'Darkie Day'

[InfiniteFury]

I think this link and story probably speaks for itself:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/4295121.stm

So then, tradition or offensive? What's more important?
Are there any more examples you can think of?

What a shit thread Fury...

[Jemble Fred]

Seems a bit of a laugh to me. They're not burning anyone. They're not even shouting 'THAAMUS! Where am dat wartymelon?' They're just dressing up like twats, having a bit of a dance and getting pissed on scrumpy. Sounds like fun.

What the fuck are these coppers up to? Waste of my money, I don't pay my taxes for this, etc.

[InfiniteFury]

Seems a bit of a laugh to me. They're not burning anyone. They're not even shouting 'THAAMUS! Where am dat wartymelon?' They're just dressing up like twats, having a bit of a dance and getting pissed on scrumpy. Sounds like fun.

What the fuck are these coppers up to? Waste of my money, I don't pay my taxes for this, etc.

I think it said they were singing plantation songs. I don't know, it's obviously come from a long time in the past where people were easily excitable at the sight of black people, having perhaps never seen one before.

I'm not sure if (faced with a similar experience) I'd feel the need to start a carnival about it but then they didn't have TV in those days and anything to fill the time I suppose.

[skibz]

That's a ridiculous news item, but made all the more amusing for it's sheer pointlessness. Ah, the Cornish, eh?

(Where's Stewart Lee when you need him?)

[Purple Tentacle]

"The event is thought to date back more than 100 years"


Wooo, a hundred years eh?

That's barely history, that's practically contemporary.  Certainly 20th century, anyway.

Everybody should paint themselves in the colours of the rainbow, like the South Park flag.


(Try having a "Darkie Day" in Brixton or Hackney and time how long your legs stay intact)

[Jemble Fred]

I think it said they were singing plantation songs.

What kind of person takes a shower without singing a verse or two of 'Old Man River'?

Fuck it, if some dicks want to take offence at this, and kick up a real stink, these Cornish types should just swap their boot polish for green paint and pretend to be newts or something. Not worth getting het up about either way. I'm sure it's the dancing and getting pissed that really counts.

[Gazeuse]

I walked into my favourite pub in Hertford the other week and could hardly move for blacked up blokes dressed in multicoloured rags. They were taking a break from dancing around the town and getting pissed.

Being a southerner, I prefer my morris dancers unblackened with a fool on a hobby horse, although it was funny to hear them refer to themselves as 'extreme morris dancers.'

[Shindig]

Personally, I want Love Thy Neighbour to get a DVD release.  It rawked!

[Morrisfan82]

So this 'festival' has no clear purpose, no clear origin and effectively involves a group of pissed-up locals degrading ethnicity in as tacky, crass and feeble-minded a way as possible. Their response? 'Britain is turning into a nanny state!'

[Jemble Fred]

Are parties supposed to have a clear purpose now?

"Oi! You kids, stop all this fucking about with balloons and cakes! What's it all for?"

Why do people like being offended so much these days? It's inexplicable!

[Hobo]

Were no members of the Royal family invited? That's the real outrage.

[shatnersbassoon]

quite. How does it degrade ethnicity? The locals have been doing it for so long that they have no idea why they do it at all.

[Shindig]

Kids expelled for flinging snowballs.... conker players require eye protection...

What's going on?

[Morrisfan82]

Alright, 'purpose' was a bad choice of word, blah blah blah. It has no clear 'celebration element'.

I don't enjoy being offended & hate over-reaction, but c'mon - 'Darkie Day'. That just takes the piss.

[Johnny Yesno]

Personally, I want Love Thy Neighbour to get a DVD release.  It rawked!

Your wish is granted: clicky.

[Jemble Fred]

Well, yes, in this day and age, they are asking for it with a name like that. Sadly. As I say, it shouldn't make any difference to them to change the colour scheme of their revelry, if it'll shut bleeding-heart PC gits up and let them get on with their lives.

But I am getting exhausted by the new 'Outrage' stories every day – christians, anti-royalists, Jewish lobbies... It makes you want to run through the streets naked yelling abuse to the world. It's as if Mary Whitehouse's soul was distributed among the population when she died. Everyone's got a fucking complaint. I'm going to start a campaign to stop it.

[Johnny Yesno]

"n**ger Night" - the locals have been doing it for so long that they have no idea why they do it at all.

[Morrisfan82]

But I am getting exhausted by the new 'Outrage' stories every day – christians, anti-royalists, Jewish lobbies... It makes you want to run through the streets naked yelling abuse to the world. It's as if Mary Whitehouse's soul was distributed among the population when she died. Everyone's got a fucking complaint. I'm going to start a campaign to stop it.

Yay. Bumbling Short Sighted Loud Mouth Ignorant Cunts Against The Fackin Nanny State. Irony warp factor 12, Mr. Sulu.

[shatnersbassoon]

That's right, lets ban the Cornish chapter of the KKK.

[Pinball]

"Darkie Day". Hmmm. In principle I think they should do what they want, but by crikey what idiots!

[Baxter]

I'm not sure we can judge the Cornish by our cultural standards, it's not as if they understand such concepts as 'racialism', i'd go so far as to say that the Cornish are in fact sub-human and we should widen the river Fowey or at least hang mirrors on nearby trees to scare them away from the banks.

[hymen spaz]

I wondered why big Ron was moving to Cornwall.

[Johnny Yesno]

That's right, lets ban the Cornish chapter of the KKK.

Yes, but only if they know why they're burning crosses. "I'm just doing my job" doesn't count as a reason.

[Jemble Fred]

Yay. Bumbling Short Sighted Loud Mouth Ignorant Cunts Against The Fackin Nanny State. Irony warp factor 12, Mr. Sulu.

Superb! I vote you chairman of BSSLMICATFNS immediately, and I'll be treasurer. You'd look great in the horn-rimmed specs and pepperpot hat.

[zozman]

we should widen the river Fowey or at least hang mirrors on nearby trees to scare them away from the banks.

At the risk of looking like a right knobber, River Tamar shorely?

[thisissi]

Imitation doesn't imply hatred.  This is only an issue because the current de facto definition of racism includes differentiating between races in any way whatsoever, rather than focusing on prejudice, which is what should be the case.  It's not like they make a black effigy and burn it in celebration every year in November - that's only permissable when the effigy pertains to Catholicism.

[Jemble Fred]

Imitation doesn't imply hatred.  This is only an issue because the current de facto definition of racism includes differentiating between races in any way whatsoever, rather than focusing on prejudice, which is what should be the case.  It's not like they make a black effigy and burn it ....

Just thought I'd say 'Hear hear'. You don't get much unadulterated agreement on here these days. So...

'Hear hear'.

[Baxter]

Damn it yes send me to cornwall, i'll never escape because i'll be convinced that anything east of  st austell is outside cornwall.

[chumfatty]

I dont think the term 'Darkie'  helps in this matter, its not really a PC word in this day and age , and such words, including n**ger, coon  etc are rarely banded about in general conversation these days and can be deemed as offensive.

I am not a great champion of Political Correctness but i do believe we all have a duty to be tactful and respectful in the way we express ourselves, but not to the extent of certain subjects/phrases/words becoming taboo.  I would fully understand if someone did find 'Darkie Day' offensive if only by its name.

Without knowing the actual origins of the celebration its hard to form an opinion about it. It does seem like there is no malice or offence intended from those that participate in it, but it only takes one complaint (from any background) for it to be treated as a racist incident, which probably explains the Police involvement.

I don't really know what my point is, but personaly if I lived in Cornwal I would not feel comfortable dancing around the street covered in boot polish, it just wouldn't feel right. Maybe thats just because i have been conditioned by the 'Nanny State' we live in.

[Fuckwittio]

Imitation doesn't imply hatred.  This is only an issue because the current de facto definition of racism includes differentiating between races in any way whatsoever, rather than focusing on prejudice, which is what should be the case.  It's not like they make a black effigy and burn it in celebration every year in November - that's only permissable when the effigy pertains to Catholicism.

Just thought I'd say 'Hear hear'. You don't get much unadulterated agreement on here these days. So...

'Hear hear'.

Damn right, hear hear. Anyone else disappointed the Pope hasn't died yet? I'd already had the party organised and find out the cunt 'ate breakfast' this morning.