Is there any way to see this email as not racist?

[hana]

http://www.snopes.com/racial/language/hurricane.asp

 

 

My sister forwarded it to me and all of our siblings, and some of her friends. I responded with the snopes.com link so she would at least see how old the actual story was and that at least one person had been fired for sending the email because of its racism. She wrote back, "Welcome to the US of A." (Ironic, since I have moved to Canada.) I have no idea what she's thinking. We're White, but my daughter is Black. I'm determined to not get into it with her because it would cause my mother pain to have her kids not getting along, but wow.

[Runningmom80]

Yikes. No, I don't believe there is any way to see that as not racist. How sad. :(

[Myeightkiddies]

It's racist and extremely inappropriate (and insensitive) for her to forward that to you or your family (or anyone for that matter).

[LucyStoner]

It sets off my racist warning bells, especially when you compare the first paragraph with the last. What the heck would prompt someone to

 

A- see this as funny

B- send it to someone else

C- send it to a mixed family

 

And D- still send email forwards at all????!!!

 

I can't believe that in 2012 people still send around dumb email forwards. For anyone under age 60, email forwards are rude. For anyone over 60, it's just a warning bell of cluelessness.

Edited September 16, 2012 by kijipt

[Corraleno]

Wow. And the fact that she sent this to someone with an African-American child — her own niece — just boggles the mind. :blink:

 

Jackie

[elegantlion]

Racist:glare:

[stripe]

Unless you, your daughter, or your sister is a Chamiqua, it's pretty stupid. But I saw Rosie O'Donnell make fun of Martha's fellow inmates by referring to them as Shaniqua, and I never heard if anyone else thought that was offensive. I guess, even while sitting next to an ex-con, she still thinks all women in prison are black and "ghetto."

[dangermom]

:001_huh: No, there is no way to interpret that as not racist. :001_huh:

[Barb_]

Your sister is a dork. I'm sorry for you and your sweet daughter.

[Bee Happy]

It's pretty ignorant. And as for where it originated, what's an African-American name? Because my name is Robin. My son's name is Raphael. My grandmother's name is Carolyn.

[Cricket]

Unless you, your daughter, or your sister is a Chamiqua, it's pretty stupid. But I saw Rosie O'Donnell make fun of Martha's fellow inmates by referring to them as Shaniqua, and I never heard if anyone else thought that was offensive. I guess, even while sitting next to an ex-con, she still thinks all women in prison are black and "ghetto."

 

My first thought was that it sounded like an SNL skit. And then, of course, the audience would be howling with laughter. :glare: I'd never forward an email like that but I don't know that I'd conclude everyone who would as racist. Insensitive, yes.

Edited September 16, 2012 by Cricket

[Spryte]

I didn't even open the link, based on the other responses. Just wanted to send a :grouphug: because I have clueless family members, too. There is no figuring out *what* they are thinking sometimes. It is truly mind boggling sometimes to think that we were raised in the same family.

 

You are a strong, good person to think of your mom's feelings and just let this one be. I need to take lessons from you, I think! Nice job. You are inspiring.

 

(Again, I didn't open the link, just saying that based on the responses, and my own realization that keeping my mouth shut sometimes would go a long way toward keeping peace in our family! :D)

[Kathryn]

No, and I'd be really, really pissed at her if I was you.

[Cricket]

It's pretty ignorant. And as for where it originated, what's an African-American name? Because my name is Robin. My son's name is Raphael. My grandmother's name is Carolyn.

 

I wondered this too. There are plenty of African-Americans with so-called "white" names. Our oldest has a name that in the last 20 years is a so-called "African-American" name.

[Bee Happy]

These days you don't know. I met a caucasian named Keisha! :001_smile:

[Denise in Florida]

ick...and totally not okay. I could probably blow this off as idiocy if it came from an acquaintence, but I would definitely not accept it from a sister.

[Harriet Vane]

Your sister is a dork. I'm sorry for you and your sweet daughter.

 

:iagree:

[MSNative]

Is your sister racist? Has she said other things about your daughter or anyone else? You know her. If you think she is then she meant it in a racist way. If you don't think she is, then maybe she meant it was a silly thing to focus on with everything else going on in the world. (You said she didn't realize how old the story was.) I'm reaching here obviously. That last paragraph really is horrible - but perhaps if she didn't read it all the way through and...still reaching. Basically, I'm looking for some way to look at this so you can play nice and make your mom happy. If she has never given you any reason to think she is racist before, I would treat this as a teachable moment. Otherwise, use the delete button early and often with her emails.

 

Nope, sorry. Went back and reread. The whole thing is horrible. I agree with everyone else. There is no way, even with extreme reaching, to see that email as not racist.

Edited September 16, 2012 by MSNative

[Mrs Mungo]

These days you don't know. I met a caucasian named Keisha! :001_smile:

 

I have a (mostly Caucasian, part Native American) cousin named Keisha. She is around my age (I am almost 40).

 

I think doing genealogy research gives one a new perspective on names. You will see a generation with names like America, Victory, Tennesee, then you will have a generation with names like Solomon and Abraham, then you will have a generation with names like Tom, Mary and Sue.

 

But, yes the email is very racist. Sending it to a mixed race family seems crazy.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I find the black vernacular speech to be racist. No white meteorologist would speak in slang mixed with swearing. Why is it funny to say that a black meteorologist would talk that way? It portrays them as dumb and unprofessional. This really isn't about what names are chosen as hurricane names.

[MamaT]

Racist. I also have AA children, and if a family member sent me that email there is no way they wouldn't get blasted. I admire your restraint.

[Trish]

"Sis, thanks for the Racist Email of the Month."

[Meriwether]

These days you don't know. I met a caucasian named Keisha! :001_smile:

 

I know an almost 40 year old Keisha who is caucasian.

 

 

ETA: I just read the email. I didn't get it. I mean, I got it, but why was it sent? It's not like it was even funny if you are racist.:confused:

 

ETA: Nevermind. I could see my in-laws smirking at it.

Edited September 16, 2012 by Meriwether

[hana]

Thank you all. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't over-sensitive or missed something. She is over 60 and does still think it's cool to forward emails, but this is the first one she has sent me in almost a year.

 

The reason I don't want to cause strife with my mom (and this would definitely get back to her) is because she is elderly (85), but I may have to say something. I really do believe that silence is dangerous.

[Parrothead]

Thank you all. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't over-sensitive or missed something. She is over 60 and does still think it's cool to forward emails, but this is the first one she has sent me in almost a year.

 

The reason I don't want to cause strife with my mom (and this would definitely get back to her) is because she is elderly (85), but I may have to say something. I really do believe that silence is dangerous.

Honestly you mom may think what your sister did was hateful. Do what you have to to protect your children from insensitive louts. If that includes blasting your sister, so be it. It is better for them to see you stand up for them than for them to see you let something like this pass.

[kiana]

I find the black vernacular speech to be racist. No white meteorologist would speak in slang mixed with swearing. Why is it funny to say that a black meteorologist would talk that way? It portrays them as dumb and unprofessional. This really isn't about what names are chosen as hurricane names.

 

Yes, this.

[Mommie_Jen]

Racist. I also have AA children, and if a family member sent me that email there is no way they wouldn't get blasted. I admire your restraint.

 

:iagree::iagree: (and I also AA children)

[stripe]

One of the reasons I like the book Does Anybody Else Look Like Me? By Donna Jackson Nakazawa, is that the author discusses in some detail how to deal with rude comments, including from strangers, keeping in mind that our main responsibility is to protect our children. She has had issues especially with people discussing her son's eyes and her daughter's hair.

[hana]

Honestly you mom may think what your sister did was hateful. Do what you have to to protect your children from insensitive louts. If that includes blasting your sister, so be it. It is better for them to see you stand up for them than for them to see you let something like this pass.

 

We have come to this place. I did share the gist (not the specifics) of the email with my children, and we are working together to craft a simple response that makes it clear that we will not tolerate any further intaraction like this. Unfortunately, I think my mom carries her own racism, though she doesn't display it overtly.

 

One of the reasons I like the book Does Anybody Else Look Like Me? By Donna Jackson Nakazawa, is that the author discusses in some detail how to deal with rude comments, including from strangers, keeping in mind that our main responsibility is to protect our children. She has had issues especially with people discussing her son's eyes and her daughter's hair.

 

I would definitely take a different approach if it were actual comments about my own children, rather than general racist junk (also not acceptable!).

[stripe]

I would definitely take a different approach if it were actual comments about my own children, rather than general racist junk (also not acceptable!).

 

As I recall the author discusses both generic racism and specific comments to the kids, including asking where they are from or that sort of thing, which is invasive or inappropriate but not a random racist attack.

[justasque]

She is over 60 and does still think it's cool to forward emails, but this is the first one she has sent me in almost a year.

 

The reason I don't want to cause strife with my mom (and this would definitely get back to her) is because she is elderly (85), but I may have to say something. I really do believe that silence is dangerous.

 

People of that age are often starting to lose their filters, and their critical thinking skills. It is sad. Call her on it, yes, but also keep in mind that this may be a signal that she may be going downhill, physically and mentally, from here on out. I would take a "gentle education" approach rather than something stronger, both because it may be more effective (if anything is), and because it models, for your kids, gentleness in dealing with people when they do insensitive things out of ignorance.

[Bluegoat]

I find the black vernacular speech to be racist. No white meteorologist would speak in slang mixed with swearing. Why is it funny to say that a black meteorologist would talk that way? It portrays them as dumb and unprofessional. This really isn't about what names are chosen as hurricane names.

 

Well, I don't know. Have you ever seen Eddie Murphy's "Mr. Robinson's Neighbourhood" skit? It's considered a comedy classic and gets replayed frequently and is very much along the same lines as the post in the OP.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Well, I don't know. Have you ever seen Eddie Murphy's "Mr. Robinson's Neighbourhood" skit? It's considered a comedy classic and gets replayed frequently and is very much along the same lines as the post in the OP.

 

I know the skit, and I don't like it either. I know that Bill Cosby caused some controversy when he criticized the black community but he was against that sort of black vernacular speech as well.

[Bluegoat]

I know the skit, and I don't like it either. I know that Bill Cosby caused some controversy when he criticized the black community but he was against that sort of black vernacular speech as well.

 

It isn't really my kind of humour, and it does seem to have always had some controversy associated with it, but it has been widely accepted as pretty funny by a lot of different people who aren't considered racists.

 

I don't think Facebook or even a print format really works well for that humour, but I guess I am surprised to see that everyone felt it was racist. I immediately thought of that Eddie Murphy skit, or some of the kinds of characters Chris Rock presents, and I don't really see people suggesting those are racist skits or racist performers, even when they think they are not a good idea.

[mlbuchina]

I don't understand why anyone would get their panties in a wad over what storms are named.

 

I find the email to be stupid, but I am having a hard time understanding how it is saying that one race is superior to another because of race.

[Farrar]

It isn't really my kind of humour, and it does seem to have always had some controversy associated with it, but it has been widely accepted as pretty funny by a lot of different people who aren't considered racists.

 

I don't think Facebook or even a print format really works well for that humour, but I guess I am surprised to see that everyone felt it was racist. I immediately thought of that Eddie Murphy skit, or some of the kinds of characters Chris Rock presents, and I don't really see people suggesting those are racist skits or racist performers, even when they think they are not a good idea.

 

There's a fine line between satire and bigotry sometimes. I think most of us just found this particular email, especially with that first line introduction, to fall in the bigotry category. The intent seems pretty clearly to be to mock that style of speech and of names from the perspective of a white person who finds black names and speech, as well as black people being "pissed" about things, to be absurd or annoying.

 

Something like the Eddie Murphy skit mentioned (or a whole host of other comedic things) is something that is much less clear. I think we could have a debate about whether or not it's perpetuating racist stereotypes or satirizing them (and therefore making a comment about them or helping break them down). However, I find it easy to draw clear line between these two things.

[Farrar]

I don't understand why anyone would get their panties in a wad over what storms are named.

 

 

Originally the storms were all female names because women were more tempestuous. :glare: So... yeah, I don't know that I'd be out there crusading about it or anything, but that would annoy me if it was still the case.

 

It's a reflection of culture. It makes sense to me. And the congresswoman in question seems to have just brought the matter up in a speech once as far as I can tell. Seems perfectly reasonable.

[mandymom]

It's a reflection of culture. It makes sense to me. And the congresswoman in question seems to have just brought the matter up in a speech once as far as I can tell. Seems perfectly reasonable.

 

I agree that it was totally inappropriate and showed bigotry. Definitely not something tasteful to forward.

 

However, I would question whether the congresswoman could be considered "reasonable". She's known here in Houston for her very off-the-wall statements and actions. She's also never met a camera she didn't like, and sometimes she says outlandish things, IMO, just to make the headlines.

 

Not that it makes the email any less offensive, however. OP has every reason to feel offended.

[stripe]

I don't understand why anyone would get their panties in a wad over what storms are named.

 

Who got her panties in a wad? What does this even mean? What's wrong with askg WHY something is the way it is?

I don't think Facebook or even a print format really works well for that humour, but I guess I am surprised to see that everyone felt it was racist. I immediately thought of that Eddie Murphy skit, or some of the kinds of characters Chris Rock presents, and I don't really see people suggesting those are racist skits or racist performers, even when they think they are not a good idea.

 

1- Not everyone said they found it racist. I said I thought it was stupid. So did some other posters.

2- Black comics making fun of black people, or blonde women making blonde jokes, or a guy in a wheelchair making fun of people in wheelchairs, or Arab American comics cracking terrorist jokes, are different than someone saying something with a straight face. And insider criticism is different than outsiders belittling the same group.

[kitten18]

http://www.snopes.com/racial/language/hurricane.asp

 

 

My sister forwarded it to me and all of our siblings, and some of her friends. I responded with the snopes.com link so she would at least see how old the actual story was and that at least one person had been fired for sending the email because of its racism. She wrote back, "Welcome to the US of A." (Ironic, since I have moved to Canada.) I have no idea what she's thinking. We're White, but my daughter is Black. I'm determined to not get into it with her because it would cause my mother pain to have her kids not getting along, but wow.

That is horrid. :grouphug:

 

 

 

 

I can't believe that in 2012 people still send around dumb email forwards. For anyone under age 60, email forwards are rude. For anyone over 60, it's just a warning bell of cluelessness.

:lol:

[IsabelC]

Not only racist but not even remotely funny imo. I can't believe it's been around for 7 years and is still getting forwarded. :confused:

[mommaduck]

Yes, it's racist. It might also be considered racist to consider those names "black" or "white". There are plenty of black people with so-called "white" names. And, though I'm pretty much heinz-57 mixed myself, I would be categorized by general appearances as "white"....and my name happens to be Jamal (which is an Arabic name also...and no, I'm not overly tall, nor am I male, and I'm terrible at basketball...my mother's best friend just happened to be B'hai and she named me). :)

[Elizabeth in MN]

Racist.