Racist cinema advertisement

Agent Orange · 10-10-2004 1:27pm #1

I'm sure many of you know which racist advertisement I'm talking about. I'm talking about the advertisement featuring several Carribean individuals with their phones, boasting how they have a phonebook, hands-free, etc. The ad goes to great lengths to ridicule black people, portraying them as mentally-deficient, idiotic morons who only ever hang out at the local pub. They can't even talk English proper.

I feel embarrassed any time this ad is shown. What's next: minstrel shows advertising boot polish, or KKK members endorsing their favourite fire extinguishers? And they wonder why there's so much racism in this country.

Mr E · 10-10-2004 2:55pm

I don't think its racist. The tagline for the ad is "If caribbeans took life as seriously as the rest of us...". Its only a bit of fun, and its a funny ad. I have seen it every week in the cinema for god knows how long, and it has never struck me as being racist.

aidan_walsh · 10-10-2004 3:08pm

FamilyGuy wrote:

Bob: Outrageous, How dare he say such blasphemy. I've got to do something.
Man #1: Bob, there's nothing you can do.
Bob: Well, I guess I'll just have to develop a sense of humor.

bus77 · 10-10-2004 3:13pm

Some caribbean's probably do get a bit pissed with those ads, hav'nt seen the ad in question(Malibu?). Plenty said over here about the donkeys in eastenders

MadsL · 10-10-2004 3:23pm

What product is this ad for?

therecklessone · 10-10-2004 3:24pm

Agent Orange wrote:

I'm sure many of you know which racist advertisement I'm talking about. I'm talking about the advertisement featuring several Carribean individuals with their phones, boasting how they have a phonebook, hands-free, etc. The ad goes to great lengths to ridicule black people, portraying them as mentally-deficient, idiotic morons who only ever hang out at the local pub. They can't even talk English proper.

I feel embarrassed any time this ad is shown. What's next: minstrel shows advertising boot polish, or KKK members endorsing their favourite fire extinguishers? And they wonder why there's so much racism in this country.

Molehill = mountain.

aidan_walsh · 10-10-2004 3:26pm

MadsL wrote:

What product is this ad for?

Its a Malibu ad, in the same vein as the "Traffic Jam" one they had on the telly a few years back...

jArgHA · 10-10-2004 3:31pm

that ad cracks me up every time and no its not racist. maybe there's a bit of pulling the mickey but its in good taste, personally i'd love to get the mobile with the phonebook attached.

Kai · 10-10-2004 3:33pm

Sure isnt everyone racist, i dont think there is enough positive racisim in the world. Wouldnt it be better if we insulted the Carribbeans and the iranians insulted the Irish and the english were insulted by everyone. Wouldnt that be wonderful, finally there would be equality for all. just think of the hilarious possibilities. Entire countries, nations, religions and sexes united in a unifing pisstake of one another. Thats a future i could live in.

But the present oversensitive anti racism feelings displayed in our present culture is just as good. isnt it ?

Pigman II · 10-10-2004 3:35pm

doodle_sketch wrote:

Its a Malibu ad, in the same vein as the "Traffic Jam" one they had on the telly a few years back...

I hope you're not implying that adverts aren't original anymore?

Captain Trips · 10-10-2004 4:51pm

Agent Orange wrote:

They can't even talk English proper.

Obviously they are not alone lol! That sentence is great

What's next: minstrel shows advertising boot polish,

There is a standard sized billboard on the 5th floor exit from Stephen's Green car park with a minstrel advertising tiles "I'd walk a million miles for some of your tiles" or something to that effect.

milltown · 10-10-2004 5:07pm

Hmmm...An anti-gravity penny is it?

The ad is poking fun at "western civilisation" (No, I'm not suggesting that Carribean folk are uncivilised) and how hung up we are on ridiculous sh1t like the latest features on our mobiles. The message is that Malibu is an easygoing drink that could only have been invented by easygoing people who know that most of those things are not worth worrying about.

And I think it's a very good ad, but then I'm clever.

monkeyfudge · 10-10-2004 5:30pm

I find it to be pretty offensive as well.

What if Guinness decided to advertise itself like that abroad? Portraying Irish people as backward morons. I know I wouldn't be too happy.

Pigman II · 10-10-2004 5:41pm

monkeyfudge wrote:

What if Guinness decided to advertise itself like that abroad? Portraying Irish people as backward morons.

Why bother? Our j1 students already do a good enough job of it.

Cabaal · 10-10-2004 7:40pm

therecklessone wrote:

Molehill = mountain.

Agreed, its only abit of fun
Its stupid saying this is racists just as it was stupid for Guinness to pull the advert with the lads having a pint on the Titanic as it was sinking (offend people relateed to the Titanic disaster..pffft)

Capt'n Midnight · 10-10-2004 8:59pm

milltown wrote:

And I think it's a very good ad, but then I'm clever.

LOL

Tomorrow morning when I'm stuck in traffic I'd rather be on a tropical beach with a glass in my hand. Not necessiarly that drink, but hey I rather not be in traffic..

ShiverinEskimo · 10-10-2004 9:20pm

your like those people that write into rte radio 1 when someone accidentally curses on telly before 9 o clock.
Christ man, the people that starred in the advert are carribbeans and they obviously didn't think it was too racist.
It was only trying to illustrate the fact that we are just a stressed up stupid nation obsessed with features of our mobiles. Joke's on us, not them.

Spunog UIE · 10-10-2004 9:56pm

Agent Orange wrote:

They can't even talk English proper.

You have to be Irish and white. :eek: OH ye I said it!

The ad goes to great lengths to ridicule black people

Would you still feel embarrsed when "black people" tell you its a laugh and a very good ad? You need some real problems in your life tbh.

funny man. The whole point of the ad is a reflection on the pointlessness of lot 'our' ways of life, and how ****ing stupid they can be.

Oh and R E L A X.

[edit] sorry never read all (read, none) of the replies [/edit]

Makaveli · 10-10-2004 11:32pm

I hate the way everything has to be so pc nowadays.
No matter what you say it will offend somebody.
Load of bollocks.

simu · 11-10-2004 5:52pm

It's ironic that the same stereotypes the English used to have of the Irish (backward, laid-back, quaint) are now being attributed to people of the Carribean to sell products to the Irish.

I wouldn't go as far as saying that this ad is racist but it is very stupid and embarassing to watch.

skibum · 11-10-2004 6:09pm

Makaveli wrote:

I hate the way everything has to be so pc nowadays.
No matter what you say it will offend somebody.
Load of bollocks.

I Think that sums it up perfectly. Life is tough enough as it is without people with too much time on their hands looking for anything that could be non PC.
Get on with your life, and take it easy.

Shad0r · 11-10-2004 6:10pm

Soon we'll be a nation of drones afraid to speak in case of offending someone.

Hey i know! Why dont you guys worry about something that actually matters? Like, oh I dunno, the fact that GW, the homicidal maniac, is likely to get re-electe. Probably be a good place to start.

Or if politics isnt your bag, then how about worrying about the thousands of people he's managed to kill since he took office? If your gona b!tch about something, how about making it something worth b!tching about.

RE*AC*TOR · 11-10-2004 6:19pm

WHAT IF they took life as seriously as us? The ad would be the result. So off the bat, the claim is that the ad is a leap of imagination. What if germany won WW2? Hmmm..., let me think, we might be speaking german, there's be less jews (probably) - oh wait I'm being racist against germans!

:rolleyes:

ronano · 12-10-2004 7:33pm

Pigman II wrote:

I hope you're not implying that adverts aren't original anymore?

man, i laughed for at least a minute, thank you

vibe666 · 12-10-2004 7:46pm

an advert that shows carribean's taking the piss out of western society? i'm appalled that they can do that. they are being racist against westerners and that can't be allowed. we must act by never drinking malibu ever again. actually i puked my ring up last time, but that was from drinking it neat out of the bottle when we ran out of mixers, so I don't mind giving it up so much. contact your TD's and MEP's immediately and get the campaign started. and cancel that holiday to barbados. can't go over there now with this between us.

jor el · 13-10-2004 2:39pm

I don't think this is a racist ad at all, they're just taking the piss. I find it quite funny and an interesting alternative to the normal crap, annoying and un-funny ads.
The PC attitude has gone way to far IMO. It seems you can't say something funny at all any more in case it offends someone.

artvandelay · 13-10-2004 3:50pm

This kinda thing has happened before with a Guinness ad, the one with the volcano. Some Irish person complained about the ad saying it was offensive to volcano disaster survivors. I not saying your complaint is as crazy as that but thing is there has never been anything like that in Ireland so how could we say it was offensive. So my point is that if someone from the Caribbean said that ad was offensive ban the ad, but how do we know not being them whether it is racist or not?

tony 2 tone · 13-10-2004 9:22pm

Hope no one shows AO the Red Stripe beer ads then........more of the same, fella reading broad sheet paper, all the news is in Carribean style dialect.

May I ad "Easy noow"

rabbitinlights · 13-10-2004 11:41pm

Agent Orange wrote:

They can't even talk English proper.

This must be a troll?

begbie · 23-10-2004 1:54am

I didn't find the ad the least bit racist. It was funny when i seen it.

SantaHoe · 23-10-2004 2:00am

Were the guys in that add black?
I didn't notice.

Racist cinema advertisement

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