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What to do when you witness racism?

schaffer

I was travelling on the Luas red line from Hueston to Connelly station at 2pm a few afternoons ago.

At museum a ticket inspector ran up the luas to the driver to stop some scumbag entering through the top door.

Then the scumbag start hurling racist abuse at the ticket inspector. The usual, go back to your country, you're taking Irish jobs, you f***ing black bas***d etc

I was so stunned I didn't know how to react. The luas moved off and as the inspector passed by some other couple she mutters that the scumbag was right.
This seemed to really hurt the inspector and he tried to laugh it off.
By that stage I only managed to say "don't mind the scumbag, we're all not like that" as he quickly moved down the luas.

It's quite painful to see this happen and feel so helpless to react.
At this stage I wonder should/could I have done more.
Should I have defended him more publicly and risked the wrath of the other handful of scumbags sitting nearby.

What is the best thing to do in future?

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BalcombeSt4

Join the IRSP. Uniting all the workers of the world is the only way to beat false dichotomies.

Dr Crayfish

Skatedude wrote: »

I usually remind them that the irish were among the biggest race of immigrants ever

Their answer to that is always - yeah but we bleedin' worked hard we did, we built America we did, an' all. They all bleedin' love us over there they do.

HardenendMan

How about you mind your own business, Honky?!

I kid I kid I iz honky.

Notavirus.exe

The_Valeyard wrote: »

Simples. Take the kkk, they have books, websites, fake science all to make their case for 'white supremacy'

That's one group of people. What about every day racists? Maybe they have a good reason for being prejudiced (I'm not saying they do).

cowboyBuilder

I remember when I was about 13 seeing a Chinese girl walking her bike somewhere in town, and 3 little scummers went up to her and started screaming "chink chink chink .. go back to your f*ckin country" ...
Poor girl just looked stunned.
I did nothing and to this day feel bad about it.

mohawk

A week or so ago was getting my sandwich at lunch. The was a middle aged woman ahead being completely horrible muttering about how the staff were all foreigners who didn't speak English. They definitely could hear her.

She was dog rough so I didn't dare open my mouth. I hate that I said nothing but honestly who knows what she could of done if she was confronted.

Honestly why do we have so many dirtbags in this country...

[Deleted User]

Notavirus.exe wrote: »

That's one group of people. What about every day racists? Maybe they have a good reason for being prejudiced (I'm not saying they do).

I just notice in Germany and Austria the areas that usually vote far right anti-foreigner parties are the places that have no contact with foreigners

KingBrian2

People need to be told that certain forms of behavior are intolerable. The same with binge drinking, sexism, sectarianism, bigotry or violence. A climate has been nurtured that allows people get away with being racist.

One eyed Jack

schaffer wrote: »

It's quite painful to see this happen and feel so helpless to react.
At this stage I wonder should/could I have done more.
Should I have defended him more publicly and risked the wrath of the other handful of scumbags sitting nearby.

What is the best thing to do in future?

There really isn't a best or worst thing to do in that situation, it could go a number of different ways depending on a number of different circumstances. You really could only use your own best judgement.

The_Kew_Tour wrote: »

A Co worker now friend ( dark skin ) and myself were walking down Street in Belgrade back around 2006

Anyway couple of lads hurl abuse ( the N word came, rest was in non English)at my Co Worker and flung Banana at us which hit me.

He gets banana tells them he delighted they hit me and thanks for banana as he was Hungry.

He still gets kick out of it. In fairness Belgrade ain't place be if your anything but Pale but best thing you can do is take the hit like I did.

Your friend handled that brilliantly!! :pac:

Nice header on your part too btw

Annasopra

If I saw this I would report it on www.ireport.ie and possibly to guards

wakka12

Notavirus.exe wrote: »

Telling someone to go back to their own country isn't racist?

The point is theyre just horrible people who will pick out any unique-ish trait about somebody and use it to insult them. Yes it was racist but what he's saying is that they would have said horrible things to the inspector regardless of whether he was non white, he just happened to be black and they picked on that.

As for my story, I was on the luas the other day and this group of spanish students (well mediterrean looking so I assume..) about 11 or 12 year olds sitting at one of the stations all started pointing at a black guy sitting in front of me on the train and laughing and pulling faces which I thought were supposed to look like monkey faces and a few of them put up their middle finger at him. He was just reading his book and they started doing it when he looked at them.

I assume it was racism as I and about 4 other white people were standing around him and it was directed solly at him. He didnt react, just looked back down at his book

Anesthetize

schaffer wrote: »

Then the scumbag start hurling racist abuse at the ticket inspector. The usual, go back to your country, you're taking Irish jobs, you f***ing black bas***d etc

Like the scumbag was going to get a job on the Luas

wakka12

mohawk wrote: »

A week or so ago was getting my sandwich at lunch. The was a middle aged woman ahead being completely horrible muttering about how the staff were all foreigners who didn't speak English. They definitely could hear her.

She was dog rough so I didn't dare open my mouth. I hate that I said nothing but honestly who knows what she could of done if she was confronted.

Honestly why do we have so many dirtbags in this country...

I hate when people say stuff like this as if Ireland has a uniquely high number of scumbags, if anything we have less than most countries. But unfortunately every country has lots

FTA69

It's also important to realise that racism isn't the preserve of some sort of poor underclass either. People are codding themselves if they think there aren't swathes of the middle class and wealthy who are racist bastards as well.

Dr Crayfish

FTA69 wrote: »

It's also important to realise that racism isn't the preserve of some sort of poor underclass either. People are codding themselves if they think there aren't swathes of the middle class and wealthy who are racist bastards as well.

I don't think so, in Ireland anyway. It's more the "underclass" who have a problem because they think they're taking all the stuff they should be entitled to. Immigrants taking low skilled jobs or even benefits wont really have any impact on a well off person, but someone less well off could lay the blame for their problems on outsiders.

tracey turnblad

As a person married to a foreign national who regularly gets told to go home and stop robbing all these junkies jobs... I'd have to say something. I can't not... I'd just shout shut the **** up... I can't help it. I've three kids mixed race the eldest is 18 I would die if I knew they were being racially abused and no one said anything. But unfortunately people are too scared to speak up. I suppose because it's so personal to me I can't help it. My favourite (not) line is when someone says to me I'm not a racist but.... There the worst

HalloweenJack

I remember being at a football match years ago and a bunch of kids, around ten years old, were messing about. One of them pushed another and the kid said "get away from me, you black bastard!". Cue a bunch of middle-aged men roaring at him, giving him stick about it.

The kid was shocked, didn't know what to do. One old lad screeched at him: "You can't say that, that's racist!" He didn't offer any explanation as to why it was racist and what the problem was and he did it in a very aggressive and authoritative way. The kid seemed pretty shook up, bear in mind he was about ten years old.

While I appreciate the sentiment from the old lads, they went about it the wrong way. They should've calmly explained it to him, instead of barking at him. It wasn't even the kids father that shouted at him, it was just one of the lads in the vicinity at the time.

FTA69

Dr Crayfish wrote: »

I don't think so, in Ireland anyway. It's more the "underclass" who have a problem because they think they're taking all the stuff they should be entitled to. Immigrants taking low skilled jobs or even benefits wont really have any impact on a well off person, but someone less well off could lay the blame for their problems on outsiders.

Nonsense. I worked as a bouncer in Ireland for years and the despicable sh*te I've seen of people of all classes come out with would make anyone cringe. I've seen private-school educated rugger buggers stand outside Fast Als in Cork and pull shanty eyed faces at the Chinese lad behind the counter; not to mention some of the absolute putrid rubbish some door and bar staff were subjected to by well-heeled people in professional jobs who were more than capable of pouring out streams of invective about "stupid f*cking Poles" or "black bastards" while wound up about something and full of drink. A lot of the more thicker stuff I've heard in Ireland came from strong farmer types as well who would lose their f*cking life if their child or brother or whatever married someone of a different race.

Racism in Ireland isn't just about Anto from the flats and you're engaging in a different sort of prejudice yourself if you think it is.

Dr Crayfish

FTA69 wrote: »

Racism in Ireland isn't just about Anto from the flats and you're engaging in a different sort of prejudice yourself if you think it is.

When did all this happen? It's not like that anymore. The only people I've seen engaging in racist behaviour towards people are these "Anto from the flats" types you're talking about.

Dr Crayfish

I can only speak for Dublin also, not Cork, maybe it's different there, smaller places tend to be less open minded

HalloweenJack

Racism comes in all shapes and forms. It's not just "Anto from the flats" types. I'm from Bray, spent plenty of time in Dublin over the years and it comes from people from all walks of life.

peckerhead

HalloweenJack wrote: »

Racism comes in all shapes and forms. It's not just "Anto from the flats" types. I'm from Bray, spent plenty of time in Dublin over the years and it comes from people from all walks of life.

+1. I've met Chancellors of universities that were racist twats. The "uneducated" have no monopoly on bigotry; they may be less inclined to mask it.

FTA69

Dr Crayfish wrote: »

When did all this happen? It's not like that anymore. The only people I've seen engaging in racist behaviour towards people are these "Anto from the flats" types you're talking about.

2011-2012. Not the 1970s, I'm 28 by the way so I'm not gazing back into distant days.

I've also worked a variety of jobs that involved migrants and dealing with people from all walks of life; the one unifying lesson I've learned as that small-minded bigoted c*nts come in all classes, shapes and sizes.

As an interesting aside, I work with a Scottish Mauritian whose cousin lived in Dublin for years and who told me of the abuse he received to the point I nearly died with embarrassment to be from the same country. At one point he had women in Mass try and skip him for communion and had people trying to spit in his pint when he was in the pub.

I find it gas that a white Irish person from Dublin can categorically deny racism is an issue in certain sectors of society when you've never been in a position to witness it happening or have it happened to you.

Eugene Norman

KingBrian2 wrote: »

People need to be told that certain forms of behavior are intolerable. The same with binge drinking, sexism, sectarianism, bigotry or violence. A climate has been nurtured that allows people get away with being racist.

The climate is the liberal mollycoddling of our lumpen proletariat.

Eugene Norman

HalloweenJack wrote: »

Racism comes in all shapes and forms. It's not just "Anto from the flats" types. I'm from Bray, spent plenty of time in Dublin over the years and it comes from people from all walks of life.

When does it come out though? Hardly at work.

BunkMoreland

"Racist twats" "racist bastards"

I don't know why people get so angry about racisim that's not happening to them. Why do you care?

retro:electro

I work with a girl who is Irish but her mother is from the Cayman Islands. She was frequently told to fcuk off back to wherever she's from and stop taking our jobs, ironically the very people who spout that crap are usually the cohort who have never worked, and will never work a day in their lives.

KERSPLAT!

BunkMoreland wrote: »

"Racist twats" "racist bastards"

I don't know why people get so angry about racisim that's not happening to them. Why do you care?

We'd be rightly ****ed if we only cared about things that directly affected us. Silly statement.

Lurkio

BunkMoreland wrote: »

"Racist twats" "racist bastards"

I don't know why people get so angry about racisim that's not happening to them. Why do you care?

...by which lights we might end the criminal justice system, because if its not us, who cares?

cowboyBuilder

wakka12 wrote: »

The point is theyre just horrible people who will pick out any unique-ish trait about somebody and use it to insult them. Yes it was racist but what he's saying is that they would have said horrible things to the inspector regardless of whether he was non white, he just happened to be black and they picked on that.

As for my story, I was on the luas the other day and this group of spanish students (well mediterrean looking so I assume..) about 11 or 12 year olds sitting at one of the stations all started pointing at a black guy sitting in front of me on the train and laughing and pulling faces which I thought were supposed to look like monkey faces and a few of them put up their middle finger at him. He was just reading his book and they started doing it when he looked at them.

I assume it was racism as I and about 4 other white people were standing around him and it was directed solly at him. He didnt react, just looked back down at his book

Actually here in Spain it's perfectly "acceptable" to act this way - I remember a few years ago at the Barcelona F1 some Alonso fans had blacked up and were acting like monkeys slagging Hamilton.

Totally unacceptable and should have been banned for life from any F1 events.

The media here could not understand the outrage this caused, I was in work and managers were asking me as an "English" guy to explain what was wrong with it - they genuinely thought it was just a bit of banter.