To have gone right off Benedict Cumberbatch

[UsedToBeAPaxmanFan]

I read today that Benedict Cumberbatch has had to apologise after using the phrase "coloured actors". Coloured? Seriously?

He did apologise and said that he knew it was wrong, but the fact that it was in his head in the first place is what's so troubling. I am older than him and have always known that "coloured" is an offensive term. Yes, I am aware that it wasn't considered so until the late 60s, but it hasn't been acceptable in his lifetime.

What was he not thinking?

I don't think he is racist at all but I can see why some groups and sh*t stirring papers have jumped on it.

I know when he was cast in '12 years a slave' he was under a lot of scrutiny as his family wealth was made in the black slave trade in Barbados (I believe they were one of the largest masters). Obviously Britain is not the US and I'm not sure that I agree with reparations/restitutions but there is a target on the back of his head to a certain extent to certain groups of people.

It's an unfortunate slip of words but it will add fuel to the fire.

I do hate it when people don't read things in context. BC was trying to support actors and instead the whole discussion moves away from why black actors don't get more parts and becomes this whinge about the words used. So then people get to rant about PC gorn mad, instead of tackling the real racism that BC was trying to address!

And FWIW the intent should be the most important thing. There are certain words which are seen as universally unacceptable and then there are variations which may or may not be depending on where you are / who you're talking to. Constantly changing the 'acceptable' terminology becomes power play, petty point scoring that shuts down discussion of the actual issues.

I absolutely love it when one of our dementia patients shout "I don't want anyone coloured washing me". And the black nurses laugh too. Be offended if you want to be but YABU.

I was a child of the 70s and have always known 'coloured' is not an acceptable term.

Me too, Bumbiscuits. However, I think where you live/were brought up makes a difference.

And so? Other people aren't privvy to the contents of your head and may be totally unaware that you are the ultimate authority on this. And perhaps you've missed all the posts on this thread where other posters have stated that they were taught (however mistakenly) that 'coloured' was the polite term to use during that period.

I am going to read the full thread later, it is too informative to skim.
Much ado about nothing this BC thing. He apologised too. He is probably mortified. I am not very up on political correctness and was unaware the term coloured was more offensive than the term black. I think the media enjoy leading the public by the nose. Purely for their own entertainment.

If someone accidently offends, accept the apology, educate, move on. The real issue are racists. I personally have no time for those who judge people on their ethnicity. I also can't be bothered with those who find a slight in anything. PA numpties.

I went to a craft weekend about 15 years ago. When the group realised I was from 'The Islands' that was it. I was teased all night. My culture, my history, the way I spoke, my religion, lack of technical advances where I lived (electricity being one on their list!) I was sore from laughing. It was one of the funniest nights out I ever had. There was one other occasion when I was the only local at a party in my home village, again, really funny. No offence was meant, none was taken. It was fascinating for me actually. Listening to others perceptions of who you are. I have also been offended by comments on my ethnicity, it has been deliberately used to insult. It saddens me that instinct some have to negatively judge the villagers 7 miles away, the natives 7000 miles away purely on loacation. I am a crofter from a hebridean island btw.

To live by MN standards of correctness, without ever making a faux pas, however unintentionally intended you'd have to go and live under a rock.

bottleofbeer I think the term you are looking for is mineral

Surely WHAT he said is more important than a word he used in the minefield that is PC bollocks? He was trying to make a positive point, yet some people are too narrow minded and blinkered to see beyond that and realise that his use of a supposed offensive term was not in any way malicious. He's apologised, that should be the end of it. OP, if you really are put off by this minor issue then I do recommend you get a hobby.

Racism is much more prevalent in , for example, rap music, under the guise: But we are black and 'gangsta' so we can use the derogatory word N1gg3r. (Not sure of MN would block post if I typed it properly.) Why would they even WANT to be associated with a word historically used in such a negative way? Surely that is a much bigger issue that Benedict Cumberbatch using the wrong word in a positive context and apologising for it? Kids listen to rap and think it's ok to use terms like that (chilling with my bitches, hooking up with my niggaz etc). Perspective & context tell me that Benedict Cumberbatch needn't have apologised and been made out as a bad guy.

'coloured' was how white people were told to refer politely to black people when the first wave of immigrants arrived in the 1950s.

It's been inappropriate for decades and I can't think why anyone under 60 would ever use it.

America is a fucked up place. 'People of colour' sounds ridiculous to me. And this is a country where the word 'retard' is still in wide use

I didn't know Afro Caribbean was outmoded, what is the preferred term?

Who knows Squoosh?

For the side discussion - I think that
‘aboriginal’ refers to an Indigenous person from any part of the world. (Small a).
Aborigine - (capital A) refers to an Australian Aborigine but is a widely disliked term with negative links to colonial oppression.

Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islander people, (used as adjectives) though problematical are the accepted terms.

Squoosh - from Googling it's because previously it was 'Afro-Caribbean' with a hyphen, effectively merging the two groups as one.

So the preferred term is 'African/Caribbean' - although I just read a government directive that said 'black african' or 'black caribbean' is more preferable still.

"He did apologise and said that he knew it was wrong, but the fact that it was in his head in the first place is what's so troubling."
He's an actor, I expect his head is full of words that are not his (i.e. scripts). My language takes a positively archaic turn every now and again depending on the books I'm currently reading.

Thanks Nancy. I suppose the trouble with that might be not always knowing if someone comes from an African or a Caribbean family.

Barbarian, please forgive me. Although I expect you'll never wish to speak to me again!

I haven't read the entirety of the thread but I thought it was a very genuine and humble apology, a far cry from what you see from most public apologies these days that are clearly only made grudgingly. He has accepted entirely the (rightful) blame and done so genuinely. It doesn't affect my opinion of him one jot except to improve it.

I'm another who thinks as BC was brought up with private school, traditional background it's pretty likely that people around him used "coloured" far more recently than the 60s and he may not have realised until he was an adult that it's now thought offensive.

On top of that you have people using "people of colour" (not just in the US, I've also heard it here) and that is fine - which must mean that "coloured" is only offensive for historical reasons, not because of any meaning it has (i.e. it is actually it's politically ok for the term "colour" to be associated with black/brown people. Which has always puzzled me as we're all coloured, but that's by the by)

So he may well have simply slipped up / confused the two / the wrong thing came out while making a speech. It does not necessarily reveal any inner racism, it probably reveals that he did learn that word at a formative stage and now has to remember not to use it, and he fucked up while under the pressured situation of making a public speech, on a topic where it is easy to accidentally offend.

His apology was admirable, called himself an idiot and made no excuses and said he would learn from it. You can't say fairer than that.

What a load of fuss about nothing! I've lived on this earth much longer than most of you,..................and, believe me, it keeps changing as to what is PC and what is not. In 10 years time People of Colour will be un-PC and something new will be in place!

I've just skim read this thread but am already lost... Seemingly I've been calling my black/daughter mixed race but I shouldn't. In her dad's country she would be called coloured as she's mixed race but obviously not here. What do I call her then even though her dad refers to her as mixed race? Anyway he shouldn't have used the word but as a child of the 80's growing up in Scotland I remember black people being called coloured so he should have moved on with the times but e hasn't. At least he's apologised and am sure he won't do it again. And hopefully other people will learn from his mistake.

windchime: I absolutely love it when one of our dementia patients shout "I don't want anyone coloured washing me".

wow.

Audweb, last I heard (it's probably changed) was dual heritage.

god am I not allowed to be 'mixed race' now.