Red Stripe beer commercials?

[TommyMac]

Does anyone else think they're offensive and racist? They all portray the white guy as the dupe of the Jamaican guy. In one he calls the white guy "very ugly", in another he says that Red Stripe has helped white people dance and in another he asks the white guy for his car keys, the white guy refuses so the Jamaican asks him for his pants, the white guy obliges him and takes his pants off and gives them to the Jamican guy who then takes the keys out of the pants, thereby painting the white guy as being very stupid.

Just try to run some commercials showing a white guy using a minority, any minority as a buffoon and see how far you get. I have a good sense of humor and have no problem laughing at myself, but it seems to me that the main fucus of this advertising is as much about denigrating the white guy as it is about boosting Red Stripe sales.

Am I being too sensitive or has anyone else been offended by these ads?

 

[It's On A Slab]

Am I being too sensitive or has anyone else been offended by these ads?

Yes, and no.

 

[bayoutider]

T-Mack, it's really hard for me to be offended by a beer commercial.

I can remember a time when Red Stripe was the only beer you could buy in Jamaca and there was a certain way you went about drinking it. First, never shake the bottle to mix all the junk that settled to the bottom with the good stuff. Second, never drink the sediment that settled in the bottom. Nobody wanted to explain what that stuff was.

Red Stripe has cleaned up a lot and Jamaca has lifted the ban on other beers. I guess with black people being in the majority on most of the Caribbean islands, they can make whatever commercial they want to. I just try to be better at ignoring raceism than they are.

 

[ValuJet]

...

 

[cbfactor]

This is just another example of our deteriorating American society

No its not offensive because the white man is being made fun of. However, if the black man was being made fun of it would be "racist" and "stereotypical." Much the same way it is ok for a black person to say "the N word" but not ok for a white person to say it to a black person. Its just one of the many complex double standards where the minority ironically is in power over the majoirty. I for one have to say that this is not the dream that MLK once invisioned.

 

[blackumbrella]

No its not offensive because the white man is being made fun of. However, if the black man was being made fun of it would be "racist" and "stereotypical." Much the same way it is ok for a black person to say "the N word" but not ok for a white person to say it to a black person. Its just one of the many complex double standards where the minority ironically is in power over the majoirty. I for one have to say that this is not the dream that MLK once invisioned.

it wouldn't be too smart to offend the largest market with your advertising. i'd say they're targeting the white population that considers itself/strives to be in touch with other cultures, which is to say, the type of white peson who sees the ad and relates more to the jamaican guy than the white guy bc they relate to the personality, not the skin color, of the characters. the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.

 

[wisten]

Habla Espanol?

Ésta es la mayoría de los Estados Unidos. El hombre blanco es una minoría. No nos encolerice. Sembramos sus campos y hacemos sus juguetes. No hemos descubierto el balompié todavía, sino que golpeamos el asno con el pie en todo .

Nos arrodillamos antes de la marea carmesí

Roll Tide. The seasons change but the Tide always rolls

 

[ValuJet]

...

 

[bamabake]

it wouldn't be too smart to offend the largest market with your advertising. i'd say they're targeting the white population that considers itself/strives to be in touch with other cultures, which is to say, the type of white peson who sees the ad and relates more to the jamaican guy than the white guy bc they relate to the personality, not the skin color, of the characters. the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.

Multi-culturalism and inclusion are mutually exclusive.

 

[NYBamaFan]

Multi-culturalism and inclusion are mutually exclusive.

If, by this, you mean that one cannot expect to act/dress/speak differently and be viewed the same, I agree.

I have no problem with one wanting to retain their cultural heritage, but I don't have to like all of their cultural differences. And I cannot help but act differently when faced with something that I do not like.

When one decides to act differently, one must also accept different treatment. One can wish that others might overlook his/her differences, but that simply does not jibe with human nature.

Multi-culturalism is like communism - it looks like a great idea until human nature is factored into the equation...

 

[blackumbrella]

Multi-culturalism and inclusion are mutually exclusive.

that's too short to even argue with. obviously american society includes multiple cultures.

 

[blackumbrella]

If, by this, you mean that one cannot expect to act/dress/speak differently and be viewed the same, I agree.

I have no problem with one wanting to retain their cultural heritage, but I don't have to like all of their cultural differences. And I cannot help but act differently when faced with something that I do not like.

When one decides to act differently, one must also accept different treatment. One can wish that others might overlook his/her differences, but that simply does not jibe with human nature.

Multi-culturalism is like communism - it looks like a great idea until human nature is factored into the equation...

you have to be careful making claims about human nature. xenophobia and even racism are both part of it, but so is cooperation and curiosity. some will see cultures different from their own with suspicion and fear, others with curiosity and hospitality; both are 'natural.' as for your last remark, which hints at multi-culturalism being unrealistic--do you not consider the city to be multi-cultural, bc it's working fine off paper.

 

[NYBamaFan]

NYC is a classic example of what happens when so many people of diverse cultures are thrown together. They all divide socially and live separately.

We may work together in NYC, but those who are deeply involved in native culture rarely socialize with those of other cultures. NYC is not a melting pot. There are separate areas all over the cities where different cultures live in cliques - separate from those of other cultures...

 

[blackumbrella]

NYC is a classic example of what happens when so many people of diverse cultures are thrown together. They all divide socially and live separately.

We may work together in NYC, but those who are deeply involved in native culture rarely socialize with those of other cultures. NYC is not a melting pot. There are separate areas all over the cities where different cultures live in cliques - separate from those of other cultures...

that's all true, but firstly, they were,nt so much thrown together as they chose/choose to live together. also, nyc IS a melting pot insofar as gentrification of these culture centers is considered a real problem. and areas that are thoroughly gentrified, the melted areas, are remarkably diverse. if anything, nyc fights to keep itself from melting too fast.

 

[bamabake]

that's too short to even argue with. obviously american society includes multiple cultures.

Originally Posted by blackumbrella
it wouldn't be too smart to offend the largest market with your advertising. i'd say they're targeting the white population that considers itself/strives to be in touch with other cultures, which is to say, the type of white peson who sees the ad and relates more to the jamaican guy than the white guy bc they relate to the personality, not the skin color, of the characters. the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.


If you would ever understand anything I post to you.. You said, assumptively as a fact:


the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.


Multiculturalism as it is cefined and practiced is in it self not inclusive. Your statement implyed that they ( mulit-culturalism and inclusivness) were related or, in effect the same, which is rediculous.
Multi-culturalism as it is defined is in itself not inclusive but divisive.

 

[BamaArrived2006]

BEER, HOORAY BEER!!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn't resist!! :biggrin2:

:biga2:

 

[blackumbrella]

Originally Posted by blackumbrella
it wouldn't be too smart to offend the largest market with your advertising. i'd say they're targeting the white population that considers itself/strives to be in touch with other cultures, which is to say, the type of white peson who sees the ad and relates more to the jamaican guy than the white guy bc they relate to the personality, not the skin color, of the characters. the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.


If you would ever understand anything I post to you.. You said, assumptively as a fact:


the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.


Multiculturalism as it is cefined and practiced is in it self not inclusive. Your statement implyed that they ( mulit-culturalism and inclusivness) were related or, in effect the same, which is rediculous.
Multi-culturalism as it is defined is in itself not inclusive but divisive.

my last made it abundantly clear what was meant. by your logic we should be called the divided states of america. inclusion and assimilation aren't the same thing.

 

[bayoutider]

by your logic we should be called the divided states of america.

I have to admit I got a chuckle out of that.

 

[bamabake]

my last made it abundantly clear what was meant. by your logic we should be called the divided states of america. inclusion and assimilation aren't the same thing.

Man, am I the only one that can read?


You:
the fact that such a demographic is large enough to be targeted by ad campaigns is only a sign our culture is deteriorating if multi-culturalism and inclusiveness amount to deterioration.

Implying that multi-culturalism = inclusiveness.

Multiculturalism as it is defined and practiced is in it self not inclusive. Your statement implyed that they ( mulit-culturalism and inclusivness) were related or, in effect the same, which is rediculous.
Multi-culturalism as it is defined is in itself not inclusive but divisive.



So this:

my last made it abundantly clear what was meant. by your logic we should be called the divided states of america. inclusion and assimilation aren't the same thing.

Makes no sense whatsoever. Particularly since I never brought up assimilation.

 

[bayoutider]

Time out!!!

Getting back on the subject of Red Stripe Beer....... Red Stripe is brewed in Jamaica. Jamaica has a 90% black population. Red Stripe's commercials would be like watching Def Jam or BET on TV. You can take what you see and hear as offensive or let it roll off you. It is what it is and nothing more. I don't care for raceism or classless raceist remarks but when we laugh at them they eventually become less hostile and irritating. For myself, living where the population is at least 90% black, it's a laugh a minute.