to think this is really quite racist?

[JosieRosie]

I am an NHS Early Years professional and (when not out and about visiting my million settings!) work in an office with 5 others. I work in East London and our caseload includes children whose parents come from all four corners of the globe and obviously lots and lots of them have non-White British names.

There are regular conversations between my colleagues along these lines -
A: Oh, I took a phone message for you today
B: Oh yes?
A: Yeah, it was from parent of (half-hearted non-attempt to pronounce child's name)
A&B: (much laughter of the 'aren't these names daft' variety )

AIBU to find it outrageous that they find a non-White British name absolutely hilarious? Racist? Extremely childish and/or unprofessional?

Minione, that is absolutely horrible. What a stupid, ignorant person - meeting with you in a professional capacity at such a sensitive time and still couldn't (wouldn't) pull herself together. Are people who find other people's unusual names hilarious the same type of folks who found Ann Widdicombe hilarious on SCD i.e. adults with the mentality of 6 year olds?

I'll give you 2 answers, one for the dumbed down nation that we've become and an honest one, guess which is which...

1. oh yes I can see why you'd be upset by such a thing. When we looked through our Global address book and found a Mr Kunz in Frankfurt no one dared giggle

2. I would have thought working in the NHS you'd find leaving elderly people on cold corridors until they die alone more offensive? Free speech is ok as long as it's directed at 'your own' or it's directed at the majority by a 'minority' yes? Get a life

Thanks for that Mutant, very enlightening Not all NHS workers work in hospitals and I believe I mentioned in the OP that I work with children, so I don't come across many elderly folk in my day-to-day work life. Shame really, as it might put things in perspective so I would never be hacked off by anything else ever again....

be hacked off by things but get them into some perspective - like you actually said in your last post. You might stop worrying about trivia and live longer...

My perspective is just fine thanks - I'm not slitting my wrists over this issue, just keen to get other people's take on something that I find really offensive. So thanks for your contribution

you're offended too easily then - you should get a job advising the government on how to be nice to everyone. btw the reference to the NHS was purely because you're in an industry which is highly compassionate and shows empathy with people struggles - not because you may have witnessed it...complaing about laughing at a name exhibits neither.

Mutant - you lack insight. That is the

Mutant - you lack insight. To put it mildly.

Thanks for your back up GothAnneGeddes.

ShriekingHarpy, I really don't see what's so 'innocuous' about taking the piss out of other people's names just because they are different to what you are used to hearing. I agree with previous commenters that it's downright rude, inappropriate, unprofessional and a power trip. I am very interested in other people's POVs but am honestly shocked at how many people think this sort of behaviour is all in good fun and totally reasonable in the name of 'humour'. Let's say it's been an eye opener

I once rang up for a job, and heard them laughing about my unusual name down the phone, it was horrible and really knocked my confidence. So unprofessional.

Also, my sister, who has an equally unusual name went for an interview at college and they didn't even bother to try and pronounce her name, just came out and shouted "I'm looking for a girl from XXXX school"...were were like

well sometimes its hard I had to work with a thai guy called ngo thang yu (pronounced nyo thang you!) that was hard...

But generally saying 'sukwhatever' is a bit bad... mind you i had a mental block similar to 'louise' and 'lucy' over two indian women both called sukh.. and sukh... and I got really embarrassed about mixing their names up in case they thought I thought 'ooh they are all the same' (this is when I was working in an office that was all white apart from 3...) silly because I live in what is laughingly called 'an asian area' because more than 5% of people are asian (that's all it takes aparently for people to think an area is dominated by non-white-british 'community'!) I don't tend to see asians as not white..

Oh I'm confused and my head hurts.. !

YANBU and I am shocked by the attitude of some posters here who think casual racism is alright and a laugh.

It's not nice or clever of them, but are they maybe making weak jokes to cover up genuine ignorance? As in, not knowing how to pronounce the names? It takes a bit of guts to say "How do you say that name?"

I was all on your side, OP, until I remembered a residential course I was sent on with a peer from another office, whom I'd never met. Her name was Nuala Meenahan. Being unfamiliar with either of her names, I read it as "New-arla Meen-ar-han" and told my colleagues she must be Asian, Middle Eastern or something.
It's an Irish name, pronounced "Noola Meenuhun".

Anyway, it's proper Christmas Day now. So happy holidays to everyone, whatever their name, and it's time I lost my seasonal moniker (or "Monica" )

Is it racist - or - just a bit stupid?
I know racism stems from ignorance but it involves a lot more than simple stupidity. there's a lot more offensive things going on in the name of race hatred that you should be concerned about than sniggering over mis-pronounced name I think.

I'd have a very difficult time not laughing at a Benjamin Dover or Theresa Greene (although I would like to think I could hide it to their faces) but can't seem the humour in a name that just sounds "foreign"? I get this at work from my colleagues and it tends to be the racist ones who make racist "jokes" too.

I have spent my entire life having my far too posh and very unusual name first name commented on, mispronounced by all and sundry and laughed at by important people like primary teachers and midwives. Add into the pot my very posh foreign maiden name: xxx xxxxxxxxxx and my equally posh and virtually unspellable married name: xxxxxxxxxxxxx. As my teenage son would say "man up and laugh back".

Merry Xmas

All very well, but what have you actually done about it? Have you tackled them, and explained that you find their behaviour offensive? Might be more productive than posting on here ...

Merry Xmas!

Salvador, are you for real? You're worked up about £22m spent on translation services, from an NHS budget of £100bn+? If you're worked up about waste, there are better places to start.

And if you want to have a discussion about the pros and cons of immigration, there are better threads to do it on.

Finally, if you don't like foreign stuff, why on earth are you posting with a Spanish name? Or is it like snow and the trains -- it's the wrong type of foreigner that you object to?

I think some professionals do lack manners as far as names are concerned. I remember after DD1 was born, going to the weight check clinic. DD1 on her red book had both her first name and middle name in front of surname (all foreign names). One of the two ladies took the book, saw the name and started sniggering "what stupid people give a child a double barrel name if they have a double barrel surname!" Then , her colleague started to laugh and comment about foreign names.(DD does not have a double barrel first name and we never use her middle name)They must have thought that because my DD had a foreign name I could not understand them? Needless to say I never went to that clinic again!

Check out this video it is totally disrespectful and not fun and games

Don't get too worked up, all australians are racist... ha ha.

he does get called too.. see this! and his co-presenter agreed.. I think I might go to New Zealand..

Who said anything about Australians being racist??

I was giving a visual example of how laughing at a persons name in a professional situation is not on.