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The boy who called racist

  • 26-07-2012 5:04pm
    #1
    Einhard
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,920 ✭✭✭


    A Greek athlete has been sent home from the Olympic Games for making an allegedly racist joke. Responding to reports that the mosquito-borne West Nile virus was becoming increasingly prevalent in Greece, she tweeted that, with so many Africans living in Greece, the mosquitoes would be able to eat some home food for a change.

    Now, it's not a particularly funny joke, but is it racist? I really don't think so. I don't see any hatred for Africans, or anyone else for that matter, expressed in that joke. One could argue that it's in poor taste, but that it expresses contempt for an entire race? How exactly?

    It's the same with the John Terry/Anto Ferdinand incident. I hadn't been paying much attention to the whole thing, and had assumed that Terry had actually racially abused Ferdiand, called him a niggar or some such thing. That is obviously racist terminology, and Terry would have deserved sanction. Reading up on it a little, I discovered that he had actually referred to Ferdinand as a "black ba*tard". I fail to see how that could be construed as racist. Ferdinand is black. How the hell can it be considered a xenophobic statement? It's a statement of fact. Most people, when they swear, include some form of adjerctive or other descriptive word- ye fat this, ye fuppin this etc.

    I'm not denying that racism is a scourge. It is. But the fact that it is such a powerful force is the very reason why we shouldn't be throwing around such accusations as if they were confetti. It seems now that the mere act of making reference to someone's skin colour is racist. Which is not only ridiculous, but dangerous. If people are accused of racism when it's patently obvious that they are not, then the word loses its power. And when true racists come along, people are less vigilant because they've been hoodwinked so many times before.

    So, do we need to cop on a bit, and stop destorying people's lives, and doing people of colour a disservice, by reacting so hyperbolically every time race is mentioned?

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2178836/London-2012-Olympics-Greek-athlete-Voula-Papachristou-banned-racist-joke-Twitter.html?ICO=most_read_module Daily Mail link...don't panic people, a quick peek wouldn't permanently damage your IQ. Also, pictures inside of Greek athlete hottie...I mean despicable racist!

    EDIT: For the easily confused: no boys called racist in the making of this thread/story. :cool:
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