Australia, WTF?

[HattonTheHammer]

I get what you're saying, but what offends people with blackface is that its so simplistic. They basically just black up to look like a stereotypical black image, something to be laughed at. In the US or UK, that just wouldn't be on.

I know their intent was in humour, so I'm not saying they should be jailed or anything like that, but a TV show should know better. I mean it was kinda funny for a bit, but the show should still know better, I know Aussies take things less seriously so it's less of an issue there. I think Americans & Brits, both black & white, just object to seeing black people being portrayed as 'buffoons', we've moved on from that. The same thing annoys me when I see a white geeky guy in a rap video doing some 'hood' dancing, because I don't feel some stereotype should make him a laughing stock.

In fact, basically everything Harry Connick Jr said.

Yeah I understand that. Theres a few different levels of how one could take it going on here.
With Michael only just passing away,some others,specially his avid fans will be offended for that reason too.
I agree it needs to be corrected and yet the odd ones (whether they are white or black skinned) who seek to get the most friction from it all probably need to have a good look within too.

So in America if say two black actors had painted themselves white and done the film dum and dummer exactly as it was portrayed would the white community (other than the kkk or fascists) kick up about it?
Im just wondering if it works both ways over there.

you must have missed this Hollywood gem

This would never pass in any other country, in america a black man can publically mock the white race on stage yet if reversed the entire nation is in uproar.

Chris Rock bases most of his show around criticising white people and not a word is ever said. The guy is obsessed with this whole white-black divide yet instead of bringing up some decent issues chooses to mock the other race for fun.

If i was a black person watching that aussie sketch i would be offended. No it wasnt a direct attack at a certain group of people (unlike rocks material) but more a joke about jackson himself which somehow sensors allowed to pass despite the fact it was inadverted racism.


Where bo-selecta is concerned. The jackson skit passes every time because funny enough there arent a hell of a lot of african-americans living in the uk. But how about this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdAuPOJMGPs

Now if that jackson skits offensive to afro-americans surely the british afro-carribean community should find this upsetting??

[Dizaster]

To me and to a lot of people for a long time, Rasicm meant discrimination against, or deliberately offending someone based on the color of their skin or where the originated...

Now a joke can't even be told without someone being offended...

I get why people GET offended.. Because they have deep seated beliefs and values which is like a box with a round whole, and comedy based on colour is a square block that just won't fit into it....

As long as someone out there believes that there is no such thing as a joke about skin color, only offensive intentions, then someone will get offended...

I personally feel it's about intention, and about who it's intended for...

If my mum died of cancer and someone knowing that, told a joke about cancer in front of me.. Regardless of intentions, that joke would be entirely wrong to tell.... Because they should know it's a raw subject with me..

If my mum died of cancer but they DIDN'T know, then it would then depend on their intentions.. If they intended it to be rude towards cancer people, then they are in the wrong.. If they just intended it to be light hearted and inoffensive, then I would feel it's okay for them to do that because they did not know I had a personal issue with this...


That tv skit, they were people who did NOT have bad intentions with it.. And their intended audience was people who they would have honestly felt would understand their intentions and also not let it hit a raw nerve in them...
OF COURSE there probably isn't a joke in the world that won't offend at least someone! But in the end you just HAVE to look at someone's intentions and that's gotta be it... If Chris Rock is cracking jokes about white folk in good spirit, then no one should be offended.. If he actually hates whites people, and is cracking jokes to encourage more divide and for others to dislike white people, then he should be considered to be acting poorly...


I'm able to look at the bigger picture though in regards to these things.. I've had people say horrible things to be in a good natured way and that's how I will take them.. Then I have had people say mundane things to me, but they meant them maliciously and I took offence...
If that is not the key to how you judge something, then you're going to find it difficult to judge anything, because it means your judging it by a bunch of socially programmed rules and values, and not your internal value of whether you feel someone is decent or not...

You may say those people were a bit thoughtless to not consider that there will be people out there who will be offended, but every comedian on earth probably has 90% of their routine which would offend someone...

Half will consider it fine, half will say it tips the line.... But are they judging it because of what we've socially learnt to be wrong or racist, or judging based on how we judge everything else. Through our own personal value of what is good or bad..


I don't care who it is or what the subject matter is..

If someone does something with fair intentions, fully believing their audience will take it the same light hearted way that they mean it, then i'm always going to cut them some slack......
IF there was one person hiding up the back who personally took offense though, that wouldn't make me change my opinion of the original performance..

[HattonTheHammer]

To me and to a lot of people for a long time, Rasicm meant discrimination against, or deliberately offending someone based on the color of their skin or where the originated...

Now a joke can't even be told without someone being offended...

I get why people GET offended.. Because they have deep seated beliefs and values which is like a box with a round whole, and comedy based on colour is a square block that just won't fit into it....

As long as someone out there believes that there is no such thing as a joke about skin color, only offensive intentions, then someone will get offended...

I personally feel it's about intention, and about who it's intended for...

If my mum died of cancer and someone knowing that, told a joke about cancer in front of me.. Regardless of intentions, that joke would be entirely wrong to tell.... Because they should know it's a raw subject with me..

If my mum died of cancer but they DIDN'T know, then it would then depend on their intentions.. If they intended it to be rude towards cancer people, then they are in the wrong.. If they just intended it to be light hearted and inoffensive, then I would feel it's okay for them to do that because they did not know I had a personal issue with this...


That tv skit, they were people who did NOT have bad intentions with it.. And their intended audience was people who they would have honestly felt would understand their intentions and also not let it hit a raw nerve in them...
OF COURSE there probably isn't a joke in the world that won't offend at least someone! But in the end you just HAVE to look at someone's intentions and that's gotta be it... If Chris Rock is cracking jokes about white folk in good spirit, then no one should be offended.. If he actually hates whites people, and is cracking jokes to encourage more divide and for others to dislike white people, then he should be considered to be acting poorly...


I'm able to look at the bigger picture though in regards to these things.. I've had people say horrible things to be in a good natured way and that's how I will take them.. Then I have had people say mundane things to me, but they meant them maliciously and I took offence...
If that is not the key to how you judge something, then you're going to find it difficult to judge anything, because it means your judging it by a bunch of socially programmed rules and values, and not your internal value of whether you feel someone is decent or not...

You may say those people were a bit thoughtless to not consider that there will be people out there who will be offended, but every comedian on earth probably has 90% of their routine which would offend someone...

Half will consider it fine, half will say it tips the line.... But are they judging it because of what we've socially learnt to be wrong or racist, or judging based on how we judge everything else. Through our own personal opinion of what is good or bad..

agree completely, political corectness gone completely mad

Its the same left wing liberals moaning over this as the ones that pretty moan about everything from migration to birth control.

It was meant in jest therefore should be taken in gest

i was merely pointing out that its one rule for one group of people and another for others

If a black person finds this offensive fair enough. The white chicks thing i found offensive. But when its idiots like connick jr who are doing it merely to further their tarnished career its just pathetic!

[Dizaster]

Intention,,,,,
and belief of how you genuinely feel it will be received...

That's how I judge the the level of maliciouness of ANY subject... Colour/Racism related or otherwise..

For some though, it will always just be, if it's a white person doing anything to do with black colour skin.. It's racist, it's offensive.. instantly.. Not to say that's a wrong way to look at it.. If they are offended they are offended... Just feel that such ways of looking at things will mean the topic of racism and divide will never ever go away...

[Bomp]

To me and to a lot of people for a long time, Rasicm meant discrimination against, or deliberately offending someone based on the color of their skin or where the originated...

Now a joke can't even be told without someone being offended...

I get why people GET offended.. Because they have deep seated beliefs and values which is like a box with a round whole, and comedy based on colour is a square block that just won't fit into it....

As long as someone out there believes that there is no such thing as a joke about skin color, only offensive intentions, then someone will get offended...

I personally feel it's about intention, and about who it's intended for...

If my mum died of cancer and someone knowing that, told a joke about cancer in front of me.. Regardless of intentions, that joke would be entirely wrong to tell.... Because they should know it's a raw subject with me..

If my mum died of cancer but they DIDN'T know, then it would then depend on their intentions.. If they intended it to be rude towards cancer people, then they are in the wrong.. If they just intended it to be light hearted and inoffensive, then I would feel it's okay for them to do that because they did not know I had a personal issue with this...


That tv skit, they were people who did NOT have bad intentions with it.. And their intended audience was people who they would have honestly felt would understand their intentions and also not let it hit a raw nerve in them...
OF COURSE there probably isn't a joke in the world that won't offend at least someone! But in the end you just HAVE to look at someone's intentions and that's gotta be it... If Chris Rock is cracking jokes about white folk in good spirit, then no one should be offended.. If he actually hates whites people, and is cracking jokes to encourage more divide and for others to dislike white people, then he should be considered to be acting poorly...


I'm able to look at the bigger picture though in regards to these things.. I've had people say horrible things to be in a good natured way and that's how I will take them.. Then I have had people say mundane things to me, but they meant them maliciously and I took offence...
If that is not the key to how you judge something, then you're going to find it difficult to judge anything, because it means your judging it by a bunch of socially programmed rules and values, and not your internal value of whether you feel someone is decent or not...

You may say those people were a bit thoughtless to not consider that there will be people out there who will be offended, but every comedian on earth probably has 90% of their routine which would offend someone...

Half will consider it fine, half will say it tips the line.... But are they judging it because of what we've socially learnt to be wrong or racist, or judging based on how we judge everything else. Through our own personal value of what is good or bad..


I don't care who it is or what the subject matter is..

If someone does something with fair intentions, fully believing their audience will take it the same light hearted way that they mean it, then i'm always going to cut them some slack......
IF there was one person hiding up the back who personally took offense though, that wouldn't make me change my opinion of the original performance..

Fucking great post, as a world we are going down a slippery slope where genuine free thought process is replaced by flawed logic based on some false black/white, no grey area allowed, algorithm. It started in the so called justice systems where only the facts are considered (which does make sens as it would make it even more biased towrdas good liars otherwise), and it's now seeping into all walks of life where people are'nt trusted to be competent and are reduced to box ticking when doing there jobs.

[El Kabong]

Just you wait until Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson get ahold of this


I think as long as it isn't done with malice blackface is ok (see Gene Wilder in Silver Streak and Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder)...the odd thing is some people get by with it and some people get called out for stuff that isn't racist at all, like Don Imus who in the past probably said racist stuff but the Rutgers incident and the PacMan Jones incident weren't racist.

These guys in Australia are doing the old blackface stuff and that is really pushing the envelope, but it's not like they have an Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson there to tell them what is and what isn't racist

It's odd that there are people who think Disney's Song of The South is racist along with The Amos 'N Andy TV Show....neither are racist, maybe Song of the South is historically inaccurate but it's a fucking FICTIONAL Disney movie.

[skel1983]

Yeah I understand that. Theres a few different levels of how one could take it going on here.
With Michael only just passing away,some others,specially his avid fans will be offended for that reason too.
I agree it needs to be corrected and yet the odd ones (whether they are white or black skinned) who seek to get the most friction from it all probably need to have a good look within too.

So in America if say two black actors had painted themselves white and done the film dum and dummer exactly as it was portrayed would the white community (other than the kkk or fascists) kick up about it?
Im just wondering if it works both ways over there.

you must have missed this Hollywood gem

This would never pass in any other country, in america a black man can publically mock the white race on stage yet if reversed the entire nation is in uproar.

Chris Rock bases most of his show around criticising white people and not a word is ever said. The guy is obsessed with this whole white-black divide yet instead of bringing up some decent issues chooses to mock the other race for fun.

If i was a black person watching that aussie sketch i would be offended. No it wasnt a direct attack at a certain group of people (unlike rocks material) but more a joke about jackson himself which somehow sensors allowed to pass despite the fact it was inadverted racism.


Where bo-selecta is concerned. The jackson skit passes every time because funny enough there arent a hell of a lot of african-americans living in the uk. But how about this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdAuPOJMGPs

Now if that jackson skits offensive to afro-americans surely the british afro-carribean community should find this upsetting??

Bit confused Hammer im no Chris Rock expert but I have seen some of his material and he takes the piss out of white and black.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7HHB...eature=related

[Salty]

If that skit offends you, you have no real problems in this world. I'm more offended that Darryl Sommers was allowed to be back on tv again

[amat]

As a TV show you should know the connotations come with blackface.

But I find HattonHammers posts once again startling. When I think about Chris Rock stand up the first thing that comes in my mind is him talking about black people shooting up movie theaters.

Once again, Hattonhammer draws the exact wrong conclusions from something. Chris Rock has upset white people in the past but he gets away with saying thigs because he has great crossover appeal too because he can joke about everyone.

[El Kabong]

...I disagree, Chris Rock gets away with saying what he says about blacks because he is black. That being said he's never taken to task for what he says about white people.

Mike Birbiglia really took the piss out of Rock's act.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRK5rU1ZPJc