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Racism in the Big Brother house

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  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Rachael wrote:
    Jade Goody on Shilpa Shetty: “She makes me feel sick. She makes my skin crawl.”
    Danielle Lloyd “She’s a dog.”
    After Shetty made roast chicken for the group, Jo O’Meara said: “I don’t trust that chicken. I want to eat it but I’m scared.”
    Lloyd “You don’t know where those hands have been.”
    Jackiey Budden, Goody’s mother, to Shetty: “Do you live in a house or a shack?” She called Shetty “the Indian” and refused to pronounce her name. Lloyd to Shetty: “Do you get stubble?”
    O’Meara “Like a man.”
    Lloyd to Jade “She wants to be white.”
    Jack Tweed called Shetty a “c***”.
    Shetty: “Why do they hate me? Why am I detested?”
    “Were they bullying Shilpa last night?” asked Jermaine Jackson.
    “Yeah,” replied Ian “H” Watkins. “I’m not playing those games. I’m not going to be part of it.”
    Some of this stuff is racist, whichever way you want to put it.

    If some of you are saying the above was not said out of racism but to upset/bully/bitch about Shetty, be my guest. I see where you're coming from but I would like to remind to some of you that exactly the same excuse was put forward by Spain's manager Luis Aragones about his comments on Henry and about those Spanish fans who made monkey chants during the Spain- England game. And did those of you who discussed that incident agree that the Spanish manager and fans weren't racist? I think not...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Aladdin wrote:
    Some of this stuff is racist, whichever way you want to put it.

    Indeed it is.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Yerascrote wrote:
    Actually the N word is derived from "Negro" and not someone from Nigeria. There's a country called Niger ffs as well lol!

    ETA:So you'd have no problem calling someone from Pakistan a P***?
    Me personally, yes, I would have a problem, because I know that it's often used as a term of abuse for someone with brown skin. However, using the word itself doesn't necessarily mean that it's racist or has racist intent when used to actually talk about someone from Pakistan. And on your first point, that's one of those things that I realised I already knew as soon as you said it. Must've forgot. Still most people have a problem about it due to the fact that it has been used so much in the past as a term of racial abuse towards black people. Using the word itself doesn't necessarily make you racist, but anyone with any hint of awareness about such issues and respect for people would refrain from using it nowadays, I think.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The second you start saying that certain words are ok to use and certain words aren't then freedom of speech ceases to exist. Simple as that.
    No freedom of speech still exists. They call someone a n***** or a p*** and everyone else uses their freedom of speech to expose them for the racist piece of shit they probably are. If they've got a good reason for using such terms, then they can defend themselves. If the majority of people find their use of such terms to be unacceptable, then tough. See? The system works. I for one would cheer at the collapse of Jade Goody's "career".
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    they just don't like her from the bits and pieces ive heard, and they're too thick to express that without showing how truly ignorant they are.... they revel in their thickness
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Well I have watched it last night. I don't think it's racism, Shilpa annoys me a bit but Jade, well I did really like her but now?! How over the top was she going? You know what? I can't stand attention seeking tempers like that, when some 2 bit nothing loses their cool that much over one little tale and preeches about honesty! I've come accross so many people like that, that want to look hard and gain popularity by making others scared/laugh.
    She's the fucking prick.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Some of those things are racist, of course they are, but so what?

    Racism is detestable, I'm not claiming otherwise, but the way the law is in this country is an absolute joke. If I batter someone without provocation I won't go to prison, but if I call them a coon or a wog whilst I do so then I will. It's ridiculous to try and claim that the word is worse than the action, but that is what the law does. "Racially aggravated" is a rubbish law, an unprovoked attack is an unprovoked attack regardless of whether you call them a racist name or another abusive name.

    Not all people who use racist abuse are racist, but the Spanish proved themselves to be racist football fans a very very long time ago. There used to be a mod on here who had a fantastic time when she was in Spain, getting battered by the police simply because she was black.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    So what about calling someone lanky? Or ugly?
    You tell me.

    I'm not saying that any words are 'OK to use' and others 'aren't'. I'm saying that different comments can have different justifications, some of which are more acceptable to people generally. A person will probably feel that being called 'fat' is a personal comment insinuating that they are gluttonous, even if it's 'glandular' and beyond their control. Maybe it would do some obese people good to not beat about the bush, and just say 'Pat, you are fat', but to tell them they're Indian? That's coming from a completely different mindset than remarks about weight.

    That's the kind of thing Ginger people would say...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6273677.stm

    Apparently Jade said 'Go back to the slums'

    :lol: Pot, kettle, black anyone?

    I wouldn't be too worried about all their collective careers going down the pan (apart from Shetty's of course) as surely that's the reason they're in there in the first place.

    I guess it's a natural reaction when ignorant people brush up against anything remotely unknown. At leasy we can take comfort from the fact that her fat ass ain't gonna get up from this one.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    Some of those things are racist, of course they are, but so what?

    Racism is detestable, I'm not claiming otherwise, but the way the law is in this country is an absolute joke. If I batter someone without provocation I won't go to prison, but if I call them a coon or a wog whilst I do so then I will. It's ridiculous to try and claim that the word is worse than the action, but that is what the law does. "Racially aggravated" is a rubbish law, an unprovoked attack is an unprovoked attack regardless of whether you call them a racist name or another abusive name.
    Why do you think the law exists in the first place?

    Even with such draconian legislation in place you still get not an unconsiderable amount of racist abuse, and on occasion, beatings. If we tell people calling someone a p aki or a ni gger is not worse than calling them bastards things will take a turn for the worse. It's not as if some people need any encouragement as it is...
    Not all people who use racist abuse are racist, but the Spanish proved themselves to be racist football fans a very very long time ago. There used to be a mod on here who had a fantastic time when she was in Spain, getting battered by the police simply because she was black.
    Oh well that settles it then :rolleyes:

    What does make Britain, I wonder?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Aladdin wrote:
    Why do you think the law exists in the first place?

    I hate the phrase, but I think it is misguided political correctness. Especially as the law is rarely, if ever, used to protect white victims.
    Even with such draconian legislation in place you still get not an unconsiderable amount of racist abuse, and on occasion, beatings. If we tell people calling someone a p aki or a ni gger is not worse than calling them bastards things will take a turn for the worse.

    It isn't worse. I admit I'm coming at it from a white background, but racist abuse is not any more distressing than any other type of persistent abuse.

    We should be protecting people from bullying and abuse, not drawing distinctions. If I call someone a racist name its a criminal offence; if I persistently abuse strangers because of their weight or hair colour or nose size it is not. That is what my problem is.

    Does calling someone a racist name make an unprovoked beating any worse? No.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Aladdin wrote:
    Why do you think the law exists in the first place?

    Even with such draconian legislation in place you still get not an unconsiderable amount of racist abuse, and on occasion, beatings. If we tell people calling someone a p aki or a ni gger is not worse than calling them bastards things will take a turn for the worse. It's not as if some people need any encouragement as it is...

    But why are those words so apparently powerful, especially ni gger, which is used in the black community a lot. They only have the power which we give them, I doubt many people would consider 'bloody hell' serious swearing now but it used to be.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    AFAIC it boils down to the victims the abuse is directed at. If black people tell me being called a ****** as an insult is deeply offensive to them, that's fine by me. If some of them call it to each other it's another matter though- The context entirely different.

    And I hear what you are saying Kermit but I guess racially motivated crimes are seen by society as far more serious than other crimes. Lots of people get beaten up every weekend for many different reasons, and that's bad enough. But targetting someone specifically because of their skin colour or ethnic background is particularly malignant, and when you take human history and what has happened in the past into account then perhaps you start to believe racial abuse and attacks are a particularly detestable human trait that deserves special treatment.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm not convinced there should be a law on racially aggravated assault - especially if this is coupled with the police treating a crime as racist if the victim percieves it to be racist (whether it is or isn't).

    That said I think judges should be told to take whether it was a racist attack into account when sentencing and make the sentence more severe than some other types of assault.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm not convinced there should be a law on racially aggravated assault - especially if this is coupled with the police treating a crime as racist if the victim percieves it to be racist (whether it is or isn't).

    I don't think there should be one.

    It was brought in as a politically-correct sop to the morons at the CRE.
    That said I think judges should be told to take whether it was a racist attack into account when sentencing and make the sentence more severe than some other types of assault.

    It depends.

    An unprovoked assault is an unprovoked assault, and the sentence should reflect what happened rather than any racial undertones. Battering someone to a pulp shouting "I hate gingers" will give you a shorter sentence than battering someone to a pulp shouting "I hate blacks", and that's wrong.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    .
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I have agree with most of the comments Kermit has said in this thread.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    sophia wrote:
    Why exactly?

    The latter would be "racially aggravated", and that is a more serious offence than the former, which would just be a normal assault.

    You can beat someone up for any other prejudice, but racism is a big no-no that's protected by law.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The Carphone Warhouse have cancelled thier sponsorship of the show.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    An unprovoked assault is an unprovoked assault, and the sentence should reflect what happened rather than any racial undertones. Battering someone to a pulp shouting "I hate gingers" will give you a shorter sentence than battering someone to a pulp shouting "I hate blacks", and that's wrong.
    Has the former ever happened?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    You can beat someone up for any other prejudice, but racism is a big no-no that's protected by law.

    There are historical reasons as to why. AFAIK, landlords never put up signs in the 70's which read "No Irish, No Gingers, No Dogs".
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Has the former ever happened?

    I would have thought that people have attacked others simply because of their weight or hair colour or facial appearance. Schoolkids bully on all those reasons, so I'd have no reason to doubt that older people would be the same.

    I'm sure that there are historical reasons for the law, Blagsta, I just think the law is an ass in this instance. People who attack for no other reason than prejudice should be dealt with strongly, but creating different classes of prejudice doesn't do that. Attacking someone because they are black is a more serious offence than attacking someone because they are female or homosexual, for instance, and the same historical reasons apply to both. That's utterly wrong. As much as anything it implicitly condones certain types of prejudice, e.g. homophobia, as its clearly not as important.

    The curious thing about the "racially aggravated" law is that it's only ever applied against white people.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I don't think either of the 3 girls intended to use racist remarks to cause offence.
    I think they are just ignorant.
    And that might be fine if they were talking about it on their own.
    But being watched by a few million people is different.
    Some people might consider those girls role models and to see them spout ignorant shit like that might influence them.
    And it's obvious bullying. C4 stipulates that no bullying is allowed. Yet they allow it.
    I saw an interview with Shilpa's mom and she didn't think the remarks were racist. She thought it was hurtful by any parent to see their child being bullied and that she thought the girls were just jealous.
    School ground shit.

    I wouldn't be surprised if CBB ceased transmission before the end of the 25 days.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'd be immensely surprised if they cut it. It's fantastic for C4- nobody was watching the show, viewing figures were through the floor, and now everyone's talking about it.

    Anyone would think it was deliberate.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    To be honest, I did at one point think that.
    Then I laughed at myself and figured i had better things to do than think about CBB and conspiracy theories.
    There must be a good bet out there for the show to stop...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It does seem that alot of it is ignorance rather than racism. If it was someone else that annoyed them (shilpar comes across as very stuck up) then they'd be bitching about something that was different about them. Jade actually did tell her she was normal.

    I do think kermit has a point. I get abuse for being a redhead all the time, and no one gives a shit, i have to laugh it off. When one of my friends got abuse for being asian, the school went crazy. Not saying she was wrong for reporting it, but i don't see why racial attacks on appearance are taken more seriously than others.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    I'd be immensely surprised if they cut it. It's fantastic for C4- nobody was watching the show, viewing figures were through the floor, and now everyone's talking about it.

    Anyone would think it was deliberate.

    Absolutely. This isthe best thing that could have happened as far as Channel 4 are concerned. My mum is convinced of the same thing; she hates that sort of TV show, but admitted on the phone to me earlier that after she watched the news yesterday, she was very tempted to tune in to see what was happening. She didn't in the end, just rang me and made me tell her what was going on instead :p
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    i dont think they're being racist, they just don't like Shilpa and so are doing the usual girly thing and bitching and bullying. Some of the things said could be percieved as racist, but i don't think Jade and co realise this at all.

    When they were weary about eating the chicken it was only because it looked undercooked to them. If someone else had cooked it,it would be the same.

    The eating with the hands thing was just ignorance. But they did say Shilpa touched food which was on somebody elses plate, if a white housemate did that it would have the same reaction, theyre just ignorant, it's not to do with her race.

    I think its all been taken out of proportion, just because the 3 bullies in question are white and theire target is of a different race. It is immediatly seem as racism. Its not, the fundemental reason is they just dont like her personality.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    sophia wrote:
    Hmmm. From what I've seen, it seems to be more about a class divide than a racial or ethnic one.

    It seems that way to me to.

    A class war.

    (Maybe Marx ideology has entered the Big Brother house. . . . in reverse. :D )
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Wasn't ignorence one of the excuses in the Stephen Laurence case? Correct me if I'm wrong.

    I don't know how obvious the racism thing needs to be. So they aren't dressed head to toe in KKK outfits yet say things like 'Go back home' and 'Return to the slums'. Oh and my personal favourite 'I don't know where her hands have been'. Sure it isn't in your face racism but I think it's naive to deny it as anything other. I hope I'm not the only one picking this up on my 'overly politically correct' radar now :rolleyes:
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