Colleague made racist remark on Facebook

[vivizone]

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.

2009? What election was that? If you mean the 2010 election, the BNP got 564,331 votes (1.9%), and UKIP got 919,546 (3.1%). So, put together, they didn't even manage millions in the plural. Given that the population at the time was over 62 million, that's hardly a ringing endorsement of their views, is it?

I notice not one of the people who supported this remark or is sure that millions think like this has yet explained if they would regard my rucksack wearing white British muslim children as a danger?

If not, at what age do they suddenly morph into a threat to national security; 10, 15, 18, when they are old enough to grow a bumfluff beard and think they are men?

You are not talking about a homogenous set of "others" but about individuals like my husband and children.

No, the 2009 Euro elections, at which 2 BNP MEPs were elected and 13 UKIP (higher share of the vote than labour).

The 2010 general election was run on FPTP, and the minor parties had no chance of getting any seats; at the Euros, using PR, you get a better idea about party support.

Clearly the racist colleague wasn't genuinely afraid. Otherwise she'd have got the hell out, not sat there posting comments on Facebook. So she can only have done it for intentionally racist reasons.

MonkeySea
The 2010 general election was run on FPTP, and the minor parties had no chance of getting any seats; at the Euros, using PR, you get a better idea about party support.

This is inaccurate because you haven't taken into account the difference in Turnout between 2009 - 34% and 2010 - 65%. The more politically motivated are most likely to turn out for every election e.g. those people who support single issue parties, so are likely to be disproportionately over represented in a low turn out election. The 2010 election is a more accurate reflection of the views of the wider electorate as it contains a much larger sample.

I notice not one of the people who supported this remark or is sure that millions think like this has yet explained if they would regard my rucksack wearing white British muslim children as a danger?

No because children haven't blown anything up. Think people would have been suspicious of an Irish guy with a rucksack a few decades ago. same as some on here might assume a white man reading the daily mail was racist or one reading the Sun was a bit thick. It's all assumptions based on what you know - although I agree you shouldn't judge anyone on appearances.

whatever
It is a very limited set of assumptions though. Peter Sutcliffe was a white man with a beard so do people assume that a white man with a beard sitting next to them is a deadly serial killer? But if it is a vaguely foreign looking bloke with a beard and a rucksack then he is a threat.

How did the OP's colleague know the bloke was muslim?

Chaz - well you see people on trains looking to see which seat they can share to cause least offense be safest on. Don't see women sitting next to the man with a scruffy beard given a choice.

Yes children have been used as suicide bombers but they weren't white so we can't say much about that on here.

Totally that people are actually frightened by Muslim men with rucksacks!! In fact I am every emoticon there is!

and also

How the hell do you get around day to day??! Where do you live?? The fucking moon??

"The 2010 election is a more accurate reflection of the views of the wider electorate as it contains a much larger sample."

Well they have conducted accurate surveys of people's views, and they are overwhelmingly want a reduction in immigration:

www.ipsos-mori.com/Assets/Docs/Polls/understanding-immigration-topline-ipsos-mori-september-2011.pdf

A Populus poll asked people to what extent people think Jews, Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs create problems in the UK. This was done on a scale of 1 (no problems) to 5 (a lot of problems). 7% said 4 or 5 for Jews, 14% 4 or 5 for Christians, 15% 4 or 5 for Hindus, 15% 4 or 5 for Sikhs, and 52% 4 or 5 for Muslims.

41% of people said they would be more likely to support a party that promised to stop all immigration to the UK (28% opposed)

37% would be more likely to support a party that promised to reduce the number of Muslims in Britain

d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/cumulus_uploads/document/1l0rswjyqd/Matthew%20Goodwin%20Results%20-%20Far-left_far-right%20120820.pdf

Only 24% agree that being a Muslim is compatible with British life.

conservativehome.blogs.com/thetorydiary/2013/01/by-paul-goodmanfollow-paul-on-twitter-earlier-today-sunder-katawala-at-british-future-tweeted-the-full-text-of-sayeeda.html

These simply are not minority views.

Monkey
You are posting facts rather than subjective views. That will not go down well with the axe grinders on this thread.
Still not sure why the followers of Islam are considered as a race.

People that think being Muslim is not compatible with British life, generally know nothing about Islam.

It's a moot 'point' anyway, because a lot of British people are Muslim....do they all have split personalities do you think?

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

How on earth can a person be anti-multiculturalism but not racist? Just against different cultures co-existing? Why? It makes no sense whatsoever.

Her comments were idiotic and very ignorant - not sure what you should do though?

I am not 'white' - my parents are immigrants who came here in the 60's from a european country and I do not endorse or share what I am about to say... But I have heard many people who share a very negative view on Muslims so I suspect, unfortunately, her view is more common than we may think

If you have a job that involves dealing with people and treating them fairly (so almost every type of job possible) and you hold racist/disablist/homophobic views then you are likely to be hampered in carrying out your job fairly. Therefore it is certainly an employer's business if their employees are openly publicising these views online

My company holds the Gold Standard in diversity and any employee found to be posting that sort of opinion would certainly be disciplined.

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

"Name them. None here in Manchester"

There are certain areas of Moss Side that you would be foolish to venture into if you are white unless you were with a well known black face. I know this from experience.

You are also not particularly welcome in a few areas of South London if you are white.

Neither of the above are heresy, they are personal experience and fact.

My sister, who is white, lived in moss side for a number of years. All her house mates were white. As were her neighbours on both sides. None of them experienced ant prejudice. It is certainly a view from people outside the area, that it is not welcoming. Many taxi drivers would nor drive her the full way home

eliza what rot you talk. Many British people are Muslim. How is it, you think the 2 are mutually exclusive?

I think you actually mean, you wish Britain didn't tolerate Muslim people, because you don't like it?

This is where all your very thin veils fall off. If your concern was really about over population, and the pressure on the foxes natural habitat you would have no issue with what religion those people are..

And when you realise that the things you know about those religions are not actually true in practice in most cases, that veil slides. And what you are left with is you don't want these people here because they are brown/black, you don't like the way they dress, you don't like the smell of curry and you are frightened of things that you don't know or understand

HesterBurnitall Wed 13-Feb-13 03:05:10
Bollocks. The law already allows for people to be dismissed or prosecuted for voicing opinions.

Frightening that someone could rattle this off so dispassionately. Don't you realise what a bloody disgrace this is? And if the next administration imposed the law of an unnamed religious and you, as a woman, had to give up work (and wine), that would be ok, because it was the law?

Rule Britannia.

religion, not religious. Have been both working and at the wine tonight.

I still don't get it maybe I am naive but what you do in your own time outside of work and if you say something/ post something that is not related to work and/or employer than what is the issue - why are people grassed up and sacked?

In this case it is a comment that someone found offensive - fine just delete them, but why think of going into work and making it an issue when the comment does not bring the company into disrepute as there is no related information to link the company to the comment.

I am not saying I agree with a racist remark being made just don't see why something said outside of work time can become a work issue when the comment does not relate back to the employer. Sorry but if I said something and mentioned the company name in the same sentence then I can understand it but anything that doesn't .....

BigAudio..

My (black) friend once took me (white) to her local pub in Moss Side. I was the only white person in there. It was not a pleasant experience. Even the "friendliest" of her mates said "so who the fuck is this then?"...

This was 20 years ago, so I really do hope that times have changed since then.