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TiffToff88

Am i in the wrong? (Racism debate)

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Apparently i'm racist. I had a bit of a debate with some Americans over a video of an old bloke calling a younger man "boy". My argument was that although it is disrespectful, i don't see how it should be newsworthy.

 

The reason why it's newsworthy is because the younger man is Hispanic. And that clearly makes it a racist issue (apparently). So i'm also racist for not seeing that it was a racially motivated comment.

 

Surely the fact that a race issue hadn't even crossed my mind shows that i'm not the racist in the situation, doesn't it?

I get called "boy" all the time, i don't see it as being a racist term.

 

People are so quick to try and find the racism in everything they see and hear about these days, that they're becoming part of the problem, not the solution.

 

Why try to stir up racist issues where there most likely aren't any??

 

Please tell me if you think i'm in the wrong on this one.

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Americans whole identity is based around race. It's a whole different mentality to how many of us would think of ourselves. Your not just white in America. Your Irish, or Italian, or Mexican, or a mix of lots of different ethnicities. It doesn't surprise me that anything construed as an insult over there would soon be extended to include race in it.

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It's not racist but in some places it could be seen as a put down, i think america being one, how many films do you see the texas copper emphasizing the word boy at the end of a sentence in an intimidating way. My brother in law is from nuneaton and he calls people boy in the same way we say mate in leicester and i used to find it annoying until i found out that's what they say. I think pal is another that can be teaken two ways depending where your're from. 

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I would not say it is racist but it would depends on the situation.  It was a term used when slavery was about. I reeber a cousin who lived in South Africa    any years ago. He had servants he used to boast about calling the boys when he wanted them to do something. 'Fetch me a drink boy'

He was a racist of the Alf Garnett kind.  I was called young an when younger. Still am sometimes which is strange when I am older than the person saying it.

Is calling a young female 'girl' also considered racist?

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2 minutes ago, foxile5 said:

 

I wouldn't dream of following that boring old turd.

 

1 minute ago, Beliall said:

Careful before you get called homophobic :P 

Dont forget he's also a Japanese American. Homophobic AND Racist. The American's would have a field day!

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2 minutes ago, Beliall said:

Careful before you get called homophobic :P 

Hahah, I must admit I've just had a glance. I can't believe people are desperate to turn this into a racist issue. It's highly disrespectful, it's unprofessional, it's condescending and patronising. It isn't racist. It MAY be born from a sub-conscious racism in the mayor, it may not. It is unfair of the viewer to project that onto him.

 

Takei should know better than to try and dig up controversy, shame on him. America has enough race related problems without having to contrive more.

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Just now, foxile5 said:

Hahah, I must admit I've just had a glance. I can't believe people are desperate to turn this into a racist issue. It's highly disrespectful, it's unprofessional, it's condescending and patronising. It isn't racist. It MAY be born from a sub-conscious racism in the mayor, it may not. It is unfair of the viewer to project that onto him.

 

Takei should know better than to try and dig up controversy, shame on him. America has enough race related problems that to start contriving more.

Right? Thats pretty much my point, they're just pouring petrol onto the fire by looking for racism where there may or may not be any

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5 minutes ago, TiffToff88 said:

 

Dont forget he's also a Japanese American. Homophobic AND Racist. The American's would have a field day!

I was prepared to give you the benefit of the doubt until this.

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1 minute ago, Rincewind said:

I sometimes find mate  and pal annoying. Especially when it  is something like 'Look  here mate' Just  swap mate with boy and its just as  bad.

 

But it's not a racial slur.

 

I too find this kind of speech patronising to say the very least, but it isn't racist. 

 

'Son' is the one that really, really gets to me.

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40 minutes ago, TiffToff88 said:

Apparently i'm racist. I had a bit of a debate with some Americans over a video of an old bloke calling a younger man "boy". My argument was that although it is disrespectful, i don't see how it should be newsworthy.

 

The reason why it's newsworthy is because the younger man is Hispanic. And that clearly makes it a racist issue (apparently). So i'm also racist for not seeing that it was a racially motivated comment.

 

Surely the fact that a race issue hadn't even crossed my mind shows that i'm not the racist in the situation, doesn't it?

I get called "boy" all the time, i don't see it as being a racist term.

 

People are so quick to try and find the racism in everything they see and hear about these days, that they're becoming part of the problem, not the solution.

 

Why try to stir up racist issues where there most likely aren't any??

 

Please tell me if you think i'm in the wrong on this one.

You are not wrong tifftoff. 

The world is full of self righteous pain in the necks just waiting for the chance to show how PC they are without realising they are making themselves look pathetic.

Steer clear of them boy.

 

 

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2 minutes ago, boots60 said:

You are not wrong tifftoff. 

The world is full of self righteous pain in the necks just waiting for the chance to show how PC they are witho

 

 

Hand wringers whose sole goal in life is to be outraged about the wild injustices others suffer.

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It's all down to context.

 

In the context in which you or I might use the word (you also find older blokes in Harborough using "boy" as a term of endearment) then clearly it isn't offensive.

 

In America, as someone else mentioned, there's a history of white people, especially those in authority, using it as a belittling and demeaning term to ethnic minorities. So in the context of that video, from the way you've described it, it is racist. Pretty surprised your American friend didn't explain that to you?

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Just now, Voll Blau said:

It's all down to context.

 

In the context in which you or I might use the word (you also find older blokes in Harborough using "boy" as a term of endearment) then clearly it isn't offensive.

 

In America, as someone else mentioned, there's a history of white people, especially those in authority, using it as a belittling and demeaning term to ethnic minorities. So in the context of that video, from the way you've described it, it is racist. Pretty surprised your American friend didn't explain that to you?

Oh they did, and i respected that and apologised for any offence my ignorance on the matter may have caused. But they proceeded to jump on my back accusing me of being racist and stupid for not being personally offended by the video in question, seeing as over here in the way the word is used when it's directed towards me, it isn't offensive.

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10 minutes ago, boots60 said:

You are not wrong tifftoff. 

The world is full of self righteous pain in the necks just waiting for the chance to show how PC they are without realising they are making themselves look pathetic.

Steer clear of them boy.

 

 
2

 

7 minutes ago, foxile5 said:

 

Hand wringers whose sole goal in life is to be outraged about the wild injustices others suffer.

 
 

Yep, let's not give a fvck about other people. Because you and those around you are the only ones that really matter, right? :thumbup:

 

Talking about the topic itself, Voll above is right - "boy" has been used as a racist term of condescencion by authority figures for a long time now, though it's much more directed at the black population than the Hispanic one. 

 

It's possible the bloke could just have been being patronising to the guy on account of his age...but who knows?

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No that is not racist. Racism is becoming increasingly a bigger problem because those who advocate against it, namely "progressive liberals," have done everything in their power over the last five or ten years to dilute what it means to be a racist. Pc and buzzword culture focuses so much on ironing out everything, that the actual route cause and problem slips through the cracks and people like you who clearly aren't about to pop a white cloak on and go and lynch black people are branded racists.

 

The fight against institutional racism was won 50 years ago in America and earlier in most other parts of the western world. The state is no longer discriminatory. Real racism of course still exists but until we stop conflating what racism is and stop talking about what divides us such as "white male privilege" it will continue to exist.

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