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Police investigate 'racist' Cool Runnings carnival float

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    #62
    Spider Web
    Closed Accounts Posts: 386 ✭✭Spider Web


    pilly wrote: »
    Why didn't they just use black people? Problem solved. It does seem a bit stupid to black up nowadays.
    What if there weren't black guys around? All it is is emulation of physical traits, the way two black guys imitated white women in White Chicks. I know black and white people have different histories but this is still meant in the same way as White Chicks was - imitation, without any derogatory racial/political undertones. Why can't the context be taken in the same spirit?


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    #63
    pilly
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 9,005 ✭✭✭pilly


    Spider Web wrote: »
    What if there weren't black guys around? All it is is emulation of physical traits, the way two black guys imitated white women in White Chicks. I know black and white people have different histories but this is still meant in the same was as White Chicks was - imitation, without any derogatory racial/political undertones. Why can't the context be taken in the same spirit?

    Yeah, you make a good point. I'm not offended by these guys by the way. But I still wouldn't tell other people they shouldn't be offended.


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    #64
    Captain Obvious
    Registered Users Posts: 4,165 ✭✭✭Captain Obvious


    pilly wrote: »
    That's not what I meant at all. But sure you know that.

    What did you mean? Who should have used black people? Is it not just four guys who decided to dress up as 4 people from a movie?


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    #65
    pilly
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 9,005 ✭✭✭pilly


    Captain Obvious wrote: »
    What did you mean? Who should have used black people? Is it not just four guys who decided to dress up as 4 people from a movie?

    Okay, my post backfired massively and came out all wrong.

    My thinking was this:

    In parades and carnivals the floats are usually done by companies or sports organisations or whatever.

    So given that it's the UK who have a huge black population it's not unreasonable to presume that a company/organisation would have 4 black guys in it.

    That's all I was thinking. Maybe I didn't think it through and it's just a carnival that people do for the craic but I've never heard of that.


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    #66
    DEFTLEFTHAND
    Registered Users Posts: 16,500 ✭✭✭✭DEFTLEFTHAND


    What an abject waste of police time.

    Investigating four pissheads in a parade float. Resources are stretched enough as it is.


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    #67
    Blazer
    Registered Users Posts: 17,419 ✭✭✭✭Blazer


    Ulysses Gaze wrote: »
    A Labour MP as well.

    Wish she was as vocal about the rampant Anti-Semitism in her party. And particularly Naz Shah and her actions.

    I think any member of the labor party regardless of country is a complete twat anyway. For the life of me I can’t think of one decent politician


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    #68
    iguana
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 12,915 Mod ✭✭✭✭iguana


    Biggest lickspittle on boardz wrote: »
    Now, was this really hateful?

    Because of big sun our skin really dark
    We swim at night get eaten by shark....
    ........We have no showers so we bathe in crappy stream
    Jamaica we have a bobsleigh team.....
    .....We can't play guitar so we make drum beats
    Jamaica we have a bobsleigh team
    We can't afford condom so we make baby
    Either that or HIV.........
    ........We practice with push car we don't have ice
    Our nappy hair gives us lice.....

    Some of the choice lyrics played from the float. Pretty nasty and hateful with or without the blackface.


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    #69
    pilly
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 9,005 ✭✭✭pilly


    iguana wrote: »
    Because of big sun our skin really dark
    We swim at night get eaten by shark....
    ........We have no showers so we bathe in crappy stream
    Jamaica we have a bobsleigh team.....
    .....We can't play guitar so we make drum beats
    Jamaica we have a bobsleigh team
    We can't afford condom so we make baby
    Either that or HIV.........
    ........We practice with push car we don't have ice
    Our nappy hair gives us lice.....

    Some of the choice lyrics played from the float. Pretty nasty and hateful with or without the blackface.

    Is that true? If so then that throws a totally different slant on things.


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    #70
    iguana
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 12,915 Mod ✭✭✭✭iguana


    Those are the lyrics of the song playing on the video of the float passing. It seems to have been on a loop too, as it ends during the video and immediately starts up again. The song and lyrics are here.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr6z3ZBBRjE


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    #71
    Benjamin Buttons
    Closed Accounts Posts: 232 ✭✭Benjamin Buttons


    Ulysses Gaze wrote: »
    Morgan Freeman said it best when asked "How Do We stop Racism?".

    Morgan replied "Stop talking about it."

    Yeah, Peter Thiel the tech billionaire and supporter of Donald Trump said something similar. So the same view from the centre-left Freeman and the far-right Thiel. So what?.....isn't it possible that they're both wrong.
    Personally I think that particular view should be called 'The Ostrich Solution' to racism, you know, let's pretend that it's not there and 'hey presto' problem solved.
    Imo, people who publicly 'black-up' for a bit of a laugh are, at best, seriously unfunny dickheads, and at worst anything from knowing shít stirrers to smart-alecky racists.
    Wasn't there a similar incident in Dublin a few years back when four or five English lads (stag party?) blacked-up (Cool Runnings style again I think) and hung around some city centre pubs 'minding their own business' to different reactions from the local passers-by. Controversy ensued of course but then one is tempted to believe that the lads in their 'hilarious' wigs and costumes weren't completely taken aback when some Dublin people didn't actually think that their caper was a champion idea.
    Might be interesting if those 'Cool Running' Welsh lads 'floated' on down to London...Lewisham or Hackney maybe, just for the craic and all in the name of fun of course.


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    #72
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 0 ✭ [Deleted User]


    Benjamin Buttons wrote: »
    Imo, people who publicly 'black-up' for a bit of a laugh are, at best, seriously unfunny dickheads, and at worst anything from knowing shít stirrers to smart-alecky racists.

    I kinda agree that, on the face of it (yeah, bad line) blacking up, in this day and age, is just a no no. Of course, it's all about context. So there might be some irony...like the "Ching Chong Chinamen" ditty and pulled back eyes in Rickey Gervais "Extras". Or it may be just a very bad joke from someone who is genuinely ignorant of the connotations.

    Overall, while I think it's hard to get away from the inference, I would suspend judgement until I heard the explanations of those involved.


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    #73
    Benjamin Buttons
    Closed Accounts Posts: 232 ✭✭Benjamin Buttons


    Deleted User wrote: »
    I kinda agree that, on the face of it (yeah, bad line) blacking up, in this day and age, is just a no no. Of course, it's all about context. So there might be some irony...like the "Ching Chong Chinamen" ditty and pulled back eyes in Rickey Gervais "Extras". Or it may be just a very bad joke from someone who is genuinely ignorant of the connotations.

    Overall, while I think it's hard to get away from the inference, I would suspend judgement until I heard the explanations of those involved.

    Sure Conor, I hear what you're saying.
    I thought the 'Ching Chong Chinaman' thingy was a play on the old ''They all look the same to me'' ignorance. In that the 'When The Whistle Blows' staff were expecting a visit from a rich Japanese business man but were either too thick or racist to know or care about the rather large difference between Japan and China, so I thought it was a good gag AGAINST racism.

    Like you, I used to suspend judgement on the 'blacking up' style of visual 'humour', and wish I still could....maybe I'm less trusting than you of the motives of these 'cool runnings jokers' when they 'accidentally' stray into controversial territory regarding issues of race.


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    #74
    B.A._Baracus
    Registered Users Posts: 11,179 ✭✭✭✭B.A._Baracus


    They knew dawning the black face would upset people . They did it in a carnival after all.

    But when pulled up about it feign ignorance / say you didn't know.


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    #75
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 0 ✭ [Deleted User]


    Benjamin Buttons wrote: »
    Sure Conor, I hear what you're saying.
    I thought the 'Ching Chong Chinaman' thingy was a play on the old ''They all look the same to me'' ignorance. In that the 'When The Whistle Blows' staff were expecting a visit from a rich Japanese business man but were either too thick or racist to know or care about the rather large difference between Japan and China, so I thought it was a good gag AGAINST racism.

    In fairness to Gervais, he also did it wonderfully well in the whole "bigger than a bread bin" sketch in The Office. And Coogan and Ianucci's sketch about Alan Patridge meeting the Irish tv executives. It was all so wonderfully ironic and just brilliantly handled. I don't think these 4 can be excused on that ground. Only sheer ignorance...but again in this day and age...I agree, it's very suspicious. They had to know that they were at least engaging in very risqué humour and don't think they can be too upset about anyone saying they're offended.


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    #76
    Benjamin Buttons
    Closed Accounts Posts: 232 ✭✭Benjamin Buttons


    Deleted User wrote: »
    In fairness to Gervais, he also did it wonderfully well in the whole "bigger than a bread bin" sketch in The Office. And Coogan and Ianucci's sketch about Alan Patridge meeting the Irish tv executives. It was all so wonderfully ironic and just brilliantly handled. I don't think these 4 can be excused on that ground. Only sheer ignorance...but again in this day and age...I agree, it's very suspicious. They had to know that they were at least engaging in very risqué humour and don't think they can be too upset about anyone saying they're offended.

    The Irsh execs were 'Father Ted' writers Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews, now that was a funny episode.....superb!


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    #77
    Nermal
    Registered Users Posts: 2,617 ✭✭✭Nermal


    Benjamin Buttons wrote: »
    Imo, people who publicly 'black-up' for a bit of a laugh are, at best, seriously unfunny dickheads, and at worst anything from knowing shít stirrers to smart-alecky racists.

    Is it illegal to be smart-alecky racist?


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    #78
    Benjamin Buttons
    Closed Accounts Posts: 232 ✭✭Benjamin Buttons


    Nermal wrote: »
    Is it illegal to be smart-alecky racist?

    I don't believe it is, but I'm not an officer of the court.
    I think it's a very nebulous area.
    In the UK there is an 'incitement to racial hatred' law, though I'm guessing something like that is quite difficult to prove, or disprove if you're the accused.
    Though I'd be seriously surprised if the hyphenated 'Smart-alecky' was ever found in the any of the UK law books no matter how arcane those weighty tomes.


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