Is This A Racist Ad?

[Lord Jim]

I think it's kind of a dopey ad, but I don't know that I'd call it racist.

I think a better case could be made for the "racism" charge if the Chinese person in the ad was portrayed in some negatively stereotypical way...

A "Hop Sing" type character with buckteeth and one of those Asian straw hats for example...

But there was nothing about the Chinese woman chosen for this ad that reflected traditional unappealing stereotypes...

In fact she's pretty hot....

[Gob]

Fixed the link for you Jim.

[Gob]

It discriminates against non-tasty Chinese birds!

[Scooter]

There's nothing racist about it...

...except having her bicycling alongside a rice paddy

...and having her speak in broken English

...and saying "Debbie SpendItNow" in a tonal way that makes it sound like pidgin English.

Nah, nothing racist about it at all.

[Crackpot]

Yeah I have to say it's racist and in poor taste compounded by the fact that it didn't list any specific charges to link Sabinow to any excessive spending bankrolled by the chinese or not.

[Gob]

People do bicycle alongside a rice paddy, speak in broken English, what is racist about that?

Should she have used recieved pronunciation?

racism or racialism
— n
1. the belief that races have distinctive cultural characteristics determined by hereditary factors and that this endows some races with an intrinsic superiority over others
2. abusive or aggressive behaviour towards members of another race on the basis of such a belief

Are we so fucking up our own arses on "racism" that someone is not allowed to talk in their own accent FFS?

[Scooter]

It's racist in that the broken English and bicycling along a rice paddy are being used to accuse Debbie Stabenow of selling her country out to the Chinese. That message wouldn't play as well if the young woman were speaking impeccable English in front of the office tower of some American conglomerate that was making millions of dollars selling to the Chinese market. They are using distinctive racial characteristics to make their point, which makes it racist.

[Gob]

I disagree. Using distictive racial characteristics is not 'racist' in itself. You say yoruself, it woudln't be effective if it was done in another way. There is no; "abusive or aggressive behaviour towards members of another race", in this advert.

[Crackpot]

You're completely missing the subtext then.

[dales]

We have a BINGO!

[Gob]

You're completely missing the subtext then.

O, I'll concede that I may have, what is it?

[dales]

Around a trillion USD.

[rubato]

The ad is racist because it is written and performed to inspire fear and hatred of the mainland Chinese.

The ad treads on a line somewhere between US nationalist hysteria and anti-Chinese racism. It exploits ignorance and stupidity.

Only fools have not learned that you can pull on either end of a chain; even a chain made of gold.

yrs,
rubato

[Rick]

I don't care one way or the other.

But Jim she does have a straw hat, look lower and right...

[Sean]

I see this was ad was played during the superbowl.

I'll give them this much, they know their target audience...

[BoSoxGal]

Yeah, that's crass.

But really, what do you expect from a Republican?

See below.

[dgs49]

"Racist," for the record, means anything that the writer wants it to mean.

As has been demonstrated on this board countless times.

[Grim Reaper]

Specifically demonstrated by dgs49 multiple times, most recently by attacking the color of skin our President has.

[Gob]

"Racist," for the record, means anything that the writer wants it to mean.

As has been demonstrated on this board countless times.

By Medi on the old one. I have to agree though, the whole concept of "racism' has been taken so far out of context these days that even mentioning someone is Chinese or Arab, or whatever race, can get you accused of being racist. It's a farce.

[Sue U]

The ad treads on a line somewhere between US nationalist hysteria and anti-Chinese racism.

This.

For all practical purposes, it is the latter-day Yellow Peril.