Stupid Americans say Aussie KFC ad is racist

'Racist' KFC cricket ad causes uproar in US

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaIhf41ctkM

A KFC advertisement that shows an Australian cricket supporter giving fried chicken to West Indies fans has caused outrage in the US, where it has been interpreted as racist.

In the ad, part of KFC's "Cricket Survival Guide" series, Mick the Australian is surrounded by dancing West Indies fans, and says: "Need a tip when you're stuck in an awkward situation?"

He then hands out a bucket of KFC to the crowd — an action which has been seen as supporting a long-standing US stereotype that African Americans eat fried chicken.

What do you think about the reaction to the ad? Have your say below.

A statement from KFC Australia this morning confirmed the company was aware the ad had been "misinterpreted by a segment of people in the US".

"It is a light-hearted reference to the West Indian cricket team," the statement read.

"The ad was reproduced online in the US without KFC's permission, where we are told a culturally-based stereotype exists, leading to the incorrect assertion of racism.

"We unequivocally condemn discrimination of any type and have a proud history as one of the world's leading employers for diversity."

In the US bloggers and journalists have claimed the ad is deliberately racist, with the Baltimore Sun even suggesting the ad might be part of a viral prank.

Popular viral media website Buzzfeed posted the video with the subtitle: "What's a white guy to do when he awkwardly finds himself in a crowd full of black folks? KFC has the answer."

Dr Brendon O'Connor, an associate professor at the University of Sydney, said reaction to the ad reflected the "insularity" of the American people.

"They have a tendency to think that their history is more important than that of other countries," he told ninemsn.

But Dr O'Connor, who is currently writing a book about US stereotypes, also said it was important to realise that when taken out of context the ads could look racist.

"Fried chicken is seen as a traditional southern food ... a staple of an African American diet," he said.

"We don't have many African American people here and we don't have these stereotypes.

"Americans would find the ads racist mostly because they don't realise the context that the West Indies team was here to play cricket."

Dr Peter Gale, a senior lecturer at the University of South Australia, said the ad could affect Australia's reputation internationally — especially in the wake of the Hey Hey It's Saturday blackface scandal

"Even when we're doing advertising we need to be careful about pre-existing historical stereotypes," Dr Gale said.

"We have got a responsibility to be aware of that, and I think that if the media doesn't wise up we're in a lot of trouble."

>>39

What?

Umm, It's not racist at all, but it does play upon a stereotype a little bit. If that's reinforcing a negative image or just plain funny, I'll never know.

In April, 1933, Tanzler removed Hoyos' body from the mausoleum, carted it through the cemetery after dark on a toy wagon, and transported it to his home. He reportedly said that Elena's spirit would come to him when he would sit by her grave and sing a Spanish song, he also says she would tell him to take her from the grave.[1] Tanzler attached the corpse's bones together with wire and coat hangers, and fitted the face with glass eyes. As the skin of the corpse decomposed, Tanzler replaced it with silk cloth soaked in wax and plaster of paris. As the hair fell out of the decomposing scalp, Tanzler fashioned a wig from Hoyos' hair that had been collected by her mother and given to Tanzler not long after her burial in 1931.[3] Tanzler filled the corpse's abdominal and chest cavity with rags to keep the original form, dressed Hoyos' remains in stockings, jewelry, and gloves, and kept the body in his bed. Tanzler also used copious amounts of perfume, disinfectants, and preserving agents, to mask the odor and forestall the effects of the corpse's decomposition.[5]

In October, 1940, Elena's sister Florinda heard rumors of Tanzler sleeping with the disinterred body of her sister, and confronted Tanzler at his home, where Hoyos' body was eventually discovered. Florinda notified the authorities, and Tanzler was arrested and detained. Tanzler was psychiatrically examined, and found mentally competent to stand trial on the charge of "wantonly and maliciously destroying a grave and removing a body without authorization."[1] After a preliminary hearing on October 9, 1940 at the Monroe County Courthouse in Key West, Tanzler was held to answer on the charge, but the case was eventually dropped and he was released, as the statute of limitations for the crime had expired.[1][3]

Shortly after the corpse's discovery by authorities, Hoyos' body was examined by physicians and pathologists, and put on public display at the Dean-Lopez Funeral Home, where it was viewed by as many as 6,800 people.[4] Hoyos' body was eventually returned to the Key West Cemetery where the remains were buried in an unmarked grave, in a secret location, to prevent further tampering.[1]

The facts underlying the case and the preliminary hearing drew much interest from the media at the time (most notably, from the Key West Citizen and Miami Herald), and created a sensation among the public, both regionally and nationwide. The public mood was generally sympathetic to Tanzler, whom many viewed as an eccentric "romantic".[1]