I have to say, when I clicked and saw the picture, I thought it was intended to look like a burning cross. I don't think that is the intent, but the design is poor, with the bulbs sticking out of the sides. They could have outlined the cross in white lights, or covered it with white lights in rows and not had them sticking out. Unfortunate.
Though I'm not old enough to remember the civil rights movement as she does, I think Elphaba and I have some touchstones that others here don't have. I lived in Alabama from 1965 to 1970 and from 1977 to 1982. I remember hearing about riots at the junior high school when I was in elementary school. I remember seeing the grand imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan on the news when I was in high school. The image of a burning cross strikes me with gut-level disgust, fear, and shame for what humans are capable of doing to each other -- similar to the feelings I have when confronted with a swastika.
I really think our reactions here are based on our different backgrounds.
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