I can’t believe that County Market would stoop so low. What propaganda.

Family… sorry, you’re a lesbian couple with two kids. We don’t value you here at C.M. - sorry, you’re a lower class African American family - sorry, we don’t value you either.

Let’s just keep going with the status quo.  Way to be progressive, County Market.

I would say it’s probably intentional.  All marketing decisions are intentional.  Shop somewhere else if it bothers you.  I know I would.  But then again, I refuse to go to the vacuum store in downtown Champaign because of their signs about God in the window.

“But I am not sure why mentioning God would prevent you from supporting a local business? That seems about as prejudice as it gets…“

Seriously? The decision to not frequent an overtly religious business is as prejudice as it gets? For reals? Wow.

You don’t see how a business having signs heralding a certain deity paints a place as specifically interested, valued, and politicized?

While Christianity might mean “justice, peace, love, and the like” to you, it does not conjure these notions for everyone. As a raised-Christian, I have very different opinions on what Christianity and those choosing to brandish Christian “God” signs in public spaces signifies. When considering that this practice is rampant in our country—and firmly affixed to our notions of state and citizenship in being on currency, in the pledge of allegiance, on city buildings, in anti-terrorist rhetoric…—the act is even more culturally loaded. I don’t at all approve or see it as even marginally benign or progressive. Not in the least. And for that reason, my monies stay clear of businesses that jump on this (very effective) marketing bandwagon.

Just for kicks, what if the “god” in these signs were replaced by “allah” or “krishna”? Would it, then, be equally as transparent in forwarding the social justice notions you so naturally associate with your “god”?  Would it be as inclusive?

Also, I’m sure many see the same lofty and self-defined ideals represented in their confederate flags. And in their Chief Illiniwek gear. How could these possibly be divisive? Wondering.

I have to admit that the white family in the sign doesn’t bother me as much as the vapid support of “valuing families.“  If County Market values families, then are they paying their workers living wages?  Do they provide healthcare?  Are they buying fair trade goods where the producers are being paid a living wage?  That’s how you support families, not plastering your store with signs of white families.

I don’t know that they are any worse or better than other stores in town, just that if they claim to be family friendly, they should be held accountable to their own marketing.

Seth, I agree that Christianity is supposed to be about justice, peace and love.  I wish even a majority of Christians believed that. 

But I have to admit that I get queasy when a store is openly evangelical, because too often evangelism is not at all about justice, peace and love, but simply about browbeating people.  I have no idea about the vaccuum store, all I’m saying is it does make me uneasy to see signs like that.

I like the 10,000 Villages approach, which is solidly rooted in Christianity.  They use their energy not to overtly convert others, but to support poor people around the world by selling their goods and providing them living wages.  This seems to me what Christians are supposed to be doing - helping others in real and material ways.

Byers has the best vacuums in town and the lowest prices on most models. But you might not know that just because they believe in things like, justice, peace, love and the like…

Can you possibly be more offensive?

it’s just a damn poster. i thought this country was getting over the p.c. craze. the gun was very much jumped on this one. how do we know there won’t be more diverse posters in the near future? not to mention it was noticed by a white person. are any of you not white? and jesus christ! let people have their beliefs for god’s sake! a vacuum store? seriously? go to fuckin’ lowe’s. hopefully they don’t have pictures of white people there.

JMH - Get a grip. It is wonderful that so many people feel motivated to respond to this post. Only by getting involved to feelings and opinions get known. The initial post asked a question - why not just answer it - politely?

does this poster offend me?

why would it?

The poster mentions “family values”, and there is a picture of a family on the poster.  big whoop.

Do I think the marketing team at County Market is twisting their collective mustache and “sticking it to the minorities” by putting a white family on the poster?  No.  That would be ridiculous and utterly paranoid.

I’m sure the crack CM marketing team has a lot more important things on their mind besides being some kind of racist, homophobic propogana machine - like what are they going to get for lunch today, or how many smoke breaks can one take in a day without seeming like they’re taking advantage.

Are you overreacting? Yes.

Should you sheath your liberal claws? yes.

Should you continue shopping at County Market? I guess so if you already have that little key chain thingy.

I think you are just overreacting.

Do they have to put pictures of gay/lesbian, single parent family etc., side by side?

Meh.  It’s a picture of a family.

The picture doesn’t really offend me, it just makes me laugh at the vacuousness of this kind of advertising. You know, the kind that says, “come shop with us - all the other people like you are doing it!“. Which apparently works in a conformist society. I see a trace of this in the Jesus-vaccuum store - there’s an implied “all Christians together” overtone that I do not like. I think expressions of faith have a place where it’s related to the business involved (a Halal food store, a Bible shop, whatever), but what does Jesus have to do with vaccuums? Other than the inevitable blasphemy when the tube gets clogged.

County Market’s “family” ad campaign is - I imagine - thoroughly empty. If they were serious about valuing family, why not:

- give full paid maternity leave for a period long enough for parents to build a family bond with their children (In Europe, paid maternity leave is generally between at least 39 weeks - Bulgaria gives mothers 2 paid years off. Bulgaria!)

- pay paternity leave (they do it in Scandinavia) so that fathers have time to be fathers, rather than income-providing drones who get home exhausted from work when their children are already asleep.

- extend employees’ health coverage to include spouses, children, and hey why not include cohabiting unmarried couples? Given that marriage is only one definition of family among many.

- Sell staples like bread and milk at or below cost, so that families can afford to feed their children stuff that will make them grow. Offset these loss-leaders with higher prices on junk.

- Pay employees enough that they do not have to take on second or third jobs.

- Provide free or cheap on-site childcare for employees’ spawn.

I have no idea whether County Market already does any of these things, but I have a suspicion that - like most employers in a ragingly capitalist system - they do not. I’m sure CM is probably not even the least family-friendly supermarket employer in town (one that rhymes with “fart” springs to mind). The entire system is anything but family-friendly, which just makes it funny that a declaration of “family values” is used to sell more product.

I don’t know. Being someone of mixed race, I think it would be awesome if they had made more divers sigh. Or had multiple signs with different types of families.

But i think they were trying to cater to what is probably the vast majority of their customers.

So if County Market had put up a sign with a heterosexually parented Latino family, would you still be offended? If they had put up a sign of a homosexually parented family of any race, would I, as a heterosexual, have the right to be offended because they have not included me? Should County Market print signs of every possible ethnic and sexual group and line them all up in a row in an effort to say, “Look, we’re a freaking business and we want your money, no matter who you are.“

Then again, maybe they are trying to appeal to their local demographic. Maybe in a heavily Latino community, they have marketing to appeal to that demographic and in a area with a high population of homosexual individuals and couples, they would approach their marketing differently as well. Why is this one sign at this one store such a bane to your existence?

It doesn’t bug me because I have an understanding of marketing and demographics. Had this store been in Harlem with this marketing strategy, it would be suspect. However, in rural Illinois, where the dominant demographic is both white and heterosexual, the marketing strategy makes sense. This isn’t about making social, political, or religious statements. It is about making money by appealing the most people as possible in the shortest time as possible in the cheapest way possible.

Ryan,

What’s worse?  County Market displaying a picture of one type of family in a marketing campaign? or your patronizing belief that you that you have to be the mouthpiece for minority groups to which you don’t belong and determine what is offensive?  If I was a member of one of the groups for which you proclaim to have this “super sensitivity sense”, I’d tell you to, “Bug off!  I can speak for myself, thank you very much!“