GOLLIES

[kendor]

yes.....sadly....descrimination is the biggest problem here. Not only for african americans....but homosexuals (has improved, but still), asians....if you are not blatantly white....then you become the target of horrible jokes...sadly even you --because of your accents---it's absolutely shameful! and it gets passed through to children of bigots.....a never ending circle of hatred and ignorance.

there are those (me for one) who do not think or live that way, sometimes are ridiculed just as much....it won't be in my lifetime...acceptance that is.

what accent?

 

[Slogger]

golllywog is jam pure and simple nothing more nothing less no racism ( if that act ueallley a word )

 

[Nige F]

they were used as a brand for a certain jam manufacturer over here a few decades back.

thanks kendor....crystal clear now

as well as the jam, Enid Blyton used the black faced doll character as the baddie in her Noddy stories..(.like Brer Fox.. Cowboys in black hats.)traditionally known as a Golliwog.and the rest is our black history PS. is a Polywig same as a Tadpole...ie offspring of a frog.

 

[Steve]

I seem to recall several episodes of the Fresh Prince (with will smith) where they get pulled over by the cops because they are black people driving a nice car etc. And one episode where friends come round to their house and find it highly unusual that this black family have a black butler / housekeeper. There are a lot of racial issue undertones in that show that I only "discovered" recently - when you're a kid you dont realise what they are talking about.

This sounds bad, but in the square mile that I live in, there are only about 1 or 2 black families. There was one Nigerian kid at school, and he had loads of friends - one of the most popular kids! And one Chinese lad too - he was popular! Other areas of Doncaster are a lot more multi-cultural.

My Grandma picked up a gollywog-like thing at a carboot sale - its a coin jar thing, with a little arm that you put the coin on and it lifts up and deposits it in its mouth. I can see why this might be classed as offensive - it has yellow eyes, and the idea of it is just offensive to black people. My gran will buy anything if its cheap enough. The jam jar logo thing - i dont have a problem with that.

 

[Nige F]

I remember the money boxes...some are genuine but there are a load of repro`s about now Got an old B+W minstrel LP.gonna have a track from it @ my funeral.called "Massa`s in De cold,cold ground"

 

[Richardp]

I'm offended by that golly ***, glad they got rid of it. wouldnt mind if they just changed it white and called it a golly white trash.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

golllywog is jam pure and simple nothing more nothing less no racism ( if that act ueallley a word )

Yes, Slogger, it is a word, as you well know, and your racist attempts to pretend that it isn't, and therefore that there is no such thing as racism, only show, if more proof were ever needed, that even by the standards of racists you are a spectacularly stupid one.

 

[toffee]

crafty1289 made the point that they werent aware of the negative undercurrents (or perhaps not so undercurrent) of for example, book characters, when they were a child.

I feel the same.

I only know as an adult that there was a sinister side to this.

As a child, I did not associate all non whites as bad just because one bad character was black or whatever.

I truly did not view the golly *** as being horrible to non whites ( not even sure what word to use in case I offend someone) because I didnt know then that the term *** was offensive.

Can I ask, if the golli was black but was called jammy dodger or something else... would it still have been offensive?

was there some slogan with him that portrayed him as a bad character?

I imagine that I sometimes I probably say the wrong thing when I dont mean to.
It is because Im unsure of what the correct thing is at times!!!

Where I live there are very few (though it is increasing but not with blacks (can I say blacks.. not being sarcastic either) but with other 'minorities' ( I feel like im walking on egg shells).

I get very very annoyed when I may use the wrong term through simply not knowing the up to the minute correct description etc, and then get looked at asthough Im some racist.

It happens quite a lot here (home, not the site), where people interpret wrongly comments that are made.

Certainly with a lot of older people i speak to, (though some clearly are racist) they use the wrong terms but this is because it is all they know.... it is not because they are being purposely horrible.

Education and tolerance is needed all round.

I try to be tolerant of all people and the colour, sexual orientation etc doesnt effect that.

I have also found that any disagreement that takes place between two people of different ethnic groups is all too often put down to this fact.
Say, neighbours rowing about dogs barking..
It is often overlooked the fact that the row is over the dog barking and it is turned into a row because one party is white and one party isnt.
Or two other combinations.

I admit too that because I do not have a problem with non whites or gays or anyone different to me if you like...
and

I havent met anyone personally, say at work who wouldnt give a person the same level of care because they are not white...

I admit that because of this.. I do have difficulties getting my head round the fact that in most work places, there is now additional work to be done to prove one has treat everyone the same.

I find this offensive.

Please do not see me as racist for saying this...

Im being honest about how I feel at times.
Maybe if I had witnessed racism, I would feel differently.

Can I just say as an example..
I was going to say, please dont tar me with the same brush as racists for saying that....


then I thought... Im being racist if I say that... because I think the saying means tar (black) and is usually said in a negative statement.

When I was about to typt it, I was not doing so because I thought... whey hey, here is a chance for me to get at non whites here...
I was going to put it because it is a phrase I have been brought up and Im simply used to saying it and people now what I mean when I do say it.

Yet... how many here would jump on me and say I was racist if i had put that?
or if Id said, dont blacken my name or darken my door etc etc...


I have and still do when I forget... use some of these now banned phrases.

Im educating myself but it takes time.

so maybe there are 3 types of person?
one being the total non racist non homophobic, totally up to speed on polictical correctness group...


then at the other end, the hate driven racists...

then in the middle... the ones who mean well but sometimes use the wrong phrase for the moment?

its all very interesting.

 

[Brightness]

Toffee the term 'tar me with the same brush' isn't racist. It actually comes from when they used to tar and feather criminals & someone who had committed a lesser crime (maybe a thief) than someone else (maybe a murderer) wouldn't want the same brush to be used on them

Tbh, I think things are getting a bit out of hand when people are afraid to use the word black to describe anything bad. Especially when most 'blacks' aren't actually black anyway.

I have a lot of 'black' friends and they certainly aren't afraid to use the word black like in 'black mark' or anything - most of them think a lot of white people are over sensitive as to whether they upset someone!!!!

 

[Richardp]

well, I couldn't really read all that but got the idea!!
I also say and think things that could be considered racist, I put it down to conditioning and hope I don't offend anyone and try to shake it off.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

so maybe there are 3 types of person?
one being the total non racist non homophobic, totally up to speed on polictical correctness group...

There's a fourth type - the non-racist, non-homophobes etc who despise the notion of "political correctness" because it becomes so ludicrous and ends up being used by racists etc to discredit all anti-racist etc arguments.....

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Tbh, I think things are getting a bit out of hand when people are afraid to use the word black to describe anything bad. Especially when most 'blacks' aren't actually black anyway.

I have a lot of 'black' friends and they certainly aren't afraid to use the word black like in 'black mark' or anything - most of them think a lot of white people are over sensitive as to whether they upset someone!!!!

And of course from an accounting viewpoint, being "in the black" is a good thing....

 

[Gary_M]

..........things are getting a bit out of hand when people are afraid to use the word black to describe anything bad...........

I agree. Surely we are actually discriminating against people by being 'over sensitive' too? Think about it - if we are 'censoring' what we say, then we are basically saying - that person/group of people are not able to hear the words we use, so we will create a new language to accommodate that person/group.

I don't think this in any way is promoting 'inclusion' as 'political correctness' disempowers people, makes people uncertain what to say, and isolates certain 'groups' of people, which in effect makes them more of a target.

Crazy world - accept people for who they are and treat others in the way you want to be treated - simple as that

 

[toffee]

I did disgrace myself at a party when really tipsy by asking my black pal if "It".. was true.
Couple of pals gave me the oh my god look...

Pal promptly dropped his trousers grinning and said see for your self!!

never seen the oh my god girls move so fast for a look!!!

 

[mlb3c]

i read through what brightness was talking about and I can relate.
I would never say what Im about to say out loud....because it is such a sensitive subject. Some people openly admit to being racist. some start out claiming not to be, but comments and views point in another direction. What gets my thinking (dont say it aloud) in trouble, is that there are things about people that i dont like...at all. it could be the way they dress, or the way they talk, or their rudeness....character flaws in general...yet if they are "persons of colour", then I am pegged as a racist. and as a defense...it seems to come out as "i have friends who are black, chinese, mexican, etc-it seems defensive and "walking on eggshells if I say black instead of african american...yet the old double standard comes into play...when "they" can call themselves anything they like and that "thin" line where it can be joked about. No wonder it's a subject that know one talks about in mixed company.....someone is bound to be branded with the big R....what are you gonna do? I dont see an answer