Toy Fair Request – Retire G.I. Joe

On February 13th the Toy Industry Association revealed their 2010 toy picks at their 10th annual “Toy of the Year Awards” ceremony. Because kids don’t get loving care from these folks, we decided to take our message to them at the Chelsea Piers. Not one single taxi, limo or stretch limo could pass without reading RETIRE GI JOE – ALL WAR TOYS MUST GO

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Granny, but it’s cold outside. Read our blue lips, G.I. Joe Must Go!

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Champion banner handlers: Molly, Joe, Paula and Nydia with Pat

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The Granny Peace Brigade and Raging Grannies come from near and far, Manhattan, Coney Island, and Queens to send their message to Hasbro and other toy manufacturers.  Edith, Caroline, Mercy, Betty, Lillian and Corinne and Molly!  wayyy over on the right!

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Betty comes out into the cold with Caroline to sing to Hasbro, “No More War Toys.”

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That’s Shirley Littman from Chelsea for Peace and the Raging Grannies! Talking to Joan P. and Carol and bringing us Raging Grannies song sheets so we can serenade the Toy Awards people. Shirley queries why we aren’t going inside to the entrance of the gala.

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Inside, through the parking garage we go!

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Ever Onward – We march toward the restaurant to bring the message ‘War is Not a Game’ closer to the toy fair guests.

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Is that the guy from the restaurant? Telling us we have to go? But we’re not done yet!

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He really means it. So do we. With the entrance to gala in the background, we negotiate the right to remain.

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The Granny Peace Brigade stays put in the garage outside the restaurant where the Toy Show Awards dinner is taking place.

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Security! We’re being attacked by Grannies with songs and funny hats!! Get that pregnant security woman in here with the walkie-talkie!

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Amazing Bev Rice engages the cops, very polite, as we keep singing!

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After leaving the garage to stand on sidewalk outside to Pier 60, we were told by police to move across the street as the adjacent sidewalk “becomes private property after sundown.”  Huh? The cops tell us to go stand in the bike path. We move. What else becomes private property after sundown?

Watch it on YouTube:  Hasbro Has Got To Know – G.I. Joe Must Go

Photos: Phyllis Cunningham
Captions: Mercy Van Vlack with Phyllis Cunningham, Eva-Lee Baird, Nydia Leaf and Barbara Harris

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31 thoughts on “Toy Fair Request – Retire G.I. Joe

  1. Seriously… Do you have anything better to do than bash people for making children happy? I think we should ban knitting because people could think th needles are weapons. Oh, we should also ban board games because it teaches kids to be competitive. You know what? We should also ban TV and the Internet! Those are gateways to SIN! While we’re at it, why don’t we just go picket at the gates of Heaven because God is discriminating against people of other cultures! That’ll show em!

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  2. No bashing intended! Hasbro manufactures many toys that can only have positive influences on children and adults. It is only war toys that we would like to be eliminated. Toys should be fun for children and provide learning experiences for life’s expected challenges. War toys foster fighting and that, unfortunately, is becoming more indigenous in our society. How do we solve problems? Many times it is through violence involving injury, maiming, and killing. We only have to look at the murder rates in this country, let alone what the U.S. is doing in other countries, world-over.
    Let’s continue to encourage the manufacturing and use of toys that increase the potential for healthy development of life skills!

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  3. So does that mean eliminate Star Wars too? Or is just a military group that includes ninjas, robots and other never in a million years gonna happen in a real military group toy line? Why not campaign for something effective like education programs for high risk kids who are actually more likely to join the military? I played with GI Joe toys as a kid and am going into education. Sorry to break it to you, but it’s not the toys it’s the environment that fosters a propensity to join the military.

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  4. You go Grannies. Keep on keeping on. Because we all know it’s those evil toys corrupting the kiddies. It has absolutely nothing to do with bad parenting, absentee parents, or dysfunctional home environments. Nope, those have absolutely nothing to do with it. All of the blame rests with Hasbro and GI Joe.

    Now how would you react if we all decided to march, protest, and demand an end to the manufacturing of batteries and your “toys”?

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  5. That chick in the fourth picture looks like that preacher from “Poltergeist 2: The Other Side”!!! Is that why you were really there? Gathering up the children!?!?!?

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  6. This is what happens when people have too much time on their hands. I’m surprised there’s no college students and tree huggers with them.

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  7. Cobra LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  8. GI Joe killed my family while we were on vacation.

    we were driving through Jellystone Park and were attacked by bears.
    the whole Joe team came to the rescue, but my family was caught in the crossfire.
    the last thing I remember is one of the bears muttering something about “pic-a-nic baskets”, whatever that means…

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  9. If it wasn’t for GI Joe’s public service messages, I wouldn’t have known what to do when I set the house on fire while playing in the kitchen.

    Porkchop Sandwiches!

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  10. And this is why the elderly should be interred in camps and have their driver’s licenses revoked.

    I wonder how many times they had to break for a Depends changing?

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  11. Wow!!! You would think at there age they would be worrying about something important like the high prices at the grocery store, gas prices, and diapers. Why do the people in this country protest the dumbest things. Try protesting you Government. Thats whats messed up around here. You worry about toys while the government lies, cheats, and steals from you and everyone else. You old women are stupid. Get a life.

    P.S. Protest that sexiest Whore Barbie. Shes more of issue than Gi Joe.

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