They worked like blacks-Mary O'Rourke

hubbub

Seanad leader Mary O'Rourke was last night in hot water after saying some of her campaign helpers had worked "like blacks". I really doubt she had any insulting intention though if I was of african origin I may have found what she said offensive but that would probably be because I have a chip on my shoulder. Would it have sparked such a response, and no doubt the storm in a tea cup in gorvenment buildings later on today, if she had said "they worked like chinese"? I think not. Afterall black people do work hard and have a good work ethic do they not? Granted she was almost certainly referring to slavery, albeit subliminally or not, but this does not mean she advocates it which would be quite obvious to anyone with a lick of sense considering her past stance on immigrants and refugees.

Esel

Read recent posts before posting!

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054872017

damienom

Did anyone hear the interview with her after the speech? Was played on Morning Ireland this morning, she seemed completely oblivious to the fact that she had said anything that could have been remotely insulting or offensive. Think it was just a spur of the moment thing.

Interesting to see one or two of the more credible refugee and anti-racism groups coming out to stand up for her

redspider

Angry Banana wrote:

Aye, she was black from working at the time so she needed a good ole scrub.

:-) good one ...

"black from working" is much different than "working like a <>", but it seems like a smart way to evolve the old-saying into an acceptable modern one.

A thundering disgrace Mary. ;-)

redspider

Nevada

Who are the people who have been most offended by this remark?

Any names to attenuate to the loudest gaspers?

Seems like some subliminal messages being smuggled out of that pc deathcamp on Kildare St ala Lenihan & Rabbite

ArthurDent

She's one Pat Kenny defending herself this morning. According to the radio anyway....

Nevyn

It was very cleverly done. With those few words she has gotten her renomination to the Senate on every radio and in every paper producing a lot of copy.

In a week when Rabbitte's mask slipped a little and he spoke of curtailing the Poles and other Eastern Europeans from entering Ireland, FF will be furious with Mary O'Rourke's faux pas. While not the most serious or offensive comment, it was the height of stupidity and certainly means they cannot go on the offensive.

They should use this as an opportunity/excuse to give her the bullet.

Litcagral

ArthurDent wrote:

She's one Pat Kenny defending herself this morning. According to the radio anyway....

She seems to have come out of it quite well on radio IMO. She also used the example of "working like a Trojan" and its not generally offensive.

Litcagral

Litcagral wrote:

She also used the example of "working like a Trojan" and its not generally offensive.

True, but not that many Trojans around to get offended...

oscarBravo

Litcagral wrote:

She also used the example of "working like a Trojan"...

The correct term is "Trojan work for the diocese."

patzer117

Thaedydal wrote:

It was very cleverly done. With those few words she has gotten her renomination to the Senate on every radio and in every paper producing a lot of copy.

If it was indeed done for this motive then it was a spectacularly slick political move. I'm of the opinion however that it was done by accident.

I don't see how it is considered offensive however, as she obviously didn't mean any offense by it, doesn't have any racist tendencies and in now way made out that blacks were somehow inferior because of it. If she clearly wasn't trying to be malicious, why would people want to make it out as racist? IMO it's the people who are raging over the comment that are trying to make it political controversy, but they are unwittingly playing into her hands.

tbh

Karl Hungus wrote:

You know, I can sympathise that it's terminology that was once fairly common, and didn't have the same meaning it does today... .

I agree with everything else you said Karl, but the fact is that it has exactly the same meaning today as it always has, it's just society has moved on. Imagine an MP saying that Charles Kennedy "drank like the Irish?"

not cool, not funny IMO.

Caimin

rubadub

Sand wrote:

Like Zod said, we all use phrases like "knackered" that arent politically correct. But then were not all running for election and expected to be holier than thou.

an old tired out horse is sent to the knackers yard for rendering, the phrase "knackered" means so worn out and tired that you are fit for the knackers yard. I dont see anything offensive about it. To call a traveller or other person a knacker is another thing, but only recently enough, just like Tarantino managed to make "gimp" into a new insult all on its own, wikipedia actually has a new definition for it put up by ingnorant film fans.

She is an idiot for saying it, esp. as it is related to slavery. Still, probably better than saying "no thanks to my team who hung around like a bunch of lazy blacks". She may have got into more trouble if she said they "worked like whites".

stevenmu

Probably a pointless question as these PC uproars tend to have little basis in reality, but does anyone know of any black people who were actually offended by this ?

Nevyn

None have come out and stated that at all.
Infact two groups have said they are not offended and one staed that the portrayal of such immagrants as hardworking was a good thing.

The Irish Refugee Council has described the remark as "ill-advised", but acknowledged that the Fianna Fáil politician had been "very brave and courageous" on refugee issues.

Ill advised or nicely done ?

Heinrich

stevenmu wrote:

Probably a pointless question as these PC uproars tend to have little basis in reality, but does anyone know of any black people who were actually offended by this ?

They are queuing outside Leinster House at this very moment!


It's true that we are becomming far too PC in this fair isle of ours! I do not think that the expression originally referred to people with naturally dark skin but rather those poor chaps who were mining coal...

tbh

stevenmu wrote:

Probably a pointless question as these PC uproars tend to have little basis in reality, but does anyone know of any black people who were actually offended by this ?

Why should it only be offensive if black people are offended by it? I'm white, and I found it - maybe not offensive, but certainly surprising.

hubbub

****e!

hubbub

I really doubt she had any insulting intention though if I was of african origin I may have found what she said offensive but that would probably be because I have a chip on my shoulder. Would it have sparked such a response, and no doubt the storm in a tea cup in gorvenment buildings later on today, if she had said "they worked like chinese"? I think not. Afterall black people do work hard and have a good work ethic do they not? Granted she was almost certainly referring to slavery, albeit subliminally or not, but this does not mean she advocates it which would be quite obvious to anyone with a lick of sense considering her past stance on immigrants and refugees.

Loomis

Advice for the day:
Engage the brain.Then the mouth

Heinrich

Mr. Anderson wrote:

Advise for the day:
Engage the brain.Then the mouth

Verb of the day:
Advise

Engage the brain. Then decide if you have nothing intelligent to say keep quiet!

Advice:

A wise man won't need it
A fool won't heed it.

tbh

hubbub wrote:

, but this does not mean she advocates it which would be quite obvious to anyone with a lick of sense considering her past stance on immigrants and refugees.

I agree that she didn't mean to offend by saying that, I'm disappointed that the leader of the seanad could put a comment like that out in the public.

The definition of offensive is:
Causing anger, displeasure, resentment, or affront

I don't think anyone could deny that what she said could be considered offensive, it's a question of degrees really.

Caimin

Loomis

Heinrich wrote:

Verb of the day:
Advise

Engage the brain. Then decide if you have nothing intelligent to say keep quiet!

Advice:

A wise man won't need it
A fool won't heed it.

Thanks for the welcome.Hopefully everyone here is as friendly

tbh

we're as friendly as a load of cannibals welcoming a fat man.


oops.

rubadub

Heinrich wrote:

I do not think that the expression originally referred to people with naturally dark skin but rather those poor chaps who were mining coal...

It refers to slavery, the newer version would be the insult that blacks are lazy.

strassenwolf

The whole thing reminds me of a time in the mid 1980's when the Irish cricket team played the West Indies in Rathmines. After the match, the head of the Irish Cricket Union thanked all and sundry, including the catering staff, the programme sellers, the West Indies cricket team for coming here, and the groundstaff, who had "worked like n*****s to get the pitch in such excellent shape".

There was a bit of controversy about it at the time, and I'm surprised it didn't register on Mary O'Rourke's radar screen.

whiskeyman

rubadub wrote:

It refers to slavery, the newer version would be the insult that blacks are lazy.

Perhaps she should have said "they worked like an Indonesian kid in a Nike factory".


A bit more modern...


:v:

hubbub

caimin wrote:

I don't think anyone could deny that what she said could be considered offensive, it's a question of degrees really.

"Some of my best friends are black", so I'll run it by one of them when I see them later today. It was a stupidly shocking thing to say because of all the overly sensitive PC people out there, but I think what people are debating here is whether or not it is offensive to the majoritry of educated people, or in fact should it be

hubbub

rubadub wrote:

It refers to slavery, the newer version would be the insult that blacks are lazy.

Does it really matter that it refers to slavery? Are we never to speak of slavery again? Referring to slavery may not be PC (which is a trip in itself) but it sure as hell doesn't make you a rascist. Black people should be happy that people still have it in their minds lest we forget. I worked with an Egyptian girl once and one day we had a conversation where I referred to her as black, she proceeded to tell me that this was offensive and racist. What a crock of ****.