin retail chain Pennys he'll find far more offensive stuff than anything that's available here. The Irish are selling it, and the Irish are buying it. What does that say about their low self-image? The low self esteem Irish have bought into all the anti-Irish stereotypes.