To think Oprah may be being a little inflammatory?

[fackinell]

I very much admire Oprah Winfrey but I'm a little concerned by the news that she think the incident with the handbag in Switzerland may have been racially motivated.

IMO everyone is equal based solely on their actions so prepared to be told I am U. I can be a bit of a scruff and on a few occasions have been informed that something is out of my price range. I am white, British, 40 something and put it down to snobbery of the assistant involved, making a snap judgement on me.

I feel Oprah's comments could invoke a bit of animosity the (hopefully) calming race division. With each generation the former issues seem to be diluting (I haven't heard a racist comment in anyone under 40 for years.) isn't this just stirring trouble where there may not necessary be any?

Did anyone notice the slightly Germanic accent this Oprah used in describing the incident.....? You could argue that this was offensive in it's own right perhaps.

Wow! I literally can't believe that anyone can truly believe we live in a racism free society. I think there's a well established presumption throughout most societies that black = poor. Maybe a throwback to the days of slavery, I don't know.

I live in a very racist town. There is a relatively high Asian population here, and the things I see / hear on a daily basis fill me with rage. PP have already said that there are 2 types of racism, and I have to agree. Outright blatant racism is one thing, but the more subtle racist undertones are quite something else, and it is that which is almost impossible to deal with, as upon tackling it accusations of being precious, over-sensitive, dramatic etc are then bandied about.

I have brown friends who can't leave their homes when the EDL gather. I have a friend who is a young black consultant, very well respected among his peers, but has patients who just about refuse to deal with him. Our local Tesco is almost exclusively staffed by white people on the checkouts and in public positions, but almost exclusively by black people cleaning. And as a society we're very accepting of it, which just allows the more subtle racism to keep thriving.

I should have also said that I don't think what happened to her is excusable either - there is no excuse whether it was what she looked like, what she was wearing or what she sounded like.

I did wonder if "sweaty sock" was a form of rhyming slang - that explains why I haven't heard it.

As for myself, have never directly experienced any anti English racism..not that I've noticed. However saying that there has been "bad feeling" around sporting events from some people..although not directed towards me personally it made me feel very uncomfortable and if you say anything it was 'just a joke'.

I have only skimmed the thread, but I bet a factor was also that while European shops are used to the concept of rich white American tourists, black Americans are only a tiny, tiny percentage of US tourists in continental Europe. The assistant didn't think at some level that a black woman asking to see an expensive bag could be American (or a multi-millionaire, for that matter), so she had no 'box' to put her in. And, when the chips were down, her race was considered more important than her expensive clothes as an indication of her net worth.

I bet it was a grim eye-opener to someone who is no longer used to being on the receiving end of racist assumptions because of her wealth and fame.

On the 'no racist comments in England from the under 40s' thing. Snort. I moved a few months back from London to the rural midlands, near a city with a large Asian population, and I've been taken aback quite a number of times by perfectly nice-seeming people of all ages making violently stereotypical comments about 'the Asians', curry smells etc etc.

Everyone needs to read the Oprah quote from SarahAndFuck at 14.24.

To all the apologists: Oprah WASN'T wearing sweatpants and she WASN'T told the bag was upstairs.

yuck @ the shop assistant
But also yuck at anyone even prepared to contemplate the idea of buying a bag worth more than a car. Gross, vulgar consumerism at its worst.

I mean, wtf? 24k for a bag????

Nobody has said it doesn't exist, Vase. I said with each generation the issues seem to be diluting.

Why is it so hard to believe that I haven't heard racist comments from under 40s? I don't surround myself with bigots and if I do come across any then they're not welcome in my social circle. The closest I've heard was DSD saying she found it difficult to tell black people apart (discussing 2 rappers at the time.) Not a racist comment but a generalisation and a common misconception. My mother has a zero tolerance to any negative stereotypes. One of my earliest memories was her getting extremely angry watching the film Roots. She told us never to stand by and watch anyone being mistreated for where they are from or what colour they are.

My niece and nephew when describing friends of different races will by nature use anything than colour to describe them (you know, the boy that always wears his Scotland kit, etc.) I may be from a small Scottish town but we by majority have respect for all our town residents. My 'Asian' friend (as she has been referred to) born and bred in Glasgow, is as Scottish as I am!!

Well...yeah it's ridiculous, but Oprah's a billionaire. She can easily afford it.

Shrugged - you make a good point but wasn't she in Switzerland for Tina Turner's wedding - she (TT) lives in or near Zurich.

I'm a Londoner. I've never heard anyone say 'sweaty sock'. I've never heard anyone use the word 'treacle' either, though Pete Beale used to say it all the time on EastEnders.

I think that's because EE was written by clueless people not from round here who were trying to inject a bit of local colour. I think OP might be similarly deluded.

Just like he or she is deluded about racism.

Limited, did you mean to sound so rude? I am in no way deluded and its ridiculous to suggest I am making up being called a sweaty sock. Try googling it and have a for your tea.

A customer is black, well dressed and is refused purchase of an expensive bag.

On what grounds was she refused I wonder?

Limited, did you mean to sound so rude?

Yes.

The point I was trying to make is that racism doesn't just take the form of people using racist language. It can be a look, a tone, an attitude... Racism in such forms is even more dangerous, because there is no clear way to tackle it, as seen on this thread!

Was it a new must have bag with a waiting list?? I mean I 85% believe it was pure snooty racism but there is that chance that it was a bag that already had ten buyers before the shop had ten bags in its possession.

I'd guess that the standard reply if there was a waiting list would be to explain that whilst she was more than welcome to take a proper look at the bag, there is indeed a wait list of however long to be able to actually purchase it.

Or maybe to make a snap judgement on whether she could afford the bag, assume she can't and voice that opinion...

Seriously, imagine you went to a shop to buy a bag, or new shoes or something and there were none in stock. Instead of explaining that there were none in stock, and the ordering windows, the shop assistant instead tells you that you can't afford the item. Seriously, there is no justification for that at all!! It would be dire, shitty, bottom of the barrel customer service in most circumstances. The fact that it happened to a black women in a country infamous for its intolerance / racism is just the cherry on the cake really.

If that was the case, the shop owner or the assistant would have said so, surely.

Yeh, it's unlikely I know, the most obvious explanation is racism, and snobbery. But then again, can you assume that the shop assistant would have the English adequate to explain that there was a waiting list on that bag. And, they do seem to make a point of being horrible in some of those shops. Never been in one. Wouldn't dare!

But I do believe it was racism because, oprah looks wealthy! YOu can tell a woman who has money when you see one.

Exactly - regardless of the style of clothes she was wearing - extreme wealth is often very evident in hair, skin, teeth, nails etc. Aside from that, I imagine there's a bit of a difference between what would be my trampy clothes and what would be hers anyway!!!

Will never cease to be amazed by the lengths white people will go, the knots they will tie themselves up in, to deny that someone has experienced racism. What's in it for you to deny that someone, who has far more grounds to know racism when they experience is, has done so? Seriously. Aren't you embarrassed?

Fascinating. Google 'micro aggressions'

I know the shop in question.
Unless you look exactly the way they expect a wealthy person to look like they are vile.
Worse than vile.

(am I'm wealthy or look like it, far from it)

Some people on here are intelligent enough to debate the issues surrounding the subject I have raised, either in dispute or agreement. I am happy to answer your genuine arguments against my suggestion.

Some are simply here to hurl insults and be rude. So Google this

bugger! am not wealthy.
they are still vile.

But you're not debating the issues are you? Your starting point was to explicitly deny someone's specific experience of racism. I really wonder what's in it for you.