Racist comment or statement of fact?

[Spinxsta]

7 year old DS said that a TA at his school stated "the Chinese eat dogs". He said they were talking about what people in other countries eat.

I feel there should be some context behind a statement that stereotypes people. Maybe "in the past, some of the poorer people in china ate dogs as they were starving" or something.

Another school mum said the statement didn't sit right but she didn't see it as racist.

We spoke to DS about how people have made statements like that in the past to be racist towards Chinese people and make them seem like disgusting people. I want to say something to school but I'm not sure if this is even complaint worthy... it just doesn't sound like something I want my children growing up saying or thinking.

Am I right to feel cross about this or am I overreacting??

Both actually.
But it’s such a delicacy and eaten a lot they have farms too

@Truser
sad isn’t it
just pic of headline,

Of course the Chinese are doing horrific damage to wildlife populations due to traditional Chinese medicine, supposed aphrodisiacs, etc.

Yesome do eat dogs as they do jn Korea and Vietnam. Not starving people though historically it was probably how it started. They had dog and other animasl in a market in Vietnam and our guide said that once a year he ate dog meat. It was very filling and did not need much protein for a while.

I must have been mistaken in my many years of having spent months at a time there misremembering all the gǒu ròu restaurants even in first tier cities, of course it isn't racist. Whilst it isn't mainstream like say a chippy is in the UK, you will find a restaurant in every province in China, that's excluding the late night BBQ joints. Whilst the CCP has outwardly said it is going to ban it, Yulin etc still ran last year even when trying to go down the zero covid route and is happening this year. The top end of the market for this speciality is to cause the animal as much harm as possible before cooking it, it would be like Wagu beef being as expensive as it is because you decided to blow torch it's skin of before dissecting it.

If you personally want to experience racism I suggest you go learn chinese and walk around any major city, once you have built that up go further afield, the CCP does not deserve some white saviour complex for suggesting that Chinese people eat dogs, could have been taken out of context, would you complain about french eating frogs legs/horse, british stuffing aresholes and whatever else into sausages.

This squinting hard to look for racism needs to take a step back a bit.

So, is it racist to state that French people eat horses? It's distasteful to a lot of people, but not racist.

The point is that in France people eat horses which doesn’t go down well with some of the horse lovers in England. The fact is that people are different to us in different countries. When I was in Africa once there was a swarm of flying ants after a storm and our host’s cook got out a frying pan, heated it, and collected the frying and insects in it and cooked them! They are counted as good protein. No I didn’t have any!

I always thought that we didn't eat swans because they tasted disgusting. Turns out they are so fine to eat that only royalty and few others may eat them.

@JumbleSailor
Im vegetarian, I don’t get offended when people say the Brits love fish and chips.

People need to stop over analysing every statement in the hope of being offended.

It’s main character syndrome the the extreme.

So you read @JumbleSailor’s post about people asking her if she eats dog meat and your réponse is to ask oh saying French people eat hordes is racist? honestly 🤦‍♂️

In response to the OP, no one would like to be asked told they have terrible teeth or gets blind drunk and behaves terribly ( common british stereotypes across the world).

I suspect what happened that OP’s DC took it out of context. Although I don’t know what scenario blurting that out is acceptable.

Dogs are eaten in a number countries across the globe, not just in China. I don’t know why they get so much stick for it. I cannot imagine eating kangaroo meat or horse meat but it’s enjoyed by a number of people.

As pp said, it’s abhorrent to some to eat beef in some cultures and yet it’s enjoyed on a daily basis in this a country.

I don’t think eating cat meat or dog meat is different to eating chicken or beef, although I wouldn’t want to try it.

People like to judge others based on what is alien to them

In some parts of Hindu culture it is abhorrent to eat beef. The cow is a sacred animal to these people. So if they say the British eat beef are they being racist? This whole thing is ridiculous when people poker around looking for racism that isn’t there

France. England.

Africa. was it Egypt or Mali because those countries are very different.

You no longer have to go to the deep dark of ‘Africa’ to buy edible insects. You can buy grasshoppers, crickets, mealworms, etc right here and enjoy popping them with your gnashers. You can order them online

OP is just looking for an excuse to call white people racist.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
This is just a mic drop to the whole thread. Love it

I’ve not gone through most of the responses but it’s quite clear that the consensus is that Chinese people are uncivilised savages who eat dogs as their daily meal and it’s just a ‘fact’. As mentioned before, I’m Chinese and I take great offence to people implying that I eat dogs because of my race.

It’s like saying British people are fat, is that a statement of fact or racist? The fact is the majority of British people are overweight and obese, but you’ll take that as an insult won’t you.

It is clear that there’s a distinction between dogs and other animals, one is a pet and others are generally farmed and eaten in most cultures. By just saying Chinese eat dogs you’re implying that Chinese people are (in western views), savages who eat pets. So yes, it is a phrase designed as an insult and I will take it as such. I shouldn’t have to, as some posters have suggested, do something about the dog eating situation in china. The kicker is…. I’m ethnic Chinese but I’m not from China!!! In fact my grandparents generation escaped China due to persecution back in the day

to OP, I think it is wildly inappropriate for a TA, in an educational setting, to tell young children that and pass it on as ‘just a fact’. Kids will take it as such and tell their Chinese friends ‘oh you’re all dog eaters aren’t you’ and then tell their Chinese friend ‘oh you just can’t take a joke can you’ when their friend is offended. I know this because it has happened to me before.

I think if someone tells you what you’re saying is racist, the best course of action is to stop saying it rather than defending your position and then double down with some more racial stereotypes and quasi facts and then turn around to insult the person that they cannot take a joke or they’re just snowflakes.

👌Absolutely spot on. Please all white people read this and think carefully about it. Every single word.

What you're saying is racist.

Are you going to stop saying it now?

People are allowed to dislike elements of a certain culture without it being racist….I hate how China insist on animal testing, I hate the dog meat festival. I hate the treatment of women in parts of the world.

It doesn’t mean I hate the country or race as a whole.

Our society just looks to be offended. If this is the only thing OP has to worry about, considering everything else going on in the world, OP should be counting their blessings

@Surelyitscoffeetime
Is it not racist asking only white people to read PP’s post…?!

Ok love, just as long as you stop saying Chinese people eat dogs

#makebritainwhiteagain

You will never know for sure if the TA said "Some people in China eat dog meat" or "Dog meat is eaten in China" or "Chinese people eat dog meat" or even that a child asked if Chinese people do eat dog meat and the TA simply confirmed it as your DC will only remember the message he took away and there is little chance he will accurately remember the precise wording so it is a moot point now. It is factually true that dog meat is eaten in China. There are differences between each one. However, the biggest issue is the value judgement you place upon the decision of some cultures to eat the meat of a dog versus the decision of other cultures to eat pig or cow. Yes it is better to say 'some' or clarify your statements precisely but sometimes in the middle of the conversation, people aren't always specific.

PretendingToBeStupid, you are clearly racist and your posts are out of order. It's people like you who make life more difficult for people of colour living in the UK.

I won't report you though as I would like your posts to stay so that others can see what people of colour regularly have to put up with.

All 'white people' must read the post

I hope that post gets removed.

Unbelievable.