From the lawsuit:
"Paula Deen placed Ms. Jackson in charge of food and serving arrangements for the wedding of her brother Bubba Hiers in 2007. When Ms. Jackson asked Ms. Deen what look the wedding should have, Ms. Deen replied, 'I want a true Southern plantation-style wedding,'" according to the complaint.
"Asked by Ms. Jackson what type uniforms she preferred servers to wear, Paula Deen stated, 'Well, what I would really like is a bunch of little niggers to wear long-sleeve white shirts, black shorts and black bow ties, you know, like the Shirley Temple days, they used to tap dance around.' Paula Deen laughed and said 'Now that would be a true Southern wedding, wouldn't it? But we can't do that because the media would be on me about that.' Ms. Jackson did not laugh, stating 'no, we can't do that;' a pregnant pause followed and the meeting ended shortly thereafter.
Here’s word for word from her deposition:
Okay. So was Lisa ever present when you discussed with Brandon what kind of wedding you'd like to have?
I don't recall that. I recall — I do recall, once again, in my bathroom at that house, and why we would have been in the bathroom, I was probably filming and changing clothes, that's the only reason why we would have been in that bathroom, they must have run out during my lunch break or something from filming, and I remember us talking about the meal. And I remember telling them about a restaurant that my husband and I had recently visited. And I'm wanting to think it was in Tennessee or North Carolina or somewhere, and it was so impressive. The whole entire wait staff was middle-aged black men, and they had on beautiful white jackets with a black bow tie. I mean, it was really impressive. And I remember saying I would love to have servers like that, I said, but I would be afraid somebody would misinterpret.
The media might misinterpret it?
Yes, or whomever –
Okay.
— is so shallow that they would read something into it.
Were they dressed in white shorts and bow ties?
No, they were dressed in white jackets.
White jackets?
Dinner jackets.
And a bow tie?
And a bow tie and black trousers, and they were incredible.
Okay. And you said something –
These were men that had made their living off of service and people in a restaurant.
Right.
It was – I was so impressed.
Okay. And they were all black men?
Yes. Professional servers and waiters.
And when you described it to Miss Jackson, did you mention the race of – well, you had to have mentioned the race of the servers –
Of course I would –
—because that's the part that –
—because that's what we just experienced.
Right. Do you know what word you used to identify their race?
I would have used just what I just told you.
Black or African-American?
Black. I would use the word black.
Okay.
I don't usually use African-Americans.
Okay.
I try to go with whatever the black race is wanting to call themselves at each given time. I try to go along with that and remember that.
Okay. So is there any reason that you could not have done something just like that but with people of different races?
Well, that's what made it.
[Objection]
That's what made it so impressive. These were professional. I'm not talking about somebody that's been a waiter for two weeks. I'm talking about these were professional middle-aged men, that probably made a very, very good living –
Okay.
at this restaurant. They were trained. The – it – it was the whole picture, the setting of the restaurant, the servers, their professionalism.
Is there any reason you couldn't have found middle-aged professional servers who were of different races?
[Objection.]
Listen, it was not important enough to me to even fight, to reproduce what that restaurant had. I was just simply expressing an experience that my husband and I had, and I was so impressed.
Did you describe it as a – that that would be a true southern wedding,words to that effect?
I don't know.
Do you recall using the words "really southern plantation wedding"?
Yes, I did say I would love for Bubba to experience a very southern stylewedding, and we did that. We did that.
Okay. You would love for him to experience a southern style plantation wedding?
Yes.
That's what you said?
Well, something like that, yes. And –
Okay. And is that when you went on to describe the experience you had at the restaurant in question?
Well, I don't know. We were probably talking about the food or – we would have been talking about something to do with service at the wedding, and –
Is there any possibility, in your mind, that you slipped and used the word "n----r"?
No, because that's not what these men were. They were professional black men doing a fabulous job.
Why did that make it a – if you would have had servers like that, why would that have made it a really southern plantation wedding?
[Objection]
Well, it – to me, of course I'm old but I ain't that old, I didn't live back in those days but I've seen the pictures, and the pictures that I've seen, that restaurant represented a certain era in America.
Okay.
And I was in the south when I went to this restaurant. It was located in the south. Okay. What era in America are you referring to?
Well, I don't know. After the Civil War, during the Civil War, before the Civil War.
Right. Back in an era where there were middle-aged black men waitingon white people.
Well, it was not only black men, it was black women.
Sure. And before the Civil War – before the Civil War, those black men and women who were waiting on white people were slaves, right?
Yes, I would say that they were slaves.
Okay.
But I did not mean anything derogatory by saying that I loved their look and their professionalism.
Because there's nothing intended to be derogatory about having your black employees pretend to be slaves to your family.
Here’s word for word from her deposition again, talking about how she tought her children NOT to use racial epithets:
Okay. And could you give me an example of how you have demonstrated for them a nice way to use the N-word?
[Objection]
Or a non-mean way?
[Objection]
We hear a lot of things in the kitchen. Things that they — that black people will say to each other. If we are relaying something that was said, a problem that we're discussing, that's not said in a mean way.
What about jokes, if somebody is telling a joke that's got —
It's just what they are, they're jokes.
Okay. Would you consider those to be using the N word in a mean way?
[Objection]
That's — that's kind of hard. Most — most jokes are about Jewish people, rednecks, black folks. Most jokes target — I don't know. I didn't make up the joke, I don't know. I can't — I don't know.
Okay.
They usually target, though, a group. Gays or straights, black, redneck, you know, I just don't know — I just don't know what to say. I can't, myself, determine what offends another person.
Well, if you were sitting around at home just with you and your family, would you feel any hesitation in telling a joke that you thought was funny if it had the N-word in it?
I don't tell jokes, not at my house. That's —
Do the other members of your family tell jokes at home?
Yes.
Okay.
Yes.
And they told jokes using the N-word?
I'm sure they have. My husband is constantly telling me jokes.
Okay. And have — are you offended at all by those jokes?
No, because it's my husband.
Okay. What about your brother, does he tell those jokes?
I'm sure he has. Bubba's not good at joke telling, but I'm sure he's tried to repeat some.
Okay. He just does it badly?
Yeah, he don't — he doesn't tell 'em good.
The stuff from the lawsuit about her brother is far, far worse.
So can we stop now with equating Paula Deen as being unfairly treated when compared to a dead kid that may or may not have used the word Cracker to describe the man that killed him.