Was Michael Jackson a Black Confederate?

June 30, 2009

in Civil War Culture

Michael Jackson in Confederate KepiIf he was it was only temporary given the drastic changes to the color of his skin.  This photograph was taken on Franklin Street in Richmond in 1980.  My wife and I spent a few hours listening to Michael Jackson’s music on the evening of his death.  It is next to impossible to deny his talent.  Over the past few days I’ve caught snippets of various specials, including a number of interviews with Jackson.  What stands out when not discussing music or dance is an almost childish and simplistic view of the world.  I suspect that his early career left very little time for education and I assume that includes an understanding of American history.  With that in mind it is easy to imagine Jackson not thinking twice about engaging the black community of Richmond in a Confederate kepi.  See the story here.  Thanks for the wonderful music.

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  • michael jospeh jackson
    btw...i actually own the cap. i recently acquired it at an auction at the hard rock cafe times square in NY. please look up the juliens auction website. there should be links to view the music icons catalog and there you will find a clear picture of the item in question. this whole article is misleading. over and out.
  • Thanks for the follow-up. I should have known that Jackson would not have been that "Off the Wall". :)
  • michael jospeh jackson
    its a union cap. i know the individual who owns the cap shown in the pictures provided by betty.
  • David Tatum Jr
    Perhaps he should have Dressed as Lincoln !
  • This will be anecdotal, but I recall that there was a period in the early 1980s when hip hop culture included leather and suede kepis in various shades of black and, yes, gray. I was busy playing "Civil War" with my junior high school friends at the time and rejected these for our war games as too "inauthentic." I do not know when the trend started or what was behind it, but it did not originate with MJ. I am fairly certain, however, that it was more about style than substance (unless at some level it was appropriating and subverting the emblem of the oppressor, such as the pink triangle of the Nazi's that was taken back by militant gay activists around the same time.
  • Mike
    Michael Jackson was one of my favorite singers of all time. I doubt he thought much about wearing that cap wayback in 1980. So he was not a black confederate he might have been a Neo-Confederate :>) As for Dan the man was found not gulity in a court of law so to borrow some of MJ's words BEAT IT!

    RIP MJ you will be missed.
  • Mike,

    You said: "I doubt he thought much about wearing that cap wayback in 1980." Yes, that was exactly my point.
  • Anyone else? I am beginning to worry about the mental and emotional stability of my readers. :)
  • David Tatum Jr
    Kevin:

    Michael Jackson a Black Confederate ? It seems that you do have a sense of humor.
    NO he was not a Confederate, he may have been a "Rebel" in his approach to the entertainment world, and his performances but he was not a Black Confederate.
    By the standard opinion at your blog a Black Confederate was no more than a slave.
    MJ was not a slave. Nor was he an Egyptian prince, or a ghoul that came form the grave, he was an Entertainer . Whos talent was fantastic.
    My opinion of his " pedophile" aspect is irrelevant he was found not guilty in a court of law. just like O.J. ( Nuff Said )
    The best I can figure it was a slow news day and you were scraping the bottom of the barrel for an idea for your blog. I expect better of you !

    Dave Tatum.
  • dan
    >the subject of black Confederates (or as I prefer to call them, Confederate slaves

    I'm really surprised at this bizarre comment from you, Kevin. You are suggesting that the two are the same and they are not. Nobody has ever suggested that the issues are one and the same, except you, now. You are changing the rules of the debate, and the very subject of the debate because you apparently can not handle being called out on this matter. You are welcome to not post my comments Kevin, if they bore you, or for whatever reason. But I can assure you that your constant thrashing on this absurd matter is past boring. Your blog is fun (sometimes), your arrogant condescending tone is not.
  • Well, if you find my commentary to be absurd you are free to go elsewhere. I am certainly not going to apologize for anything. And as for my tone, you will have to excuse me as I find it absurd that you are making such a big deal of this. Please do not send any more comments to this thread.
  • dan
    >Are you suggesting that “child molester” and “black confederate” are mutually exclusive categories?

    No, and I should have added that, but didn't want to go there.
    Kevin, no offense you definitely do have a jones for this issue. It's a non-starter except here on this blog.
  • Dan,

    And you obviously have an issue with wanting to point this out to me. To suggest that the subject of black Confederates (or as I prefer to call them, Confederate slaves) is only an issue on this blog suggests that you don't get out much. Anyway, let's drop this because it's starting to bore me.
  • dan
    Michael Jackson was a molester, he was not a "black confederate" regardless of his kepi in the photo. This denial of the truth of Michael Jackson's abysmal character is revolting.
    Kevin, you have an excellent blog, but your jones for "black confederates" is now past absurd.
    Read here for a reasonable analysis of the fallen "king": http://frontpagemag.com/readArticle.aspx?ARTID=...
  • Dan,

    Are you suggesting that "child molester" and "black confederate" are mutually exclusive categories? Yo dude, I am totally jones'in [How do you spell that?] for some black confederates.

    The post was written with a bit of humor in mind. Lighten up dude.
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