Bernardo Silva tweet controversy

[Mad Eyed Screamer]

“Paki” isn’t derogatory in Australia apparently. One of my Aussie colleagues had just signed up a British client with Pakistani dual nationality and said to him over the phone quite innocently “So we just need a copy of both your Brit and Paki passports and we’re all set”.

He couldn’t understand why everyone in the office within eat shot of the call went silent and was staring at him. A quick explanation after he came off the phone from the rest of us and he was back on the blower apologising to him. The client was very chilled and took no offence but it’s all about context I guess, Australia didn’t have the same issues in the 60’s and 70’s and Paki was never used in the pejorative, so for him, it was like saying Brit or Aussie.

I recall James Stannage on Piccadilly Radio getting into trouble as he was discussing England v Pakistan at cricket and referred to the visiting team as "The Pakis"
He said we refer to the Aussies, The Scots, Brits and if specifically referring to Pakistan then yes they are the Pakis.."
Think he got his wrist slapped (probably over 20 years ago) today would most likely be sacked.

 

[Gorton_Tubster]

Tell me again how Pep was defending himself?

He was saying "it would be wrong to punish him". If you're going to get all symantic on me it isn't worth the discussion.

We all know when you're cast as having done something racist you cannot in any way try to excuse it. It's part of the crux of Ill feeling towards anti - racism, there's no defence even when you make a mistake like Bernardo did.

 

[Gorton_Tubster]

There are more diplomatic ways to defend oneself. Pep could have simply said that he appreciates that some people may find this offensive but he can assure that the last thing a person like Bernardo would want to do is offend anyone.

Headline from pep saying that = pep says it is offensive.

It's a shitty minefield and you all know it

 

[mexico1970]

The crossed armed finger waving moral crusaders will win out on this one.

 

[Fame Monster]

Enough people find it racist in Portugal and Spain for their to be a section in their wikipedia about it being controversial, but I agree that this is the key cultural issue that's caused this to blow up. Pep & Bernardo see it like comparing someone to a milky bar kid because they see it in adverts and on supermarket shelves. To the rest of the world though, it's pretty racist to name a brand of chocolate peanuts "little Congolese people" and give them big red lips and until 10 years ago, tribal dress and spears.

Apologising just shows you can see how some people would find the caricature offensive, even if you didn't make the connection because of your different cultural background.

There's not a page on the Portuguese Wikipedia about Conguilitos (that I can see) so it's obviously not that controversial over there. There's a page on the English Wikipedia that says some people find it controversial (if that's what you're looking at), and there's a smaller section on the Spanish Wiki that says the same although it also says that the brand was called that in recognition of recent Congolese independence and not as a racial slur. So I definitely wouldn't say 'the rest of the world' find it pretty racist.

Tribal people are a part of Congolese culture so while more British people might consider it racist that a cartoon character and chocolate is based on that (despite it supposedly being a nod to Congolese independence), people in Portugal presumably don't consider it to be any more racist than having a character with milky coloured skin as the face for Milkybar. If Bernardo doesn't think it's racist, he shouldn't apologise if some people do.

 

[Ric]

Let's cut out some of the personal arguments please, otherwise the thread will end up getting pulled again.

 

[Rolee]

Headline from pep saying that = pep says it is offensive.

It's a shitty minefield and you all know it

Yep, it is a minefield which Pep could have sidestepped with a bit more diplomacy.

 

[SWP's back]

Not sure I would see Aussie humour as a reliable benchmark to what is right and wrong

It wasn’t humour. That’s the point.

 

[Ric]

Yep, it is a minefield which Pep could have sidestepped with a bit more diplomacy.

Yes, I'm not sure if Guardiola's intervention last night really helped matters tbh.

 

[hello]

I recall James Stannage on Piccadilly Radio getting intontrouble as he was discussing England v Pakistan at cricket and referred to the visiting team as "The Pakis"
He said we refer to the Aussies, The Scots, Brits and if specifically referring to Pakistan then yes they are the Pakis.."
Think he got his wrist slapped (probably over 20 years ago) today would most likely be sacked.

I remember when Sky first starting showing the test matches and some Muppet's were complaining about the PAK graphic displaying the score.
Anyhow in terms of the little Congolese character when it briefly kicked off in Spain when Bernardo would have been about 7/8 The original logo designer which was a lot more primitive and potentially offensive stated that "Moise Tshombe, who had been prime minister of the Congo, found Conguitos amusing when he saw them on a visit to Spain"

The more recent adverts 10 years+ or so they have been anthropomorphic blobs that lounge around swimming pools in an atmosphere of fun and leisure, so certainly easy to see why someone would associate to Mendy given his extensive leisure(recuperation) time since joining City.

The prime minister of Congo didn't find them offensive, Mendy didn't find it offensive. 99.9% of the population in Spain don't find them offensive, in fact the only people who probably find them offensive are scousers as they are offended by everything afterall and attention seekers looking to find offence in anything to incite the whole " Oh look at that, that could be offensive to ____" outrage types.