Wearing Whites shirt and being called racist

[drbill]

I haven't seen the t-shirt in question, but does your boss know what constitutes a racist? Racists are people who believe that their race (or ethnicity) is better than the others. Being proud of one's race does not necessarily constitute racism unless one states it is better than all the rest. Of course White's may make claims like that... but since it would be for their drysuits rather than a race or ethnic group, it hardly constitutes racism as you demonstrated to the dimwit... er, boss.

 

[irishsquid]

I haven't seen the t-shirt in question, but does your boss know what constitutes a racist? Racists are people who believe that their race (or ethnicity) is better than the others. Being proud of one's race does not necessarily constitute racism unless one states it is better than all the rest. Of course White's may make claims like that... but since it would be for their drysuits rather than a race or ethnic group, it hardly constitutes racism as you demonstrated to the dimwit... er, boss.

I guess that would make him a "suitist".

 

[BabyDuck]

i can't wait to tell my black friend joe white that he's a racist! or my white friend wayne black! mwah hah hah!

what an ass.

 

[Gilldiver]

Kind of reminds me of the uproar over the word "niggardly" which comes from old Norse and has nothing at all to do with color or race. I'm 2nd generation Swede and remember my Fathers family using it quite often.

"Niggardly" (noun: "niggard") is an adjective meaning "stingy" or "miserly", perhaps related to the Old Norse verb nigla = "to fuss about small matters". It is cognate with "niggling", meaning "petty" or "unimportant", as in "the niggling details".

Controversies about the word "niggardly" - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Humm, "to fuss about small matters" this sounds like most of the DIR arguments I see on boards like this.

Of course I'm also 2nd generation Scott on my Mothers side. We have all heard about the cheap Scotchman, my mother take was that "The Scots are careful, the Swedes are cheap."

 

[irishsquid]

Kind of reminds me of the uproar over the word "niggardly" which comes from old Norse and has nothing at all to do with color or race. I'm 2nd generation Swede and remember my Fathers family using it quite often.

"Niggardly" (noun: "niggard") is an adjective meaning "stingy" or "miserly", perhaps related to the Old Norse verb nigla = "to fuss about small matters". It is cognate with "niggling", meaning "petty" or "unimportant", as in "the niggling details".

Controversies about the word "niggardly" - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Humm, "to fuss about small matters" this sounds like most of the DIR arguments I see on boards like this.

Of course I'm also 2nd generation Scott on my Mothers side. We have all heard about the cheap Scotchman, my mother take was that "The Scots are careful, the Swedes are cheap."

I had a "discussion" with a PC A-Hole awhile back, because I used the word renege.

 

[sambolino44]

I like to use these events as an opportunity to open a dialog that can be educational. Not so much about race, which is an important issue, but also about language and vocabulary. Sensitivity is great, but it gets frustrating when you get the feeling that the boss wasn't so much concerned with racial sensitivity as he was concerned with not getting in trouble, and too ignorant to know whether the shirt was racist or not.

 

[KY_BOB]

I've got adea that will solve the problem! If it happens to be an XL just mail it to be! I'll do my part to keep you out of trouble (even though I dive a Tusa drysuit)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I have a hat that says "DUI Test Diver".

Got quite a reaction from a state trooper once when he pulled me over for speeding ... he thought it said "DUI Test Driver" ... :shocked2:

I quickly explained to him what it was ... and he sent me on my way with a verbal warning (about the speeding, not the hat) ...

(edit ... I just realized what forum this is ... are we allowed to talk about DUI hats in here?)

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[sambolino44]

One more thought. Even though it irritates me when people don't "get it" with the crazy, humorous, or just off-the-wall things people wear, it's also true that, sometimes, people will wear normally innocuous things with the intent to provoke, but with the disingenuous defense that the message isn't what it appears to be.

There's a brand of motorcycle shock absorbers named "White Power". Now, those Dutch brothers with the last name of White may have no racial message at all. But don't tell me that wearing one of their shirts to an NAACP convention isn't provocative.

Nevertheless, I like the idea that, with freedom of speech, you don't stop someone from saying something you don't like. Instead, you counter them with your own speech.

 

[aussie82]

Thanks for all the thoughtful and really funny responses. I will continue to wear the shirt to work. My boss for his part didn't really come off as being mean about it. Besides it gave me a chance to talk up scuba diving to my boss.