What constitutes racism?

Is Jane Goody calling Shilpa Shetty, Shilpa poppadum racist or just ignorant?

What is racism?  Would calling Gordon Brown, Gordon haggis be racist?  

What constitutes racism?  Does the victim have to be a different colour?  I call Derbyshire folk sheepshaggers, is that racist?  

Discuss.

[oldspice]

I think racism involves deliberate insults and discrimination aimed at a person or group simply because that person is a different race from the accuser.

Disliking someone on the grounds of their colour or race is racist.

You cannot say that people in Derbyshire are a different race from people in Yorkshire, so your example would not constitute racism, just ignorance and bad manners.

I do not think Jade's remarks were overtly racist but I think her dislike of Shilpa had racist overtones. Jade did not like an Indian having the cheek to be better looking than her, better educated than her, richer than her and even more popular than her. That, I believe, was the basis for the hostility towards Shilpa.

[goldencup]

It's a difficult thing to analyse.  Recently at work some teenage lads glanced at our collection of books in Urdu, obviously wondering what they were.  Then one said, "Oh, Paki books," as they went out of the building.  I was left wondering whether I ought to make out a 'Racial Incident Report'.  The remark wasn't made nastily and wasn't actually directed at anyone but was it racist? 

[oldspice]

No, I don't think so. I've heard what some Asians call us white women for no good reason.

[smurfboy]

I was left wondering whether I ought to make out a 'Racial Incident Report'. 

Really?

[Forth Bridges]

I think Bad mannors, Rudeness, Spitefulness has all now been joined together with Recist to become THE Racist!

any time this happens is Racism, I stating to loss faith!"

[goldencup]

I was left wondering whether I ought to make out a 'Racial Incident Report'. 

Really?

Really.

"You cannot say that people in Derbyshire are a different race from people in Yorkshire, so your example would not constitute racism, just ignorance and bad manners"

I agree with most of your comments Oldspice but I think your argument begins to weaken here here.  How different do the the agressor and the recipient of the abuse have to be to qualify for racism. English and Indian?  English and Italian?  Greek and jamaican? What about Japanese and Chinese?  What factor represents a significant distance for the abuse to be classed as racist?

I think that there are no races to be racist against, i.e there is just one race - the human race and what we deem to be race is in fact down to skin colour or perceived ethnic differences.  The classification of English and Indian as racially different but not Yorkshireman and Derbyshire folk is illogical and not borne out by science.  Let's do away with the word racism and call it what it is - COLOUR predjudice.

[goldencup]

Rubbish - colour prejudice is just one part of it.  You can be racist about the Welsh, South Africans, Australians etc- regardless of their colour.  Come to think of it, I myself find South African women (in general) very aggressive and Americans very nice and friendly.  So I must be racist

[Forth Bridges]

Racism = RACE IE bounty:

RACE - More than Just couler!

But I still think most people think every thing is raced to PC now adays!

[smurfboy]

I was left wondering whether I ought to make out a 'Racial Incident Report'. 

Really?

Really.

I just can't believe we live in a world of such ridiculous political correctness and bureaucracy that a childish remark like that could possibly be considered a 'racial incident'.

[kevvosa]

Well as we all know Britain is getting to be more of a nanny state all the time. 

[smurfboy]

To me, if the kids had gone up to an Asian and called him or her a 'f**king Paki' or similar, THAT would be a racial incident. The comment made was thoughtless, childish and yes, probably racist, but it wasn't an incident.

[Forth Bridges]

[kevvosa]

Me and my friends sometimes laugh at the way Pakistani people speak, especially at stalls at the market. We can't help it. I don't consider myself racist and as long as no harm is done or it's not said 'out loud', then I don't think it's an issue.