False accusation of racism - an offence or just offensive?
Discussion
We've a black tenant who has been a bit problematic. She has always seemed to be seething about something whenever we've interacted with her, despite no obvious cause. She has rent arrears too.
Happily she is moving out today and I agreed to check the place over ahead of her departure. I texted her, politely expressing my concerns that the flat won't be ready in time. Her response was this:
"If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be the holocaust and slavery all over again".
I am not clear how my expression of concern about the state of her flat is racist. I cannot even dismiss the situation as her being a bit dim, she is quite intelligent and as far as I am aware works as a legal secretary.
So, is saying something like that an offence or just offensive?
daddy cool said:
So said:
"If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be the holocaust and slavery all over again".
If OP replies "...and If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be mud huts and famine for all" would that be racist?I assume so, as racism appears to be a one-way street.
She could, obviously, be referring to your skin colour as (I will assume this) you're white. She can make that point, but you could also point to her that the earliest case of legal slavery enacted in the world was by Oliver Cromwell in 1625, which stipulated English landlords could use Irish peasants as slaves and trade them as such. Quite often the Irish were then brought aboard ships sailing for the Caribean, and then kicked off the boat and left there while they stole black people to bring back with them.
However, I think a history lesson will be lost on her. Move on with your life and spend it on better people than that clown.
Edited by sgtBerbatov on Wednesday 28th March 14:45
So said:
We've a black tenant who has been a bit problematic. She has always seemed to be seething about something whenever we've interacted with her, despite no obvious cause. She has rent arrears too.
Happily she is moving out today and I agreed to check the place over ahead of her departure. I texted her, politely expressing my concerns that the flat won't be ready in time. Her response was this:
"If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be the holocaust and slavery all over again".
I am not clear how my expression of concern about the state of her flat is racist. I cannot even dismiss the situation as her being a bit dim, she is quite intelligent and as far as I am aware works as a legal secretary.
So, is saying something like that an offence or just offensive?
So she has not even met you yet? You may be a black jew for all she knows?! or a Irish white Jew ......Happily she is moving out today and I agreed to check the place over ahead of her departure. I texted her, politely expressing my concerns that the flat won't be ready in time. Her response was this:
"If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be the holocaust and slavery all over again".
I am not clear how my expression of concern about the state of her flat is racist. I cannot even dismiss the situation as her being a bit dim, she is quite intelligent and as far as I am aware works as a legal secretary.
So, is saying something like that an offence or just offensive?
Is she also running a knocking shop and has sex toys laying around in the property like the other tenant you had?
Perhaps she is upset that business has dried up hence the rent arrears?
Edited by superlightr on Wednesday 28th March 14:54
So said:
We've a black tenant who has been a bit problematic. She has always seemed to be seething about something whenever we've interacted with her, despite no obvious cause. She has rent arrears too.
Happily she is moving out today and I agreed to check the place over ahead of her departure. I texted her, politely expressing my concerns that the flat won't be ready in time. Her response was this:
"If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be the holocaust and slavery all over again".
I am not clear how my expression of concern about the state of her flat is racist. I cannot even dismiss the situation as her being a bit dim, she is quite intelligent and as far as I am aware works as a legal secretary.
So, is saying something like that an offence or just offensive?
Sounds like she's lining up the race card already. Some people are just fHappily she is moving out today and I agreed to check the place over ahead of her departure. I texted her, politely expressing my concerns that the flat won't be ready in time. Her response was this:
"If ever you're in charge of the country, it will be the holocaust and slavery all over again".
I am not clear how my expression of concern about the state of her flat is racist. I cannot even dismiss the situation as her being a bit dim, she is quite intelligent and as far as I am aware works as a legal secretary.
So, is saying something like that an offence or just offensive?
king idiots, she's one.
Back of the net 
Nice.
sgtBerbatov said:
you could also point to her that the earliest case of legal slavery enacted in the world was by Oliver Cromwell in 1625]
More relevant is that armies had been taking slaves from defeated nations for thousands of years, and its well documented that the Arabs were taking slaves from Africa from around 700AD. All considered entirely legal at the time.
So said:
Superlightr - she has met me and she should know that I am not racist. If I were she would not have been rented the flat.
WinstonWolf - I think is may be a case of, "I'll leave the flat how I like and if you disagree I'll make a claim of racism".
WinstonWolf - I think is may be a case of, "I'll leave the flat how I like and if you disagree I'll make a claim of racism".
I think you’re probably right. Learn from the experience and be thankful the tenants leaving.
herewego said:
I wonder if the enquiry had been unnecessary and she was just taking the pish.
Well, she has a bit of a track record of saying she'll do something and then not doing it. I was merely trying to avoid a difficult situation later on today. If she WAS taking the pish, it was in a shouty, ranty kind of way.Meh. Check the flat over, charge (as you would for anyone) where it’s not up to snuff, move on with life. Sounds like she’s got a bit of a chip on her shoulder, likely due to unfortunate experiences in the past which have led her to expect racism.
You clearly didn’t say “you blacks live in squalor, will you have had time to clean up?”, but maybe that’s just what she expects to hear, sadly.
Don’t think there’s much you can do about it.
You clearly didn’t say “you blacks live in squalor, will you have had time to clean up?”, but maybe that’s just what she expects to hear, sadly.
Don’t think there’s much you can do about it.
sgtBerbatov said:
...
She could, obviously, be referring to your skin colour as (I will assume this) you're white. She can make that point, but you could also point to her that the earliest case of legal slavery enacted in the world was by Oliver Cromwell in 1625, which stipulated English landlords could use Irish peasants as slaves and trade them as such. Quite often the Irish were then brought aboard ships sailing for the Caribean, and then kicked off the boat and left there while they stole black people to bring back with them.
However, I think a history lesson will be lost on her. Move on with your life and spend it on better people than that clown.
I suggest that you may be in need of a history lesson yourself.She could, obviously, be referring to your skin colour as (I will assume this) you're white. She can make that point, but you could also point to her that the earliest case of legal slavery enacted in the world was by Oliver Cromwell in 1625, which stipulated English landlords could use Irish peasants as slaves and trade them as such. Quite often the Irish were then brought aboard ships sailing for the Caribean, and then kicked off the boat and left there while they stole black people to bring back with them.
However, I think a history lesson will be lost on her. Move on with your life and spend it on better people than that clown.
(1) In 1625, Oliver Cromwell was a young man minding his business in East Anglia and was not yet even an MP, let alone Lord Protector of England (which he later became).
(2) You are recycling a myth (a myth that is, BTW, often circulated by white supremacists, confederate supporters, far right nutters, and so on). Slavery was not legalised in 1625. It is true that sometimes prisoners were forcibly transported overseas and put to work, and also true that some people indentured themselves into a form of servitude for a term of years, but there was no generalised legalisation of slavery in C17 Ireland. In the C18, slavery was declared by the great jurist Lord Mansfield to be contrary to the common law and thus unlawful.
(3) The earliest legalised slavery predates the Roman Republic, but as an example of legalised slavery from waaaaay before 1625 we have the Roman laws that provided for slavery (and for freeing slaves).
I mark your history paper zero out of ten. Try harder next time. Helpful hint: stay off the Irish slavery myth websites, they are all made up.
Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 28th March 16:56
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