Just read this about Louis Smith

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-44411414

 

Maybe I am being naïve but it this really about the colour of his skin just because the two randoms happened to be black?  Why does he not suggest that because two men were asked for their tickets that the rail worker was being sexist as they did not ask any females for their tickets?

 

Almost as much paranoia going on here as there normally is at Parkhead.

Nah, this sounds like straight up racism to me. Quite clearly thought they couldn’t have afforded a first class ticket and trying it on. The fact that someone else noticed it just proves it clearly was.

It is said 'waiter's' alleged response of 'its my choice who I ask' which is the red flag. My follow up question would immediately be 'Ok, and what prompted you to 'choose' these passengers?'

 

Going out on a limb here but I would not be surprised if sexism was also part of this person's personality but his assumption of any women in the 1st class carriage would be their 'big rich husband' would have stumped up to give the 'little woman' a treat/ keep her in the manor she is acustomed to and so on....

 

Just adds to my dislike of Virgin trains

 

 

 

 

1st Class?

 

Nobody find that the very fact we segregate folk by their wealth strange?

1st Class?

 

Nobody find that the very fact we segregate folk by their wealth strange?

 

Doesn't surprise me as no matter how much people say 'we are all in this together/ everyone is equal' there will always be those who seek to maintain a class system and wealth is one of the key drivers 'greed is good' etc etc

 

The only thing that does surprise me is the transport companies (and other estabishments) have not had a severe PR drive and removed the word 'class' from their services/ facilities.

If you rename them say 'bronze ticket, silver ticket, gold ticket etc then for me anyway, it doesnt seem to carry a label.

I'm perfectly happy buying 'bronze' tickets for Ice Hockey games (don't see the point of paying an extra few quid for the gold and silver) but I was a tad pissed off when my GF was given a free upgrade to 'business class' on our flight to Melbourne (due to the flight being overbooked) whereas I was kept back in 'economy class'

Could be wishful thinking but i think it would have seemed a but less painful had the attendant had said 'heres a free silver ticket' for your flight

 

 

Renaming things is a modern disease.

 

Not that it hasn't happened in the past but it's incredible how people fall for it.

 

Then the old name is vilified as if you have committed a crime just by using it.

It’s been a poor week for the Guardian who have managed to show some racism through incompetence.  
 

When they announced (the very sad) Death of Denise Johnson they used a picture of another black woman (Mary Pierce) and had to print the following at the bottom of the article:

”This article was amended on 27 July 2020 to replace the main image. A captioning error in photos supplied by an agency led us to publish a picture that was not of Johnson as claimed. It was further amended to correct the incorrect assertion that Johnson sang on Higher Than the Sun, to remove a video showing that song, and to correct Johnson’s age and date of birth.”

And today Owen Jones has written an opinion piece “Tackling racism on social media is just the tip of the iceberg“ and incredibly the article says:

 

”This article mistakenly carried a photograph of Kano when it was first published. The Guardian apologises unreservedly to Kano and our readers for the error, which has now been corrected. We would also like to clarify that Owen Jones was not involved in this error”

 

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jul/29/twitter-boycott-racism-social-media-wiley-newspapers