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Original poster

Is this racist or am I being sensitive,

293 replies

NotGaming · 04/01/2023 18:46

Just saw on my local reisdents Facebook page, Chinese restaurant has posted to say that they’re shutting for a month to allow family to travel home for Chinese new year. Most responses are people saying to enjoy their well earned time off. Then someone has posted ‘make sure you don’t bring anything home with you 😷 🤢’

i think this is really inappropriate, but loads of people have posted laughing emojis and liked the post.

I’ve reported to page admins who have said it doesn’t breach their rules and left the comment up.

OP posts:
JassyRadlett · 04/01/2023 19:13

NotAHouse · 04/01/2023 18:54

It's a gross joke about the origins of Covid, but exactly the sort of thing you'd find on a local residents Facebook page.

Surely it's not about the origins of Covid but the huge surge of infections in China since they dropped the zero Covid policy?

TBH I got this from people in my home country when the pandemic was at its height here. I don't think it's necessarily racist but it's not particularly sensitive.

Or particularly well-informed as we've got plenty of Covid of our own to go around.

Thereisnolight · 04/01/2023 19:13

MichaelFartblender · 04/01/2023 19:12

🙄

This is the equivalent of telling black people they are racist because they see racism where none exists.

Yes, OP, it’s racist.

Show quote history

No, it’s the equivalent of telling white people not to tiptoe around the word “black” as if there’s something wrong with being black.

Ansumpasty · 04/01/2023 19:14

It’s not racist, just rude

Squirrelsnut · 04/01/2023 19:14

It's crass and unfunny but not racist.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 04/01/2023 19:15

I remember back in the 90s when the UK had the BSE (mad-cow disease) outbreak. I was at school and we had a German exchange trip. Most of the German parents had specified that their children must not be given beef to eat, so I'd say it's a pretty safe bet that they were wanting to do all they could to make sure that their kids didn't export BSE.

I can't say I blame them at all, really. They weren't saying anything against the British people (after all, they were happy for their children to travel to and mix with Brits) - just an unpleasant disease that was then rife in the UK.

If this is racist, then I suppose anybody going to get vaccines against tropical diseases before travelling to countries where those diseases are present must also be racist. In a way, you could also say it's racist/xenophobic to be frightened of travelling to Australia because of the massive dangerous spiders there.

There's a world of difference between arbitrary prejudice towards/hatred of a nation/race of people and dislike of an uncontroversially horrible risk that is present in the country where they happen to live. I would be very wary of stepping anywhere near the edge of the Grand Canyon, but that doesn't mean I hate all Americans.

formulatingAresponse · 04/01/2023 19:15

It's racist

It's interesting that there are still so many people around who don't know the subtleties of what racism is

I mean really come on guys read up on it properly it's embarrassing

nancydroo · 04/01/2023 19:16

Crap sense of humour. Not racist.

Coxspurplepippin · 04/01/2023 19:17

For those saying it's racist, could you explain why. Considering the explosion of COVID in China has been at the top of every news bulletin for getting on for a week, and the Chinese government has admitted that people travelling for New Year are going to exacerbate the spread, not to mention circulation of new strains and as pp mentioned bodies being burned because mortuaries/undertakers can't copy, I'd have said it's more bad joke than racism.

JassyRadlett · 04/01/2023 19:18

In a way, you could also say it's racist/xenophobic to be frightened of travelling to Australia because of the massive dangerous spiders there.

The massive ones aren't dangerous. It's the little ones you have to watch out for. 😁

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 04/01/2023 19:20

The massive ones aren't dangerous. It's the little ones you have to watch out for.

Thank you, that's a great comfort to know.... Grin

Ihatethenewlook · 04/01/2023 19:20

Thereisnolight · 04/01/2023 19:11

This has to be a joke?!!
They we’re all flying on a plane to China….to study pollution??!

Show quote history

I haven’t thought about it that way, but not joking 🤷🏼‍♀️😂 how else is anyone meant to go anywhere to study anything though? At least it is educational rather than a holiday

Iamnotausername · 04/01/2023 19:21

I don't think it's racist.

There are lots of cases in China at the moment so it's not unreasonable for someone to say something like that.

They'd say the same thing if France had huge cases and the white owners of the local shop went there.

idontwantflowers · 04/01/2023 19:21

FixItUpChappie · 04/01/2023 18:55

I don’t think it’s racist - it’s a fact that there is lots of covid in china right now as is all over the news. In poor taste perhaps but that is not the same thing

Was going to say this. Aren't we putting restrictions on who can travel here from china? Or people need to test negative before travelling here from china. Something along those lines. I personally don't think it's a nice thing to say but wouldn't say it's racist. It's a fact that china has huge rates of COVID right now so in all fairness, I do hope nobody brings anything back with them! I'm due a baby in 4 weeks and am really hoping the restrictions here stay as they are. Selfish as that is.

LimeTwists · 04/01/2023 19:22

It’s not racism, is it? There’s literally a huge virus outbreak in China. It’s not a lazy stereotype about Chinese people or a dislike of the Chinese in general. I think you need to think more about what racism actually is as this is similar to someone going to the countryside years ago and someone saying ‘don’t bring back mad cow disease, will you?’ It’s a stupid, insensitive comment, yes, but not a racist one.

MichaelFartblender · 04/01/2023 19:23

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

ditherydotty · 04/01/2023 19:24

No I don't think it is. China is rife with covid at the moment, it's a comment about not bringing covid back with them.

Mark19735 · 04/01/2023 19:25

I am assuming the person who made the comment was not Chinese, which is what alerted you to the potential for racism?

Here's my test:

  1. If the person making the comment was Chinese, would the comment still make sense?
  2. If the person at whom the comment was directed was not Chinese, would the comment make sense?
  3. If neither person was Chinese, would the comment make sense?
  4. If both persons were Chinese, would the comment make sense?

The test is 'make sense'. Not whether it's funny, or in poor taste. But whether it has a syntax that makes sense. I think the answer to all four variants is yes. Someone travelling to China (where there are current high Covid infection rates) is asked not to bring it back with them. Seems a perfectly plausible, logical sentence regardless of the ethnicity of the originator or the recipient.

Therefore - not racist.

Dontjudgeme101 · 04/01/2023 19:25

VegMam · 04/01/2023 18:52

Yep it’s racist and offensive.

100%

dolor · 04/01/2023 19:25

It's definitely racist.

StressedToTheMaxxx · 04/01/2023 19:26

Can you explain exactly why you find it racist? Why do you have a problem with it if you've reported it to the page owners (presumably the Chinese restaurant owners) and they don't find it racist/a problem?

Iamnotausername · 04/01/2023 19:27

@formulatingAresponse why is it racist? Not being goady, honest. I just don't understand how making a comment about an illness that is rife in a country is racist. It wasn't a funny comment but I don't see how it is racist.

Ladysodor · 04/01/2023 19:28

Predictable really. Best ignored.

Jimboscott0115 · 04/01/2023 19:28

I don't think so given that China still has some pretty big COVID issues. I was told an almost identical thing by a colleague in Portugal when I travelled for work last year - it's become a fairly typical thing to say of British people travelling elsewhere, I don't see how that should be any different for those from other hotspots?

PinkyFlamingo · 04/01/2023 19:30

lunar1 · 04/01/2023 19:10

It is racist and I'd tell them so.

Why is it racist?

Coxspurplepippin · 04/01/2023 19:32

Mark19735, well exactly - I would imagine the comment would be made to anyone going to China at the moment, irrespective of their race.