Coconut: Blogging the Tropical World: Call Someone a "Coconut", Get in Big Trouble, in South Africa

September 17, 2003

Call Someone a "Coconut", Get in Big Trouble, in South Africa

From The Star, a South African newspaper, comes this story:
The Democratic Alliance is taking African National Congress MP Cameron Dugmore to the Human Rights Commission for referring to a radio presenter as a "coconut".
Is it racially offensive for a white politician to jokingly call a black Springbok supporter a coconut? The DA certainly thinks so. The radio presenter does not.
In a submission to the commission, the DA asked it to investigate a recording of a recent 567 Cape Talk call-in show in which Dugmore called radio presenter Kieno Kammies a "coconut".
It says the comment constituted hate speech and caused harm as it implied that a black person supporting Bok rugby was white on the inside and brown or black on the outside.

In the U.S. this would, I suppose be like calling someone an "Oreo". Funny how calling someone a "coconut" would probably not mean anything at all in North America (or am I wrong?)

You can read the full story here. Posted by brian at September 17, 2003 08:10 PM

Comments

I think that a lot of the explanations in this segment is racist. they should be explained in a less color devided way.

Posted by: mags at October 10, 2003 10:25 AM


News, Notes, and Dispatches From Wherever Coconuts Grow
September 17, 2003 Call Someone a "Coconut", Get in Big Trouble, in South Africa From The Star, a South African newspaper, comes this story: The Democratic Alliance is taking African National Congress MP Cameron Dugmore to the Human Rights Commission for referring to a radio presenter as a "coconut". Is it racially offensive for a white politician to jokingly call a black Springbok supporter a coconut? The DA certainly thinks so. The radio presenter does not. In a submission to the commission, the DA asked it to investigate a recording of a recent 567 Cape Talk call-in show in which Dugmore called radio presenter Kieno Kammies a "coconut". It says the comment constituted hate speech and caused harm as it implied that a black person supporting Bok rugby was white on the inside and brown or black on the outside. In the U.S. this would, I suppose be like calling someone an "Oreo". Funny how calling someone a "coconut" would probably not mean anything at all in North America (or am I wrong?) You can read the full story here. Posted by brian at September 17, 2003 08:10 PM Comments I think that a lot of the explanations in this segment is racist. they should be explained in a less color devided way. Posted by: mags at October 10, 2003 10:25 AM		Blog Home Next Article Previous Article