Does laughing at a Black joke make me racist?

basmic · 7 Sep 2007 at 18:52

manveruppd said:
tell me how many times have you personally been accused of racism by a black person for telling a black joke?

Not once.

Will_3rd · 7 Sep 2007 at 18:55

my rule of thumb is if a ethnic group starts making fun of themselves, it's fair game

G-MAN2004 · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:02

manveruppd · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:02

Dogoid said:
a racist and a nationalist are deemed as bad as each other these days , in this country at least.

HA! If you've swallowed the hate-filled sputum hawked out by the BNP's spin-doctor's and believed the fairy tale that the trash who call themselves "white nationalists" are anything other than "white supremacists" under a more "voter-friendly" name then that's the fault of your own gullibility, not anyone else's!

Nationalism as an ideology historically had very little to do with racial issues. Although it had its origins in antiquity, it only started gaining mass popularity in the 19th Century, and its main political objective was the unification and freedom from foreign rule of groups of people who self-define as sharing similar history, language and culture. The first nationalist party to bring racial issues into it was the National Socialists. The term has very recently been appropriated by right-wing groups with white supremacist views to find a more acceptable platform from which to preach their racist ideology.

Nationalism and the national state are, of course, themselves partly based on fiction, and a lot of evil has been perpetrated in the name of the national state. Unnecessary wars fought for "national pride", ethnic cleansing of minority groups, banning of regional languages and dialects, I could go on forever. But "racism", within the context of this country at least, is a markedly different ideology than "nationalism", and anyone who confuses the two and fails to see beyond the "spin" the "white nationalists" are selling to make themselves look less like scum is a complete political innocent.

manveruppd · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:06

Will_3rd said:
my rule of thumb is if a ethnic group starts making fun of themselves, it's fair game

I would agree with you, but, as I said, some people are more sensitive than others. If I make fat jokes at my own expense, does that mean you'll go make a fat joke at the next fat person you see?

manveruppd said:
how many times have you personally been accused of racism by a black person for telling a black joke?

basmic said:
Not once.

So, uh, why the rolleyes below then?

basmic said:
Only if a black person finds the joke offensive, and catches you laughing.

tomanders91 · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:07

tbh racism is when you take some kind of action against a group of people that you dont like, a harmless joke is fine.

A black guy walks into a bar with a beatiful parrot on his shoulder. "Wow," says the bartender. "That is really something. Where'd you get it?"

"Africa," says the parrot.

Dogoid · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:09

manveruppd said:
HA! If you've swallowed the hate-filled sputum hawked out by the BNP's spin-doctor's and believed the fairy tale that the trash who call themselves "white nationalists" are anything other than "white supremacists" under a more "voter-friendly" name then that's the fault of your own gullibility, not anyone else's!

Nationalism as an ideology historically had very little to do with racial issues. Although it had its origins in antiquity, it only started gaining mass popularity in the 19th Century, and its main political objective was the unification and freedom from foreign rule of groups of people who self-define as sharing similar history, language and culture. The first nationalist party to bring racial issues into it was the National Socialists. The term has very recently been appropriated by right-wing groups with white supremacist views to find a more acceptable platform from which to preach their racist ideology.

Nationalism and the national state are, of course, themselves partly based on fiction, and a lot of evil has been perpetrated in the name of the national state. Unnecessary wars fought for "national pride", ethnic cleansing of minority groups, banning of regional languages and dialects, I could go on forever. But "racism", within the context of this country at least, is a markedly different ideology than "nationalism", and anyone who confuses the two and fails to see beyond the "spin" the "white nationalists" are selling to make themselves look less like scum is a complete political innocent.

k.

weirdo :confused:

basmic · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:18

manveruppd said:
So, uh, why the rolleyes below then?

Perhaps my reverted signature will help your understanding.

dafloppyone · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:20

why arent black babies allowed in sandpits

cause cats keep on covering them up

Raikiri · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:31

Dogoid said:
a racist and a nationalist are deemed as bad as each other these days , in this country at least.

That's because the so called nationalists you're referring to are probably one and the same.

G-MAN2004 · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:31

dafloppyone said:
why arent black babies allowed in sandpits

cause cats keep on covering them up

I loled at that. Sorry

manveruppd · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:32

basmic said:
Perhaps my reverted signature will help your understanding.

My understanding is fine, I've seen enough of your posts in previous threads to know what your views, broadly, are, I just do not see where you base the opinion that black people will automatically call you racist if you laugh at a black joke since you've never had it happen to you. Has it happened to anyone you know?

yhack · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:33

My black friend told me this:

What's the difference between Batman and a Black man?

Batman can go out at night without Robin.

He lets me call him the N word all the time, and so do nearly all of my black friends, I don't see why anyone cares

Azagoth · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:35

Am I racist for laughing at that complete and utter moron on TV at the moment, Tim Westwood?

tomanders91 · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:45

What do you do when you see a black man with half a face?

Stop laughing and reload

strudey · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:48

Dogoid said:
weirdo

I'm sure if you asked nicely he could put it into simpler words for you.

Lew · 7 Sep 2007 at 19:59

West midlands police are looking for a "racist Attacker"! I phoned the information line but apparently its not a job advertisment!...

lakebodom60 · 7 Sep 2007 at 20:01

I'm not racist, I've got a colour TV at home

Really though, I'm not. :cool:

Heofz · 7 Sep 2007 at 21:13

imo, anyone who says that whether you can/cant say certain words depends on their own race is probably more of a racist thing to say in itself.

Racism is racism, whether it comes from a black person or white person makes no difference.

Racism involves prejudice, discrimination, or a genuine belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others.

I don't believe a joke centred around typical society stereotyping about anything is racist.

If you laughed because of stereotype reference, you are not racist.
If you laughed because you hate the race, you are racist.

I don't think its any different to laughing at computer nerd jokes (not that there are many I can think of). Some computer nerds have certain attributes of stereotypes, and some don't. That's just the way everything goes.

But at the same time I wouldn't laugh at a joke if I was within earshot of somebody who may find it offensive. You need to be aware of your surroundings in case other people don't feel the same way as you about racism, and respect that it is their right to think however they want.

manveruppd · 7 Sep 2007 at 21:20

Heofz said:
(snip)

Well said.

People are sensitive to differing degrees. Some people even take offense at positive stereotypes, eg. jokes about black people being good runners. I don't get these people, but I realise this is the case and I try to display some sensitivity when I'm around people I don't know very well and whose attitudes and sensitivities I'm not aware of.