MNHQ Racism policy

[ThePigOfHappiness]

Hi,
I was just wondering if you could let us know when the racism policy has been amended? I'm sure following today's discussions on NI that it needs to be looked at.
It's clearly breaking the equality act to discriminate based on nationality as it is racist, yet MNHQ don't acknowledge this?
Ta

'The OP on the dublin thread was mildly offensive. The attitude displayed towards youre and nigellasdealer by other posters was downright shameful.'

In your opinion. I wasn't at all offended by the OP but did find youre's and nigella's posts to be ludicrous. Truly.

But I won't derail this thread any further as there have been Irish threads that have pissed me off in the past, and I've spoken up loudly in those instances. I save my fighting for times where actual racism was being displayed, in my opinion a nonsensical Oirish phrase like that isn't racism.

Yes it's a fight worth fighting but don't leap on every mention of things Irish as being racist or assume that people who disagree with you on this matter are anti Irish.

In any other circumstance the offensive remark would be deleted or edited. I also think its very clear MNHQ thinks that we should suck it up and get on with being made fun of,being implied we are drunkards,workshy and terrorists. We should get over the whole 800 years thing.
Would the same thing be tolerated if said about any other nationality?

Yes it's a fight worth fighting but don't leap on every mention of things Irish as being racist or assume that people who disagree with you on this matter are anti Irish.

I said nothing about anti irish. But I do think a lot of posters on this site are extremly patronising and dismissive about certain topics, and entirely irrational about others. Why they feel they can pick and choose who deserves to feel discriminated against is beyond me.

I don't think that thread amounted to 'racism' either - and I do agree, Squoosh, that there have been far 'worse' threads in the past, in which I also spoke up.

BUT I do think it's tiresome and cumulatively damaging stereotyping, though, which, coming hard on the heels of the NI thread, and MnHQ's deafening silence on the matter, suggests a bizarrely unenlightened culture of ingrained ignorance, indifference and dismissiveness towards Irish people, issues and concerns.

There's a continuum between stereotyping and actual discrimination, for crying out loud - they are closely related phenomena, not unrelated. The existence of Page Three girls aren't the 'cause' of the pay gap between men and women, or the pitiful rape conviction rate, but they are a symptom of a society in which considerable gender inequality still exists.

suggests a bizarrely unenlightened culture of ingrained ignorance, indifference and dismissiveness towards Irish people, issues and concerns.

I doubt that would be a surprise to anyone who has lived or worked in GB with an Irish accent of either variety. Even in an environment where the majority were fairly highly educated I was still expected to chuckle along with the "stupid Paddy" hilarity, but not allowed to respond with observations of my own.

This is why I have started hiding any thread which "Irish" or "Ireland" in the title as they tend to degenerate into spectacular ignorance and I would hate to have to be impolite. Obviously HQ won't do a damn thing about them.

I didnt see the thread in question. Am marking my spot though, as a welsh poster I am intrigued to hear mnhqs position on this :)

I've not read the other thread, for health reasons and not wishing to be suspended or banned. I get the jist from what I read here.

IF the same discriminatory nonsense was spouted with mock-W/Indian 'friendly' banter there'd be lots of dished out.

Wonder where HQ are up to with 'deliberations'. after all HQ have said it's very important to them..

Oh, I'm Irish and living in England, Little, so it's no surprise to me at all. Plus I've been here since the days when we were the Terror Threat du Jour. Even leaving that aside, I could write a fairly extensive thesis on highly unpleasant current attitudes to Ireland as expressed in middle-class dinner party chitchat, often beginning 'Oh, you Irish...' . As you say, a refusal to laugh along is resented. Also, the combination of an Irish accent and two Oxford degrees reveals quite a bit. You would think I was a talking pig.

Somehow, I expected higher standards from Mn, given it's praiseworthy attitude to disablism etc.

You're right, though, I should hide threads about Ireland.

Buellor? Buellor? Anyone.....?

I know it's Bueller - just testing

Yes I thought that MN's bar should be higher than this. I do hope when HQ do post it comes with an apology and something worthwhile and crystal clear.

I just clicked on the thread that outlines the name of Ireland as the country etc.

Another one, full of the same dismissive shit as the rest of them.

Are people offended only when Top of The Morning is said by an Engish person, is it okay for Americans to say it? Because God knows they love to.

And your Page Three analogy just doesn’t work I’m afraid BookroomRed, English people are men and Irish people are women presumably? That would suggest that racism is a one way street from England to Ireland. And we all know that’s not true.

Tackle actual displays of racism by all means, but the offence taken on today’s thread was just ridiculous. In my opinion of course.

All this shit is making me so angry, I'm just going to bow out for a while. Would someone pm me when mn respond?

Stuff like that squoosh is a door of invitation to continue to slur and is a thin end of an unpleasant wedge.

I couldn't disagree more.

I love getting stuck in when people are being racist twats, but this hyper sensitivity is silly, acting as though Ireland is the only country that suffers trite, clichéd phrases.

So are people offended when Americans say it?

(my argument is only about today's thread I'm not implying reactions to other threads are hypersensitive)

Its just willful fucking ignorance.

There's only so many times I can say it before I think a person is just being intentionally obtuse.

Squoosh

This thread was started in order to request that HQ revisit their policy on racism on the board. This thread is not the deleted thread, nor the Oirishism thread or the Ireland/southern Ireland thread. Stop hijacking it and asking people here the same questions that have been answered again and again on those respective threads. We get that you dont believe anyone is actually offended, we really do but could you please contain your belittling and dismissive posts to the relevant threads.

I'm not belittling or dismissing anyone. I was trying to have a discussion, but that clearly doesn't suit your agenda, that or you're unable to answer sensibly. Sorry about that.

I'll leave you to your rage.

Off you go then squoosh

Ive explained my reasons on the other thread. That you dont wish to accept them as valid isnt my responsibility to fix. I have hidden the other thread because of your attitude and others like it. I am on this thread eagerly awaiting a response from HQ. i dont feel i should have to hide this one also to avoid being badgered for answers i have already given (whether to your satisfaction or not).

I'm not belittling or dismissing anyone

Yes you are. It has already been pointed out that the issue on this thread is not specifically about that op or those sayings. Its about the bigger picture on this forum.

If you want to call people hyper-sensitive or patronise them go do it on the other thread.

Calling people's reactions 'hypersensitive' and 'silly' is belittling and dismissive.

Actually Pan, I think I'll hand around. I don't approve of people trying to hound others off threads because they don't like what the other is saying.