Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
New posts
New profile posts
Latest activity
Internet Search
Members
Current visitors
New profile posts
Search profile posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
General Discussions
The Watercooler
"quit playing in the trees like monkeys" nets criminal charges?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Marguerite" data-source="post: 150933" data-attributes="member: 1991"><p>We had that problem Down Under a few months ago, when members of the Indian cricket team were touring Australia. There is a culture among cricketers (among "sportsmen") called sledging, where they quietly insult each other to throw each other off their game.</p><p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sledging_(cricket)" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sledging_(cricket)</a></p><p></p><p>and warning - occasional strong language not well censored - <a href="http://www.cricket-game.co.uk/cricket-sledging.htm" target="_blank">http://www.cricket-game.co.uk/cricket-sledging.htm</a></p><p></p><p>(Example: "Why are you so fat?" The other bloke replied quickly, "Because every time I *** your mother she gives me a biscuit.")</p><p></p><p>Well, one of our Aussie blokes called one of the Indian players a monkey, and it had to go before the tribunal as an alleged racial slur. It was the first time I'd ever heard anyone claim that "monkey" is a racist term. And even then - I didn't think it was a colour reference at all.</p><p></p><p>The point made in our tribunal - how was the remark intended? With the cricketers, they DID know that "monkey" was a racial insult to Indians, so they got into trouble for it. But if they could have shown that the reference "monkey" was to something apart from race and was not intended in a negative way, they would have been cleared.</p><p></p><p>I think that should be what happens here - the kids were climbing trees. Monkeys climb trees. "Monkey" is not a term I'd associate with insults to African-American people. What was the speaker thinking when she used the word?</p><p></p><p>If the children felt the lady intended to insult them, then even if she did not, she should apologise because her use of an apparently ambiguous word caused distress. However, it really does sound like this is being blown way out of proportion. I'm wondering if the parents are the ones responding to this, perhaps partly to distract attention from their own kids' misbehaviour in climbing trees belonging to someone else anyway?</p><p></p><p>My mother used to refer to my brothers as monkeys, when they nicked a bag of nectarines and climbed onto the garage roof to eat them.</p><p></p><p>And in the movie our kids were in, "The Black Balloon", Toni Collette calls her autistic son "monkey" affectionately, because he is getting used to the monkey ears he is to wear in a school production of "Noah's Ark". So would that part of the film be offensive also? The bloke playing her son has fair hair and blue eyes. My brothers - Anglo.</p><p></p><p>I think this comes down to intent, and whether there was genuine misunderstanding or whether someone is just trying to get mileage out of this as a distraction from the main issue. Someone with common sense needs to step in and get this situation back on topic, and off racism.</p><p></p><p>Marg</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Marguerite, post: 150933, member: 1991"] We had that problem Down Under a few months ago, when members of the Indian cricket team were touring Australia. There is a culture among cricketers (among "sportsmen") called sledging, where they quietly insult each other to throw each other off their game. [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sledging_(cricket)[/url] and warning - occasional strong language not well censored - [url]http://www.cricket-game.co.uk/cricket-sledging.htm[/url] (Example: "Why are you so fat?" The other bloke replied quickly, "Because every time I *** your mother she gives me a biscuit.") Well, one of our Aussie blokes called one of the Indian players a monkey, and it had to go before the tribunal as an alleged racial slur. It was the first time I'd ever heard anyone claim that "monkey" is a racist term. And even then - I didn't think it was a colour reference at all. The point made in our tribunal - how was the remark intended? With the cricketers, they DID know that "monkey" was a racial insult to Indians, so they got into trouble for it. But if they could have shown that the reference "monkey" was to something apart from race and was not intended in a negative way, they would have been cleared. I think that should be what happens here - the kids were climbing trees. Monkeys climb trees. "Monkey" is not a term I'd associate with insults to African-American people. What was the speaker thinking when she used the word? If the children felt the lady intended to insult them, then even if she did not, she should apologise because her use of an apparently ambiguous word caused distress. However, it really does sound like this is being blown way out of proportion. I'm wondering if the parents are the ones responding to this, perhaps partly to distract attention from their own kids' misbehaviour in climbing trees belonging to someone else anyway? My mother used to refer to my brothers as monkeys, when they nicked a bag of nectarines and climbed onto the garage roof to eat them. And in the movie our kids were in, "The Black Balloon", Toni Collette calls her autistic son "monkey" affectionately, because he is getting used to the monkey ears he is to wear in a school production of "Noah's Ark". So would that part of the film be offensive also? The bloke playing her son has fair hair and blue eyes. My brothers - Anglo. I think this comes down to intent, and whether there was genuine misunderstanding or whether someone is just trying to get mileage out of this as a distraction from the main issue. Someone with common sense needs to step in and get this situation back on topic, and off racism. Marg [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Forums
General Discussions
The Watercooler
"quit playing in the trees like monkeys" nets criminal charges?
Top