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Original poster

Colleague made racist remark on Facebook

259 replies

vivizone · 12/02/2013 21:35

Keeping the FB theme that's on here today!
Not her first time. I suspect she is a EDL/UKIP supporter. Always with her Daily Mail tucked under her arm.
I just feel so cross. Cross that I know this muppet and cross with myself for not saying anything. Made worse by another colleague 'liking' the comment and replying 'too right, too right'.
We work for a really professional organisation. A very well known org.

Would it be wrong to report it at work? I will delete both of them although the woman who wrote the status is a right loud bully. I am shocked and really disappointed in collg who commented. Quiet as a church mouse and she shares that type of thinking.
Both me and collg who commented on the status are non white if it makes any difference.
Sorry for typos. Typing on phone.

OP posts:
Eliza600 · 13/02/2013 17:37

'It's quite possible to be anti-immigration and anti-multiculturalism without being racist per se.'

Agree 100%.
I am both anti-immigration and anti-multiculturalism. I would not dream of allowing my opinions to impact upon my working life, however, neither do I pretend to hold politically correct opinions in order to appease my colleagues.

Mumsnet has it's own little world which is (on the whole) leftist and politically correct.
Out there in the real UK you will find millions of people, of all ages, who think as I do.

gordyslovesheep · 13/02/2013 17:41

honestly I think that would depend on WHAT you disliked about Immigration and Multiculturalism - if it was all then bloody black people, for example - I would say that's pretty racist

MrsBW · 13/02/2013 17:54

So it's ok to label all Daily Mail readers as badge wearing EDL members (and therefore racists) but it's not ok for someone to stereotype a Muslim??

Unless the comment was made a work on company computers, or the comment could clearly be seen to bring the company into disrepute (unlikely, no matter how distasteful), you are being vvu.

If you do report it (and the comment was made in personal time/doesn't bring the company into disrepute) and the HR team do anything, I hope the person making the comments takes action against them and wins.

We can't sack people for their thoughts, no matter how much we disagree with them.

MonkeySea · 13/02/2013 17:58

Immigration is bad because we have too many people here. Nothing racist about that.

Multiculturalism is something that rich Western countries are told is a good thing in their own countries, but not when it happens in poor non-Western countries, (when it should preferably be ascribed to colonialism/imperialists/insert-sins-of-the-white-man here), resulting in genocide, churches being burned down, etc.

Eliza600 · 13/02/2013 18:15

'honestly I think that would depend on WHAT you disliked about Immigration and Multiculturalism - if it was all then bloody black people, for example - I would say that's pretty racist'

Usual reasons for me:

  1. There are too many people here. I realise that there's an argument against that (that we still have enough land etc) but the bottom line is that we need more and more housing to house immigrants and their extended families.
As a result the countryside is being decimated. Foxes are losing their natural habitat etc.
  1. The infrastructure cannot cope with the increase in the population. Schools, hospitals etc often at breaking point.
Cost of interpreters paid for by the taxpayer. Inner city schools where English is not the pupils' first language.
  1. 'No go' areas for white people in many cities...yes, it does happen.
  2. Beds in sheds. Not nice if you happen to be living next door to it.

Many other reasons too numerous to mention here.

Fanjounchained · 13/02/2013 18:23

Immigration is bad because we have too many people here. Nothing racist about that

Beat me to it *Monkey"....I'm in the West of Scotland.

There are too many people here. I realise that there's an argument against that (that we still have enough land etc) but the bottom line is that we need more and more housing to house immigrants and their extended families

Also agree with this Eliza....in the same way that I've seen people on here flamed for saying they want to have more kids despite the fact their finances won't allow it, why let however many more thousands of people into a country where those already living (legally or otherwise) are stretching public resources to their limit ?

Fanjounchained · 13/02/2013 18:23

...my West of Scotland comment was completely unrelated to my point...oops !

MonkeySea · 13/02/2013 18:30

It seems like a big con to me. Any talk about immigration is suppressed, and then the powers that be admit millions in the last decade or so.

Who voted for it? Not me.

snowtimelikethepresent · 13/02/2013 18:44

We can't sack people for their thoughts

[sigh] no we've been over this. But you can discipline them for their words and actions whjere these impact negatively on colleagues/clients and theor own ability to do the job.

Out there in the real UK you will find millions of people, of all ages, who think as I do

And fortunately millions don't, so what's your point?

GrowSomeCress · 13/02/2013 19:35

Nasty comment but not worth reporting

HoratiaWinwood · 13/02/2013 19:42

I'm always a bit alarmed when people say MN is "leftist" or "socialist" or "liberal", because I came here from Babycentre, and by comparison MN is Tory HQ.

ChairmanWow · 13/02/2013 19:43

No go' areas for white people in many cities...yes, it does happen.

Name them. None here in Manchester. I've seen similar claims made in BNP literature that the scumbags sometimes post through my door. Scare tactics.

Shelly32 · 13/02/2013 19:48

I have to say, I lived in London ten years ago and there was this one restaurant, an Eritrean one, where my flatmates felt uncomfortable. I'm mixed race (not African/Eritrean), took a boyfriend (white) (Hating all this colour reference by the way!) and didn't notice any issues. I wonder whether some people feel a 'no go' area is just a place where THEY don't feel comfortable because it's not familiar...

MrsBW · 13/02/2013 19:50

snowtime I think that comment was heinous. But (and I haven't read every single post on this thread so this is a genuine question) how does that comment impact someone negatively? Was their colleague on the bus? Do they feel intimidated?

The other day I said 'ooh, is that a good idea?' To a colleague about to open a can of 'full fat' coke. Another colleague was utterly offended that I'd implied that person was overweight. They got told to butt out - the colleague with the come and I had a conversation just before about the sugar content in fizzy drinks.

I've said this before and I'll say it again. The world would be a far simpler place if people stopped getting offended on behalf of others and instead concentrated on what offended them.

MrsBW · 13/02/2013 19:53

With the coke not come!

Southeastdweller · 13/02/2013 19:58

No go' areas for white people in many cities...yes, it does happen.

eliza Really? What kind of bubble do you live in? You are talking utter shite.

snowtimelikethepresent · 13/02/2013 20:00

Hi BW....my comments were not specifically about the OP's colleagues FB entry (though it was, as you say, heinous) but about any remark that is racist or similarly offensive. If people have these thoughts then I guess there is nothing that can be done to stop them but the law can and should make it difficult for them to act on them

I've said this before and I'll say it again. The world would be a far simpler place if people stopped getting offended on behalf of others and instead concentrated on what offended them

I could not disagree more on this point. How awful only to be bothered about one's own feelings and interests. And this would seem as good a time as any to say that nothing on this thread has affected me directly, I am white and British, yada yada, but I care very much about offence given to others

I wonder whether some people feel a 'no go' area is just a place where THEY don't feel comfortable because it's not familiar...

Shelly, this is an excellent point.

Theicingontop · 13/02/2013 20:04

This thread is depressing.

MrsBW · 13/02/2013 20:05

snow - totally agree as soon as there is any action, the law (or HR), or someone takes offence, there should be action - and therein likes the inherent risk in expressing thoughts. If someone might be offended, you shouldn't do it.

I don't mean people shouldn't care about things that don't concern them. I care about lots of things that don't directly concern me. But unless they affect me directly, I don't get offended by them. Perhaps I'm splitting hairs.

Original poster
vivizone · 13/02/2013 20:27

Quick update. I briefly spoke to her this afternoon

convo (obviously not word for word) .

Me: Can I have a quick word. Found your comment on FB really distasteful. Actually found it racist. I don't share those type of views so have deleted you. I think it's for the best

Her: I was hacked!

Me: Oh Really?. Does B know that? because she left a comment to support your status?

Her: the comment wasn't racist but I never wrote it.

Me: Hope you have informed FB you were hacked as you wouldn't want that type of thing to affect your workplace.

Her: They wouldn't be able to prove anything. I was hacked. I would go the union. Anyway I like Indians, I know a lot of them. (I kid you not, she said this) she went on to mention her kids play with Indian kids all the time.

She made small talk but both of our hearts wasn't in it. I spoke to her quite briefly as it was hard to catch her - we were both busy and it was around lunch time.

Got home and a friend request sent from her. No thanks. She is a liar and a racist and nothing is changing my mind.

Anyway, I want to go back to my FB just being about my family and very close friends. Have learnt a lesson.

Her page appears to be open because although we are no longer 'friends' I can still see her page and comments.

Thanks all.

OP posts:
Original poster
vivizone · 13/02/2013 20:31

Theicingontop - This thread is depressing.

It's not surprising to me. I have been seeing some really dodgy views on mumsnet so kind of expected some of the responses. Saying that, I love this site for the other 50 per cent beautiful, intelligent women who are here. Plus, the owners seem decent!

OP posts:
MrsBW · 13/02/2013 20:38

Again with the generalising? Only the people that agree with you are 'beautiful and intelligent?'

I still think the FB comment is heinous, but people in glass houses and all that...

Veritate · 13/02/2013 21:05

Out there in the real UK you will find millions of people, of all ages, who think as I do - Racist types always claim that, but never manage to produce any evidence of it. If there really were millions of people who thought like that, they would be voting BNP and UKIP candidates into Parliament and onto councils, but they're not, are they?

'No go' areas for white people in many cities...yes, it does happen. My job takes me to all areas of cities throughout the country and, as a white person, I have never yet found a no go area. Yet another BNP myth.

Southeastdweller · 13/02/2013 21:11

Oh my God, she really is even more dense and ignorant than I thought! Having ultra low privacy settings in this day and age?! She's probably never heard of screenshots also.

It would be terrible if someone else reported her based on what she's written, given it's available for all to see. Just heartbreaking...I bet she wouldn't even think to delete it.

You handled it well vivi

MonkeySea · 13/02/2013 21:29

Actually Veritate a million people voted for the BNP in 2009 (6% of turnout), and 2 and a half million for UKIP (16.5% of turnout).

It's hardly as if such views are unique to BNP and UKIP though. Didn't Gordon Brown complain about the dreadful bigoted life-long Labour supporter, Gillian Duffy?

Some people never venture out of their ivory towers methinks.