Awareness of racial slurs outside of the US

[luiz]

They're by and large not idiots. Most people I've seen who say stuff like that are bright but young. They'll grow out of it. And the ones who don't generally end up becoming cultist weirdos like Bob Avakian, and it's a total waste of time to worry one's head about Bob Avakian.

I don't know, idiot is who idiot does. And this looks like idiotic drivel to me:

"you are a member of the colonizer socioeconomic class as a white person"

 

[Hehehe]

They're by and large not idiots

If only we had some way of measuring intelligence... I wonder what we'd find... hmmmm...

Technology that was more complex than what the people already there were using, yes.

Civilization? There were sophisticated civilizations in parts of Africa thousands of years before any European decided, "Hey, that's good real estate, let's go take it!".

Part of the reason we know how the ancient Egyptians thought of, and treated, foreigners is because they recorded it. The images in the temples and stele and palaces and tombs weren't just pretty pictures. They are the history and the proclamations and the thoughts of the time in which they were created. It took knowledge of mathematics and physics to create their civilization, and some non-Egyptians in their jealousy and spite decided that there had to be divine intervention that made it possible. Modern close-minded people insist it had to be space aliens, because no human could ever have constructed such things...

Those who can be termed "colonizers" in Africa - the Europeans, in particular, brought different technology and different variety of civilization, but it's incorrect to say there was none there to begin with.

As I remember it, our last history chat didn't go so well. But yes, of course there were political entities in Africa. After all, somebody had to enslave all those people that Europeans and Arabs (especially Arabs) bought. However, even having played the Civilization series, and even after having learned of all the various achievements Africans have made, I daresay that the European civilizations were more advanced than their African counterparts, which is why I said they brought civilization to Africa. That is in addition to the fact that Africa is a large continent; many, if not most, of the areas Europeans colonized were completely backwards.

 

[Berzerker]

Egyptian civilization preceded European, so who brought it where?

and the evidence suggests Egyptian civilization began as people living in the Sahara were driven away by drought/drying that began maybe 6-7 kya

but whats so good about civilization anyway?

plus, many peoples have myths about their gods telling them to live austere, humble lives. Maybe thats why civilization is so recent. Even the Bible tells a story of how 'knowledge' was not good in God's eyes.

 

[Arakhor]

Moderator Action: I was under the impression that this was a thread about racial slurs, not ancient aliens, race science and the like. As such, the thread should get back on-topic immediately or it will cease to serve a worthwhile purpose and its future will be in question.
Please read the forum rules: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=422889

 

[Ryika]

Fun fact: The most broadly used, derogatory term to refer to Turks and, more generally, people from the Middle East in Germany is derived from the Hawaiian word Kanaka, which means (hu)man.

 

[Kyriakos]

I think that it is far more common to have [expletive] + [person from country x] used, rather than unique terms. The latter seem to exist largely in english slang, but not much (?) in many other languages.

 

[luiz]

Fun fact: The most broadly used, derogatory term to refer to Turks and, more generally, people from the Middle East in Germany is derived from the Hawaiian word Kanaka, which means (hu)man.

That's bizarre.
But then again, in Brazil we call Arabs "Turks" (though it's not deregotaty at all, it's just the result of confusion as Syrian and Lebanese immigrants arrived with Ottoman passports).

 

[Valka D'Ur]

You brought it up to insult people.

I brought it up to refute the notion that European explorers, missionaries, traders, and colonists were bringing "civilization" to a continent that had already had civilization for thousands of years.

However, even having played the Civilization series, and even after having learned of all the various achievements Africans have made, I daresay that the European civilizations were more advanced than their African counterparts, which is why I said they brought civilization to Africa.

You do realize that a game of Civilization is not real history, right?

As for Europe... yeah, they had such a sophisticated, technological, and educated populace during the time of Ramses the Great.


Civilizations rise and fall, and waves of colonialism happen as a result (or a cause). The point I've been making is that it didn't start with white people, in 1492.

 

[adcarrymaokai]

The point I've been making is that it didn't start with white people, in 1492.

Colonization did not begin with white people, and the term "colonizer" is not white-specific. However, the past several centuries have been largely shaped by European colonization of the Americas, Africa, Middle East, India and the Pacific Islands. Only Ethiopia, China and Japan did not suffer from European excursions.

Also, the scope and severity of European colonialism have surpassed anything ever seen in the past: Native Americans were slaughtered in droves and pushed into reservations, Africans were first traded as slaves into the new world and then enslaved on the spot during the Scramble for Africa (and mutilated for not keeping up with production quotas—look up Leopold II of Belgium and his practice of cutting natives' hands off), India and the Middle East were destabilized, partitioned, and made a huge mess we are still dealing with today, and the Philippines became a source of domestic workers and mail-order brides throughout the world.

While someone like Cyrus the Great gave great autonomy and freedom to the people he conquered, Europeans completely and utterly screwed over everyone they came in contact (including each other). So yeah, nothing in history can compare to European colonialism in terms of sheer destructiveness.

 

[luiz]

Colonization did not begin with white people, and the term "colonizer" is not white-specific. However, the past several centuries have been largely shaped by European colonization of the Americas, Africa, Middle East, India and the Pacific Islands. Only Ethiopia, China and Japan did not suffer from European excursions.

Also, the scope and severity of European colonialism have surpassed anything ever seen in the past: Native Americans were slaughtered in droves and pushed into reservations, Africans were first traded as slaves into the new world and then enslaved on the spot during the Scramble for Africa (and mutilated for not keeping up with production quotas—look up Leopold II of Belgium and his practice of cutting natives' hands off), India and the Middle East were destabilized, partitioned, and made a huge mess we are still dealing with today, and the Philippines became a source of domestic workers and mail-order brides throughout the world.

While someone like Cyrus the Great gave great autonomy and freedom to the people he conquered, Europeans completely and utterly screwed over everyone they came in contact (including each other). So yeah, nothing in history can compare to European colonialism in terms of sheer destructiveness.

That's of course BS by someone who is not very familiar with history.

Some quick reading suggestions:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(587_BC)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Baghdad_(1258)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wei–Jie_war

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timur

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_slave_trade

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zulu_Kingdom

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moriori

You're obviously not even very familiar with European colonial history if you think China did not suffer from European excursions.

In short, you have some catching up to do. Many non-European peoples have been responsible for outright genocide, for wiping entire populations from the face of the Earth and erasing ancient cultures. They enslaved millions of people (including millions of Europeans). Just like Europeans. Sue your hight school.

 

[Arakhor]

Moderator Action: Once again, this is allegedly a thread about racial slurs, not a historical discussion about the evils of colonialism, white guilt or anything else like that. If people are all out of racial slurs, then feel free not to post in this thread!
Please read the forum rules: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=422889

 

[gozpel]

I love a slur from the old days for a pretty Italian boy, plaster cat (Swedish gipskatt)

And also back in the days, a person from Greece, was greasy.

Haha, and the Porridge chokers from Denmark, they talk like they have porridge down their throats. Love that one.

And from a Swedish point of view, Norwegians are just dumb. Today is different, but back then there wasn't one single person in Norway, that wasn't dumb.

I took it in with a bit of a laugh, but I never used it myself. I think I met ppl from 100 countries in the world and I believe they can call me worse, lol.

 

[Cassius Critzer]

Technically, the Japanese word gaijin is a vicious, xenophobic, highly derogatory racist insult which, ironically, has been romanticized and glorified among many Western White people, for reasons that absolutely baffle me.

It just means barbarian and every nation has similar words for perceived interlopers from other nations. That word likely began with Roman Catholic missionaries from Spain and Portugal and thus has a religious origin. It then resulted in rather horrible events like enslaving the Japanese and having them sent to the Phillipines. These missionaries were considered foreign devils because while many religions co-existed in Japan like Confuscianism, Shinto, many flavors of Buddhism, it was considered an evil religion and subversive to the feudalism that had developed.

When you consider that in the end it destroyed the samurai by embracing Western ideals especially from Germany, and coupled with Commodore Perry forcing Japan to open to trade and diplomacy by threat of naval weaponry, then maybe there was a rational reason to fear outside influence. Other than the doomed attempts in Korea, Japan had no desire for outside conquest until German influence under the Meiji Restoration.

The Jews have a pretty rotten word for non-Jews.

The term barbarian has been loosely applied to everyone not Roman since ancient times.

I have found racism everywhere. It's rather wanton among Europeans.

 

[red_elk]

It just means barbarian and every nation has similar words for perceived interlopers from other nation.

I'm not sure that every nation use the word "barbarian" (or other with similarly negative connotation), to describe foreigners in general.

Fun fact - in middle ages Russians used the word "Nemtsy" to call people who don't speak Russian. In contemporary language this word means "Germans".

 

[Cassius Critzer]

I'm not sure that every nation use the word "barbarian" (or other with similarly negative connotation), to describe foreigners in general.

Fun fact - in middle ages Russians used the word "Nemtsy" to call people who don't speak Russian. In contemporary language this word means "Germans".

I'm talking about history. That is the historical origin for gaijin. The word barbarian was used for everyone not Roman and now is nearly a meaningless term. When it's blanket applied to nearly all, then all specificity is lost.
https://www.history.com/news/where-did-the-word-barbarian-come-from
It's akin to wily old gentlemen used by the English meaning nearly everyone not European.

If you take any humanities courses in America, you soon learn that racism was imported by immigrants from diverse countries and bringing in their old animosities against historical enemies.

If you go back to ancient feuds in Europe, they then carried that over to America with the blanket term of "the Great Unwashed" that initially meant Southern European immigrants but went on against Slavic immigrants.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Not exactly slurs, but slang with racist origins or connotations (all of these are American, I don't really need to say, possibly just East Coast, and possibly just Northeast):
- When a person goes astray from normal behavior, we might say they've "gone off the reservation." It is not synonymous with "thinking outside the box", which implies creative problem-solving; the implication here is that the person is being reckless or deranged.
- A person who takes back a gift might be called an "Indian giver."
- When a person betrays us, we might say they "sold us down the river."
- If we get ripped off or swindled, or sold something cheap, we might say we've been "gypped."
- A police prisoner-transport van is a "paddy wagon."
- A "Mexican firing squad" is a crossfire that hits friendlies on the far side of the intended target, used to say that something was badly designed or badly executed, a cluster****. I've also heard "Polish firing squad."
- A "Chinese fire drill" is when everyone evacuates a vehicle, exiting by one door and quickly re-entering the same vehicle by a different door.

And one accidentally offensive word, if you don't get the context: "Packie" is an old slang term for the liquor store. Liquor stores used be called "package stores"; nobody uses "package store" anymore, but you'll still occasionally hear "packie."

 

[Farm Boy]

"Sold down the river" isn't a racist saying though, so don't tar it(inadvertently! ). It implies bone-deep betrayal and originates, appropriately, from the depth of human evil.

 

[Manfred Belheim]

Under what circumstances does a Chinese fire drill ever happen?

 

[Farm Boy]

Driver switch, company switch, somebody in the front seat wants to make out with somebody in the back, two kids can't stop fighting in the back, etc: while at a red light/stop sign/pulled over.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Under what circumstances does a Chinese fire drill ever happen?

Typically, a bunch of teenagers are all piled into someone's car, and for whatever reason, somebody wants to switch seats. Maybe you want to take the wheel, or get next to someone, as Farm Boy says. When the car stops at a red light, you can declare "Chinese fire drill!" and everybody has to jump out, run around the car, and get back in through a different door. It's pretty amusing when you see it happen.