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Plan B: 'Chav is a derogatory phrase'

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Reply 60
Avatar for Iron Lady
Iron Lady
Original post by Besakt
Because these same people accuse the working class for not working for their money.


Surely you mean 'underclass'? The type who actively prefer a life claiming benefits.

Look, it is their parents - they make choices. If they 'spoil' them and do not encourage them to be independent, it's their own fault. However, they do not do this at the taxpayers' expense.
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by Iron Lady
Because they have an image associated with them.

There is a difference between being chav like (i.e. chav tendencies) and being a complete chav too.
Despite multiple people demonstrating the applicability of the non-antisocial elements to many respectable members of society, you still believe they are indicative of undesirable persons. Without the antisocial element the person is not undesirable.
Reply 62
Avatar for Besakt
Besakt
3
Original post by lukas1051
There is a distinct difference between wearing a tracksuit to the gym and hanging around with friends; and wearing a tracksuit while standing on a street corner with a gang with a can of lager one hand and a fag in the other.

What I'm trying to say is it's pretty obvious whether or not a person is a chav, and it's not based on class.


The working class are more likely to be classed as a chav though. A working class receiving JSA whilst looking for work is classed as a chav in the eyes of many. A middle class person doing the same would not be.
Original post by Iron Lady
I do. It sounds far nicer.

Most people in the country don't.
Reply 64
Avatar for Besakt
Besakt
3
Original post by Iron Lady
Surely you mean 'underclass'? The type who actively prefer a life claiming benefits.

Look, it is their parents - they make choices. If they 'spoil' them and do not encourage them to be independence, it's their own fault. However, they do not do this at the taxpayers' expense.


How can you know whether somebody actively lives a life of claiming benefit just by looking at them?
I'm not saying that is what I have the problem with. I have a problem with their hypocrisy.
I disagree with the majority of posters on here and would say that the word 'chav' is offensive and implies insecurity on the part of the user. It's a deliberate grouping of 'them and us' on the basis of class, however much people try to justify this on the contentious issue that these people may choose how to dress or act.

Do you ever mean 'chav' in a good or even neutral way when you say it? Would you consider it as the same as 'Brit' or 'Frenchman'?
Reply 66
Avatar for zzzzippy
zzzzippy
5
That's ridiculous. People can't help their race or gender, which is why it's so bad when others are racist or sexist. People can help being chavs, and they can stop being one.

The word chav is reserved for people who wear a certain attire, and act in a certain way. When those people stop doing those things then they won't be called chavs. Simples.

Edit: I also have an issue with them being called 'working class'. They do not deserve to be called working class because they do not work!! They claim they are poor, and can't work, but as an example - the recent London riots involved a lot of chavs, and how did they organise the riots? On their smart phones! The working class traditionally WORKED, built bridges, roads, buildings and ships and mined. They had their own culture and sense of community and found it a great shame when they were unemployed. Yes, there was great upheaval against the upper classes and there was a greater social divide, which they fought for, but they were proud to support their family and provide the country with a great service.
(edited 12 years ago)
The way I see it: if you 'chav' things, you're a chav. This applies to anyone. Working class, middle class, upper class.

However, people equate this behaviour with certain types of clothing and speech, which is misguided.


[I am from a working class background. If that matters, at all.]
Original post by Besakt
The working class are more likely to be classed as a chav though. A working class receiving JSA whilst looking for work is classed as a chav in the eyes of many. A middle class person doing the same would not be.


Well I would not class that as chav like behaviour. However I understand that some people would, and that's where the problem lies in my opinion. I suppose the word is unacceptable when used incorrectly, but eradicating the word won't solve any problems, it is the ignorant views some people hold that need to change.
no. It's just a clique.

No different from calling someone scene or someone emo really.
Original post by Anna_Karenina
:rolleyes: Wow, typical denial from a cocoon dweller. :mmm:


Your generalising is incredibly ignorant. Is is you, in fact, who sounds as if you know nothing of the real world. I was housed in social housing for a number of years after a family break-up and in that time I learned that staying away from the vast majority of chavs is a sensible idea. Even the non-violent ones don't bring any sort of enrichment to your life or to anything they come into contact with.
Reply 71
Avatar for rafimax
rafimax
6
Original post by ArtGoblin
You interpret it to mean an outlook on life, but this isn't how it is used. Anyone who looks like they they're poor/live in a certain area are assumed to have that outlook whether they do or not. How can you possibly know how they feel about those issues? This is the problem with the word chav - it attitudes negative characteristics to a whole class and pretend it only applies to a select group of those people and is therefore not offensive.


Chavs are not necessarily poor, and poor people aren't necessarily chavs. I see poor people on my way to school every day, and the majority are not chavs.
Original post by rockrunride
I disagree with the majority of posters on here and would say that the word 'chav' is offensive and implies insecurity on the part of the user. It's a deliberate grouping of 'them and us' on the basis of class, however much people try to justify this on the contentious issue that these people may choose how to dress or act.

Do you ever mean 'chav' in a good or even neutral way when you say it? Would you consider it as the same as 'Brit' or 'Frenchman'?


I don't believe there is anything wrong with offending people who deserve to be offended. I think it is wrong to label all working class people as chavs, but a chav is someone who behaves in a very specific way, a way that undeniably makes the world a worse place to live in; and I'm not talking about pronouncing words in a certain way or wearing certain types of clothing, I'm talking about people who shout abuse at old ladies, or beat people up and record it on their phones for fun.

I never use the word chav in a good way because when I use it I set out to offend.
Depends on how you use it. Chav is not just another word for someone who is lower class or hasn't got a lot of money. I find it derogatory when people just label everyone who is lower than them 'chavs' it'd be a bit like calling everyone who's slightly middle class, or has more money then the average person, toffs.

However when it's used to describe people who actually are 'chavs' (see the majority of people on Jeremy Kyle) then it's just a description of someones lifestyle and personality.
Original post by Piko_Piko
Your generalising is incredibly ignorant. Is is you, in fact, who sounds as if you know nothing of the real world. I was housed in social housing for a number of years after a family break-up and in that time I learned that staying away from the vast majority of chavs is a sensible idea. Even the non-violent ones don't bring any sort of enrichment to your life or to anything they come into contact with.



Yeah yeah, and I was bought up with a gaggle of orphans on the streets of victorian london. #internet #notfoolinganybody

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
Original post by lukas1051
I don't believe there is anything wrong with offending people who deserve to be offended. I think it is wrong to label all working class people as chavs, but a chav is someone who behaves in a very specific way, a way that undeniably makes the world a worse place to live in; and I'm not talking about pronouncing words in a certain way or wearing certain types of clothing, I'm talking about people who shout abuse at old ladies, or beat people up and record it on their phones for fun.

I never use the word chav in a good way because when I use it I set out to offend.


Being verbally exploitative of circumstance (which it may or may not be, you don't know) is not something I indulge in personally. But each to their own.
Original post by wibletg
This.

I'm against racism because the majority of people of other races are perfectly decent.

Chavs, however, are never decent people.


Is the term 'chav' even racist?

I don't think so, its typically used on people based on their behavior.
Original post by rafimax
Chavs are not necessarily poor, and poor people aren't necessarily chavs. I see poor people on my way to school every day, and the majority are not chavs.


The word 'chav' is rarely applied to a middle class person. It may be occasionally, but in general it is used by middle class people to differentiate themselves from working class people. It is a way of saying "our culture is superior to yours" by lumping certain clothes, music and activities with anti-social and possibly illegal behaviour. Most poor people will be seen as chavs. Think of the most deprived estate in your town/city. I bet the majority of them fit the 'chav' stereotype. I find it difficult to believe that people can't see the connection between class and the labelling of chavs when there is such a strong correlation between those seen as chavs and economic deprivation.
Original post by Anna_Karenina
Yeah yeah, and I was bought up with a gaggle of orphans on the streets of victorian london. #internet #notfoolinganybody

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:


So you think I must be lying about ever having lived in a reasonably deprived area because I'm a student and on the internet?
I actually think you're trying to get a rise out of me for kicks.
:troll:
Original post by Piko_Piko

I actually think you're trying to get a rise out of me for kicks.

Typical cocoon dweller thinking everything is about them. :rolleyes:

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