Poll: Students launch a poster campaign against racist costume

[Petromir]

There is a line somewhere, but its fuzzy until you've crossed it, once you've crossed it it becomes very clear indeed.

One of the hardest things with jokes and comedy is deciding where that line is, and if you are singling something out for extra mocking unfairly. Some cultures and the stereotypes about them provide more fertile grounds for jokes because so-incindentally the stereotype is close to something else funny. This cna lead to them being over mocked as its just easier to make the jokes up, conversely if theres less material sometimes to do it you have to delve into potentially mroe offensive areas.


I've often seen people say 'Allo 'Allo is racist against the French and Germans, an argument that works right up until you discuss the British charecters.

If someones not getting the joke then you have to find out why, and determine how reasonable someones reasons for it are, and indeed visa versa. If a topic cannot be joked over then theres a sign that somethings wrong, humor is an important coping mechanism amongst other things, those who work in occupations such as the military or hospitals often have quite shoking jokes, and where this is craked down on mental health of the workers has a tendancy to nose dive.

 

[CoL0sS]

As somebody said in posts above, if you're offended by this then you obviously have too much free time, and not enough real problems to worry about. Also you kinda missed the point of Halloween. To dress up, pretend, be someone you can never be or openly mock something you consider stupid or pointless. I can somewhat understand if they protested against racial stereotypes in movies or music, but this just makes them such downers. Party poopers

Besides, I like my racial/national stereotypes to be voiced openly. Being Croatian I was often considered incapable narrow-minded communist with vodka-breath and shit smeared on my face by my first world country peers. It's always amusing to see surprise on their faces when they realize you actually understand insults they're throwing at you. Priceless.

 

[Insideout Ink Demon]

so suicide bombing is thier culture?
then they certainly dont deserve any support

as for being dressed as a suicide bomber being recist? not really, unless the campaigners are trying to say all muslims are suicide bombers? which i myself think as a statement is far more racist

 

[Mozza444]

- http://www.acefancydress.co.uk/18th-century-englishman-costume/products_id/7582/
- http://www.allfancydress.com/Fancy-Dress-Costume/888032/Rabbi-Costume.aspx
- http://www.allfancydress.com/Fancy-Dress-Costume/15411/Leprechaun-Costume.aspx
- http://www.allfancydress.com/Fancy-Dress-Costume/889738/Scots-Kilt-and-Hat.aspx
- http://www.allfancydress.com/Fancy-Dress-Costume/10959/French-Man-set.aspx

There you go, you missed a few.. do these count?
Oh wait no.. i'm sure they don't i mean... its only white people that can be racist right?

 

[Batou667]

I know the stupidity of other people shouldn't annoy me, but gosh darn it, it does. This hyper-sensitive politically correct poster crap almost reads like parody.

 

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

This is just pathetic.

"Ooh, these Halloween costumes are stereotyping a race, let's be offended. We'll make posters to protest it" and wah wah wah.

The only thing that shows how little you care about something than a poster campaign is a Facebook status. What makes this worse is that the posters are basically Facebook statuses.

Who gives a flying fuck if you're offended. Grow up and sit down.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

I am impressed tht they went through with it and they done it well but the whole campaign is a bad idea. If people can't have a bit of fun without others taking offense then something is wrong. I mean I'm Irish and I wouldn't care if someone dressed up in green and carried a beer keg around because I think my racial stereotype is hilarious. Although there is a difference between having a bit of fun and going up and saying "Go away you drunk Irish bastard".

 

[Kennetic]

I love freedom of speech. I can wear a turban if I felt like it and nobody can do anything about it lol. Let these guys have their campaign because at the end of the day, they won't be able to do anything about it anyway. (Unless they're NOT in America lol)

 

[Treblaine]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2053134/Students-launch-poster-campaign-racist-Halloween-costumes.html
I gotta this have to one of the most pointless and trying to hard to be politically correct things I have seen in a while.
While the Arab suicide bomber costume is offensive and probably shouldn't be worn, everything else is quite tame. The geisha outfit, the Mexican outfit and maybe the ghetto outfit.
Personally, I'm Asian and I went to Halloween as a Viet Cong. So people need to get over and have laugh in life or am I being to racially insentive

"As a Tranyslvanian I am incensed at the insinuation that all people from this region are blood sucking creatures of the night. I am a culture, not a costume..."

I don't know if that arab kid even exists or if he is just a model posing for this psy-ops campaign but the "This is NOT my culture" is weasel word claim ANYONE EVER THOUGH IT WAS REPRESENTATIVE OF HIS CULTURE!

He is making light of ONE ASPECT of a condemned practice in a region you happen to come from. And people have to make light of horrible things or else we go crazy.

Dressing up as Dracula is NOT stating in any kind of racist way that that all people of Eastern Europe are vampires!

I hope this starts a meme of parodies of this, like photoshop Bela Lugosi holding up a pic of the Muppet Count.

 

[Abedeus]

I'm dressing up as Hitler, my friend is Stalin. Can we have someone launch a post campaign against us?

Only if you shout SEIG HEIL and draw swastikas on your face.

And he plans on invading Poland and enslaving millions of Eastern Europeans for fifty years.

However, while suicide bomber in itself isn't that offensive, matching suicide bomber with the Arab headget kiiiinda is.

Don't care about the other costumes. Geisha costume offensive? Really? Because only the Chinese had their own working ladies...

 

[BoredAussieGamer]

All these costumes need a white stereotype costume.

Not because stereotype costumes are racist, but it would level the playing field, and be somewhat interesting

Edit: Whoops they do exist, I just didn't see the post. Lol.

No-one should be discriminated against, or be immune from being parodied by stereotypes. Grow a thicker skin, kiddies. In the grown up world, every one should be able to pull the piss out of each-other. That creates tolerance.

 

[luke10123]

I have an abab friend who dressed up as a scuicide bomber back in 2008, everyone thought it was genius

 

[Scarim Coral]

It look like they are confusing sterotype with racist and even then it's not sterotype. I only agree with the Suicide Bomber but that is wrong for another reason.

 

[busterkeatonrules]

I say these people need to lighten up. "This is not who I am." Then how is it offensive?

 

[Boba Frag]

Obligatory youtube post
Like he says, Being offended is subjective. Being Minnesotan doesn't mean I get offended by Norwegian jokes, but that doesn't mean it doesn't bother someone else. It's impossible to make a sweeping "THAT X IS OFFENSIVE AND SHOULD BE REMOVED." statement about things.

That is fantastic.

I don't think I can really much more to the debate than what he's just said.

I think that native American costumes are pretty fucking lame at best and just horribly offensive in general at worst, but it really, really depends so much on context, I'm not going to freak out at people for choosing that costume.

The 'We want um peace' sign is the offensive thing, but if some lads want to go as that as part of a theme that's quite a significant part of older pop culture, then cool.
They're not going out to piss anyone off.

Of course, it would be different if I strode into a party with some Polish friends in attendance and I was dressed in the sharp black and peaked cap of the SS dress uniform, but that's a different story...

I haven't for the record, and if I ever was, I'd make sure I went as a Nazi zombie. Cos shooting those bastards is just great.

 

[magicmonkeybars]

While I don't support this kind of narrow minded attack on halloween.
I have noticed that the people dressed up are all white, like white people are the only ethnicity that can be racist, that's some real racism right there.

 

[Gamblerjoe]

Im not for or against this, which technically makes my answer no. I dont hold anything sacred. I dont give a shit. It angers me that too many Americans think that all Arabs are extremists. They dont have a clue how things work over there.

This costume, in and of itself does not make that statement. It doesnt make any statement. Its just a silly costume.

 

[mikey7339]

I agree with the students...Halloween has gone too far!!

 

[Torrasque]

Oh man, this is the 9th time I've posted <url=http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/were-a-culture-not-a-costume#.TqiGBlIxo7L>this link, and you know what? I don't mind at all!
Why don't I mind? Because I find it fucking hilarious that people get offended by the smallest things.
I find people who get offended by things that are hardly even offensive, offensive.
Oh wait...

 

[Ariseishirou]

Oh for fuck's sake. Yes, stereotypes of Canadians (eh?) can get irritating but if someone were to dress up in a plaid jacket and toque and carry a hockey stick in one hand and a bottle of maple syrup in the other I'd just laugh. OMG!!1111 We are a culture not a costume!!!111

No shit, sherlock. You know what words mean. Fortunately, no one who dresses up as a geisha or a rapper or a Canadian hoser is saying your culture is a costume.