A photo showing four members of Argentina’s Olympic women’s football team making “slit-eyed” gestures has emerged on the internet, just days after two Spanish sports teams were criticised for pulling similar poses. The image shows players Maria Potassa, Eva Gonzalez, Fabiana Vallejos and Andrea Ojeda smiling broadly as they pull back the skin on the side of their eyes, in a crude impersonation of Chinese people. There is no suggestion that the four footballers intended to cause offence. The photo was published – without provoking controversy – in the Argentine sports newspaper Ole on Aug 5, to accompany a preview of the team’s first match of the tournament against Canada. It was taken more than a week before adverts featuring the Spanish men’s and women’s basketball teams in similar poses sparked international criticism. Last Thursday a photo emerged of members of Spain’s Olympic women’s tennis team pulling the same face earlier this year, in anticipation of an upcoming match against China.
The rows sparked by the photos have highlighted how standards about the acceptability of racial stereotyping vary widely between countries, even in the West. Much of the criticism of the Spanish teams has come from the English-speaking blogosphere, prompting some complaints from Spain about alleged Anglo-Saxon hostility to Madrid’s 2016 Olympic bid. The players involved in the photos have expressed their shock that others may find them offensive. Pau Gasol, one of the Spanish basketballers, said it was “absurd” to consider the gesture racist.
Nice. I wonder what the Chinese do to make fun of us “round eyes”.
Round eyes, “slit-eyes”, the real problem is the thinness of the skin.
The Chinese should do the same thing back. Except instead of pulling at the sides of their eyes they would have to push.
Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees, look at these!!!
‘I wonder what the Chinese do to make fun of us “round eyes”’
They don’t. They just take our jobs.
#4 Ouch. You’re right !
Besides round eyes, the wily orientals make fun of western big noses, floppy ears, and smell (of milk and not proper fish).
It is all cultural. I don’t know that the orientals would think a thing about making slant eyes==why should they?
Society can’t even get black people not to use the word “n^*$er.”
“The photo was published – without provoking controversy…”
HA HA HA!
China is one of the few countries that allows research in racial differences to take place without various people dictating the result that all races are equal.
Guys,
as a spaniard I’m quite shocked about all the comments in the british press regarding the damn pictures. It might have to do with our culture and the way we are raised, but to call that racist is IMHO kind of naive.
What’s people opinion over there?
#10, Sanpe. In America it is a racial slur to do what is shown in the photo.
Goes back to the early days of Chinese immigration in the US. Chinese were definitely looked down upon as second class citizens. “Coolies”. Good enough to wash our clothes, die building our railroads, and be cooks but not good enough for much else.
That stigma is still with us today. Most people in America have no idea just what it’s actually like in China. That’s what China is trying to address with the Olympics, showing to the world that China is no anywhere close to those black and white newsreels of the 30’s.
#11–Ah Yea==thats all true but doesn’t explain the “political correctness” that runs rampant in the USA society. To mention or refer to anyone’s race is to be a racist. Its that simple. We are all supposed to be blind to race conscious factors. I think that is mostly a good thing, but in societies that don’t have the racial history the USA does, its very artificial.
Good for the Argentines! Har, har, har!
#10, you must understand that these days you can’t call coal black or milk white in the USA without being called a racist.
And frankly, who cares if we make fun of a country where they will eviscerate a snake on the street and ask you to have a bite. Now that’s nasty!
But #11 has a point too. Back in the day, Chinese were not considered particularly human here in the USA. There are several instances of Chinese railroad workers being shot rather than paid when the work was done. No charges filed, it wasn’t like it was murder since they were just Chinese…it wasn’t considered much different than the treatment given to the snake above, and for the same reason.
More immature fucks.
#13
Hey at least we eat sheep, we dont screw them like what some people do.
Chinese??? Asians??? wait i thought they were insulting Joan Rivers…………….
#12 Bobbo. I absolutely agree.
I adamantly believe that most “Political Correctness” is actually aiding racism by clamping down on honest discourse. Everyone has become so afraid to say anything which could be construed as racist that no one says anything at all.
Look at this very thread. Just because these players made “slit-eyed” gestures doesn’t mean they are racist. They are from Argentina (or Spain, etc.) and not America. Different culture, but we still impose our cultural standards and declare them racist.
When Don Imus said “Nappy headed Hoes”, it was an incredibly stupid thing to do. Stupid, but was it intentionally racist? Nonetheless the torrent which came from that was, I believe, way over the top.
Why isn’t Barack leading by 20 points? Some people say it’s racism but have no proof. I hope it’s not racism but how are we going to know when asking the question is viewed as being racist?
I now believe that this Political Correctness has been subverted by a small group who use it as a weapon against those who don’t see things their way.
#11 – Ah Yea
>>In America it is a racial slur to do what is
>>shown in the photo.
In America it’s not considered cool to eat dogs, snakes or monkey brains.
BFD. The people perpetrating the “slur” aren’t from America, the people who are “victims” of the “slur” aren’t from America, so why don’t we all just move on?
I’m far more offended by the team pimping Coca-Cola with their powder-puff blue warm-up jackets than I am by some silly little Charlie Chan skit. Coca-Cola is an appropriate symbol of elite athletics? Pfffft. What’s next? Pork rinds? Crack cocaine?
#18, Mustard.
I can just see this now!
Long distance runner pimpin’ crack.
“I can run day and night thanks to my special little pipe!”
“You know, you need to be on the move when everyone’s out to get you!”
As long as man walks this earth racism will exist. Call me cynical but I doubt there is a person breathing who hasn’t at one time or another harbored a racist thought. Who cares? I knew a young black man during my time in the armed forces who told me he was racist and didn’t like white people. It didn’t bother me. At least he was honest. The thing I found funny about this photo was that the team members were sporting the Coca-Cola logo. After spending millions in ad dollars you know the executives at Coke have to be perturbed that their image is associated with this racial gesture.
Lame. I wish people would stop being so immature and give respect to our fellow man.
Is it just me or is the third girl Asian?
Wookie said, on August 18th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
Lame. I wish people would stop being so immature and give respect to our fellow man.
________________________________________
So you use a dis on disabled people (‘lame’) AND a sexist description (‘man’) to make you point about respecting people?
Not trying to be all ultra-PC but just thought it interestingly unobservant. 😉
What I don’t understand is how this is a racist thing? Would a Japanese athlete wearing a bowler hat in pictures before the London olympics be considered to make fun of the British culture? Or an American wearing wooden shoes, if Amsterdam would ever be awarded the Olympics?
These athletes simply show what they associate with China: Asian eyes. Do not keep making the mistake of taking an American frame of reference when interpreting what is there. The athletes don’t mean to make fun of anyone, and the even the Chinese diplomats in Spain stated they didn’t take offense with the basketball team.
Let’s get over it… generally, the Chinese have split eyes, the English are pale, the Dutch are tall, and Africans are black. It’s not racist to point that out, because it doesn’t assign any value either way; it’s the ‘eye of the beholder’ that is racist if he reads anything more into it than is there.
And finally: being equal does not equate to being the same!
I read the comments (up to #23 above) and now know why i don’t read the comments. Real racism and bigotry exists. Recognize, take appropriate action, move on.
The photo looked like silliness, somebody cue the laugh track because some media hypester forgot to engage it.
If they really wanted to do a stereotyped impersonation, wouldn’t they be whipping a women for having too many children, or something?
#23 “Not trying to be all ultra-PC”
Yes you are, you’re just not very good at it.
As a spanish, I really cannot understand how that can be considered racist. It certainly does not have any racist connotation in our country, in fact is a common child’s joke (“look, I’m chinese!”).
BTW, the girls at the photo are from Argentina. AFAIK, that country IS in America, but many of the comments talk about them “not being americans”… Perhaps instead of proyecting the racist preconceptions of your (british) culture, you should be looking for a proper name for your country! here, when you talk about America, you usually refer to the whole continent, no to a specific country in it.
BTW, is it true that in chinese, the word for “stranger” (from another country) and “demon” is the same?
We spanish people have lots of defects, but racism isn’t one of them, fortunately (well… except about gypsies, I have to admit!)
Racist? Maybe. Childish? Absolutely. It’s very hard to imagine that the Argentine athletes are somehow doing this to pay homage to the Chinese team that beat them on the soccer field. It just looks like they’re making fun of a racial characteristic that can’t be changed. I hope Chinese tourists to Argentina would find a warmer welcome than what this photo suggests.
Faking a limp to make fun of my uncle would be equally offensive.
@#29
You are assuming that they make this face to make fun of them.
The uncle-analogue is weird:
I doubt whether they are pointing their gesture at any person, but I’m pretty sure it is not a specific person (as it would be with your limping uncle.)
Besides that: if anyone were to make a biographic movie (or play) about your uncle, shouldn’t they include the limp?