Humour; what constitutes as racism?

I want this to be a serious discussion; if you have nothing of worth to input into this discussion please refrain from posting. I don't want to see people trying to be "cool" and posting "OMG UR RACIT!!11oneone" or other nonsensery.

Disclaimer:
Racism is a touchy subject, and if anybody is inadvertently offended by this I apologise in advance.

A friend of mine told me a joke the other day (one which referred to black people) and he didn't think it was racist. I was unsure - I didn't see anything wrong with the joke because it wasn't offensive in any way - but I wasn't sure if "society" would share this view.

The joke:

Q: Why do black people have holes in their jeans?

A: Because their knee grows

(A: Because they're negros)

Now, I don't see this to be offensive, in any plausible way. To my knowledge, the term "negro" is socially acceptable (if not, I guess I am mistaken) so therefore the joke should not offend. However, in times when political correctness seems to dictate society and its understanding of the english language, I can understand how some may find this offensive, or at the least; questionable.

I don't think I've seen many, if any, black people with holes in their jeans, and I don't regard having holes in one's jeans as being a negative thing. In fact, some would regard that as being stylish.

Personally, I believe what constitutes as racism is something that actively persecutes, discriminates against, or defames any race and based on that logic, I do not see the joke as racist because it is not doing any of the above. In fact, I simply see it as an irreverant play on words; a pun.

What are your thoughts on this?

Are jokes like this "racist", or are they simply jokes?

Do you think political correctness has warped the english language and people are now too scared to use once 'socially acceptable' phrases/terms in case they 'offend' someone?

Discuss.

(edited 13 years ago)

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Reply 1

AnoneMouse

Negros is a racist term just like n*gger or yellow people, the terms are rascist and you should be ashamed for finding it funny. it is not cool to have a play on words with a rascist term.

Reply 2

GBateman

Original post by AnoneMouse

Negros is a racist term

I wasn't aware of this.

What makes it racist?

Original post by AnoneMouse

you should be ashamed for finding it funny. it is not cool to have a play on words with a rascist term.

I don't think I said, anywhere in my post, whether I found the joke to be funny or not.

In fact, I don't think you read the entirety of my post. One would assume you saw the title, read the joke and then started bashing your hand into the keyboard ham-handedly.

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 3

SteveScott

People should learn to take a joke. And White people etc should stop being so defensive on other peoples behalf, most black people/indian people I've met and know don't give a flying **** about racist remarks, it's other people who jump in who have nothing to do with it who annoy them.

Reply 4

twist.the.illusion

God this thread's all going to go tits up isn't it?

Laughing at jokes like the one posted doesn't mean that you're going to turn a black person away from a cafe or beat anyone up. It's not like you're saying it to their face with the sole purpose of making them feel bad. It's just words...

Reply 5

username549578

That was racist

You have to consider
1) did the person telling the joke intend to offend others
2) would a reasonable person be offended by the joke (for good reason, i.e. they thought the joke was directed at their expense)

If someone is walking down the street and a stranger approaches them with a race joke and then laughs in their face, you would expect that the joke was made to offend.

If two friends are joking around and one says a race joke, then they probably didn't intend to be racist.

People need to stop being so sensitive, however that doesn't excuse people to go out and make malicious jokes and then claim they were just 'joking'.

Reply 6

AnoneMouse

word hurt man. you gotta see that the kid telling jokes about stingy jews in the playground in the late 1800's that was hitler, encouraged rascism can only lead to bad things. if you want to make a joke make a funny one, not just one that is seen as an easy target. all should be considered equal, and that means no jokes demeening other races.

Reply 7

username549578

Original post by twist.the.illusion

I think words can still have an affect on people. If I ran around calling black people ******* and then laughing and saying I was just joking, I think they would have a right to be offended. Its all about context imo.

Reply 8

GBateman

Original post by twist.the.illusion

God this thread's all going to go tits up isn't it?

Most probably because people don't read the whole OP before jumping to conclusions.

Original post by twist.the.illusion

Laughing at jokes like the one posted doesn't mean that you're going to turn a black person away from a cafe or beat anyone up. It's not like you're saying it to their face with the sole purpose of making them feel bad. It's just words...

I guess the context in which the word "negro" is used will have some influence on whether it is regarded as racist or not. People need to actively engage their brain and think about things before shouting the first thing that comes to mind.

"If you mention a black person, you are racist." seems to be the mind-set of society.

Reply 9

Dream Weaver

Original post by Lewroll

...

Agreed.

Reply 10

Fusilero

Original post by twist.the.illusion

While I do find the joke amusing, it's not just words. Words are one of the primary means by which humans happen to communicate. Words carry a lot of meaning, weight and significance. It is never just a word to the recipient - ignorant actions can be just as bad as deliberate actions by virtue of their ignorance. A joke being funny does not excuse offense.

That aside, racism is all subjective. Just do what you want and be friends with people who put things in the similar range of acceptability as you. Just don't expect everyone to think the same and try not to force it on to other people who clearly disagree. In the great language of the internet - one man's lulz is another man's wtf.

Reply 11

Dude Where's My Username

It's not racist. It's also not funny.

Reply 12

GBateman

Original post by AnoneMouse

After reading this drivel, I am certain you didn't read my OP.

The joke does not discriminate, persecute, defame, demean black people (or "negroes") in the slightest. So your comment is ill-founded.

I'd say that the "An Englishman, and Irishman and a Scotsman..." jokes are more racist than the joke quoted in this thread - because they often poke fun, slander, or mock aspects of each nationality's demeanour - but, because they aren't black, it isn't racism, right? :banghead:

Original post by Dude Where's My Username

It's not racist. It's also not funny.

We're not deliberating whether the joke is funny or not, buddy :wink:

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 13

AnoneMouse

well jokes about any race are actually racist, i did read all your OP which leads me to beleive that you are not clever, negores is a rascist and degrading term for black people. you also write what constitutes as racism?, the as is not needed, and makes it grammatically incorrect. if you walked up to a black person and called him a negroe, he would not be happy. came for rascist terms about most nations.

Reply 14

1.2.3.

One person's humour is another person's racism.
I don't think there's a line you can draw between the two, there will always be one person who is offended if you're making jokes like that.

Reply 15

username549578

I've also noticed that the people that often tell 'race' jokes are unlikely to have a similar joke told about them. In my area at least.

Reply 16

edd360

Why did the black man rob the store? Because he was a ******

Reply 17

Harrifer

I don't think that joke was particularly offensive, but it also wasn't particularly funny.

I don't believe the word Negro is socially acceptable to use in everyday speech. Not because it is intrinsically racist (it's just Latin/Spanish for black), but because its usage throughout history has been quite negative.

Sort of similar to the phrase 'Paki', whilst technically correct, no longer used because of its connotations.

Reply 18

Dude Where's My Username

Original post by GBateman

We're not deliberating whether the joke is funny or not, buddy :wink:

Ok then. Well negro isn't a racist term. The bastardised version of that word just makes negro appear racist.

I also saw that boring Alexandra Wallace video the other day and I'm slightly confused as to why there was worldwide butthurt over it. All she said was some people talk too loudly in the library. Are people now getting offended for the sake of being offended?

EDIT: Ahhhh, I've re-watched it now. I get it now. She seems more rude than out and out racist. Nick Griffin is worse

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 19

whyumadtho

Original post by GBateman

I wasn't aware of this.

What makes it racist?

It's a racially insensitive term and is highly likely to offend. It was used in a similar period as the n-word and holds many of the same semantic connotations.