Alan Hansen - apologises for what, exactly?

[dubai_phil]

People are

 

White

Pink (Tourists on the beach here)

Yellow

Brown

Black

 

So to insist on ignoring ALL the shades of colours of Asia what is that all about?

 

Should we in a post Saintandy world call them different hues?

 

Or am I going to get into trouble next time I am in UK and go to a Polish Deli for dried Wild Mushrooms, and an Asian Supermarket for my spices?

[Saintandy666]

Roughly 80% of the population here are from SE Asia.

Of the remainder, 80% are from Arabic speaking lands.

Of the final 80%, 20% are white.

 

A previous employer brought a British Asian down as their Marketing Director. He lasted 4 months before having a nervous breakdown, he discovered he was not black and not white.

 

My best mate is from Redcar, he's been here 1 year less than me. About 4 years ago I was shocked to hear someone call him Black. He's not, he's a Brit.

 

Until you see how reverse racism works you think you're it in the UK. The rest of the world doesn't see it that way.

 

White man in Jamaica? Easy Target.

White man in India? Easy Target.

 

People who insist on categorising people - like you - are the ones at fault. Just perpetuating the krap in the name of PC.

 

They are people. Judge them on their ability

 

I agree that labels are dumb. I have always said I wish people would stop concentrating on what colour they are, what geographical area of land they come from and just start to realise that we are all HUMAN.

[Gingeletiss]

Roughly 80% of the population here are from SE Asia.

Of the remainder, 80% are from Arabic speaking lands.

Of the final 80%, 20% are white.

 

A previous employer brought a British Asian down as their Marketing Director. He lasted 4 months before having a nervous breakdown, he discovered he was not black and not white.

 

My best mate is from Redcar, he's been here 1 year less than me. About 4 years ago I was shocked to hear someone call him Black. He's not, he's a Brit.

 

Until you see how reverse racism works you think you're it in the UK. The rest of the world doesn't see it that way.

 

White man in Jamaica? Easy Target.

White man in India? Easy Target.

 

People who insist on categorising people - like you - are the ones at fault. Just perpetuating the krap in the name of PC.

 

They are people. Judge them on their ability

 

Caste system in India...........ummmmm! not racist per chance?

[Saintandy666]

You really need to hit your history books a bit more son.

 

Rudyard Kipling. It was the attitude of the day that other cultures needed to be ruled over by whites to help them develop.

[hypochondriac]

That's just a silly thing to say. If I had more experience, I would think the same things as you. If that were true, everyone who is older than me would think the same as you, and then don't. Just learn to accept people have different opinions.

 

I don't expect you to agree with everything, I just think you would change your view on quite a few things with a bit of life experience. I think you need to accept the diversity in life and that everyone doesn't fit into the neat little boxes you give them .

[Saintandy666]

I'm not going to defend the way Andy has made his points, but I have to admit that in general terms, I have grown up to learn that I shouldn't use the term 'coloured'. I've never actually know why, because I always felt similarly to many of you above, that it was being used purely in broad descriptive terms (just as 'white' is), and just because it has been used in racist ways by others in the past, doesn't mean it always is.

 

Here's a BBC article from 2006 about it with some background: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/6132672.stm

 

Personally I think the only way to avoid this kind of scenario is to solely use descriptions of ethnicity, i.e. Afro-Caribbean, African British, and that if we're not sure, to perhaps describe people as being from 'various ethnic backgrounds', but I would not seek to punish anyone who uses a term when it is CLEARLY not intended to be used in any kind of racist way. They say ignorance is no excuse when it comes to the law, but actually, given how much things change in this world, I don't think anyone can be criticised for genuinely not realising that a term *may* cause offence like Hansen.

 

Said succinctly and better than I ever could.

 

Ethnicity is a silly term as well though technically, they should just ask skin colour if that is what they want(which it is), as ethnicity is just what group you feel you belong to. A white person could technically feel like he has an afro-caribbean ethnicity!

[Joensuu]

Why should anyone need a collective term for all of the various indigenous groups of non-European decent anyhow? What possible sentence can you be saying? Oh, yeah, of course, the need for such a collective term comes from the 'need' to distinguish between 'us' and 'them'.

 

Of course the term 'black' isn't perfect, as it fails to take into account all of the potential racial variations that it is currently used to encompass. However, 'black' is a heck of a lot better than misusing the term coloured, unless of course you do mean to sweeping use a collective term for all of the non-white peoples of the world. However, I'm struggling to think of a sentence which has legitimate reason to separate white people from non-white people... (perhaps some genetic medical study? I honestly can't see any other reasons bar the narrow minded 'us' and 'them' type conversations, which usually end up decending into accusations of jobs being stolen, benefits being taken, or worse).

 

As an aside, I think my kids will one day consider 'black' and 'white' to both be unacceptable. Who knows what the replacement terminology will be...

[Saintandy666]

I don't expect you to agree with everything, I just think you would change your view on quite a few things with a bit of life experience. I think you need to accept the diversity in life and that everyone doesn't fit into the neat little boxes you give them .

 

I have no doubt my opinions will change and I am quite happy for that to happen when presented with the evidence for me to do so(though not necessarily towards your opinion). My opinions have already changed quite substantially within even the last 2 years. All opinions are quite boxey though when condensed to a few paragraphs. I'm a fan of post-modernism. There isn't an absolute right way or absolute truth as to how things should be.

[dubai_phil]

Caste system in India...........ummmmm! not racist per chance?

 

Utterly totally and completely.

 

In fact, as a "Race", and having lived amongst so many of them, without a doubt, when it comes to Racism from THEIR side, they make the EDL look like a bunch of Morris Dancers. But anyway, they have no label any more, so they can get away with it.

[1976_Child]

Rudyard Kipling. It was the attitude of the day that other cultures needed to be ruled over by whites to help them develop.

 

Please don't bring Kipling into this. Chances are you've been spoon-fed some b0ll0x at school about him, but the reality was that he was passionately pro-India.

 

And from a personal experience I can attest that Africans are feking useless at managing anything. (NB, I do mean Africans, not black/coloured people per se).

 

The standard of living, education and development in East Africa was significantly better under colonial rule. I'm not a fan of the colonial attitudes, having rubbed shoulders with the Happy Valley set in Nairobi, but even elderly Tanzanians and Kenyans will tell you that times were better under British rule.

 

The amount of utter incompetence by even non-corrupt African leaders is just mind boggling.

[Saintandy666]

Please don't bring Kipling into this. Chances are you've been spoon-fed some b0ll0x at school about him, but the reality was that he was passionately pro-India.

 

And from a personal experience I can attest that Africans are feking useless at managing anything. (NB, I do mean Africans, not black/coloured people per se).

 

The standard of living, education and development in East Africa was significantly better under colonial rule. I'm not a fan of the colonial attitudes, having rubbed shoulders with the Happy Valley set in Nairobi, but even elderly Tanzanians and Kenyans will tell you that times were better under British rule.

 

The amount of utter incompetence by even non-corrupt African leaders is just mind boggling.

 

In the same way Curzon was fascinated by India and pro-India. In a... 'Oh, look at those poor brown people, what interesting culture... look at those buildings, we should help them'. We didn't treat or think of them as equals. End of.

[Gingeletiss]

Saintandy666, some of the most racist peoples in the world, are non white, as I said, read your history books.

[Saintandy666]

Saintandy666, some of the most racist peoples in the world, are non white, as I said, read your history books.

 

Oh for sure. Even Gandhi was allegedly dogey at times when black people were involved(though I don't know enough about that particular issue to speak with lots of confidence). I don't deny racism is a white only issue.

[hypochondriac]

In the same way Curzon was fascinated by India and pro-India. In a... 'Oh, look at those poor brown people, what interesting culture... look at those buildings, we should help them'. We didn't treat or think of them as equals. End of.

 

There you go again. How can you be sure that there is not someone on here with infinitely more knowledge than you about Kipling? Why do you deal in these absolutes? It makes you look silly.

[Saintandy666]

There you go again. How can you be sure that there is not someone on here with infinitely more knowledge than you about Kipling? Why do you deal in these absolutes? It makes you look silly.

 

So do you think, we invaded and conquered India so we could live as equals with them... or do you think it was to exploit their wealth and gain power?

 

And I am sure there are people with more knowledge than me, but I'm allowed my interpretation. Do you have a counter argument or do you agree with me? Would be interesting to hear your interpretation.