Alleged Balenciaga Store Racism Angers Chinese Consumers

[billiejbob]

I couldn't agree more and from my own experience, I definitely believe that there is a strong racist culture in Australia. This is of course quite ironic considering we are a basically a country made up of immigrants if you look at our history.

I have to respectfully disagree. I believe Australia is one of the LEAST racist Western countries. The only less racist countries I can think of are NZ and Canada. I've seen FAR worse racism in the US, Sweden, the UK, Germany etc.

Maybe it's the Melbourne and Canberra bubble but racism here has become absolutely intolerable. I've witnessed more and more people standing up against racism whether it's in the media or in a certain situation. If this incident happened in say Chadstone, which is one of the main high end shopping centres in Melbourne, there would be absolute outrage and a call for heads to roll. But thankfully it would never happen.

 

[Benn98]

Wasn't it an Australian politician who publicly vowed to fast track immigratio only for white Africans under the dubious guise of 'genocide'? Which was followed by a protest within Australia to back his ideas?

 

[Lola701]

I'm sorry, but I don't agree with the 'but x racial group has it worse than y.' I'm not specically aiming this at you, Taylor.
The crux of this discussion didn't really address Black people or Arabs. To compare their experience against that of Asians inadvertently minimises the discrimination levied at Asians. It's a perfect example of whataboutery. The only reason why discrimination against Asians are underrated (for want of a better word) is because it's not really considered newsworthy enough. Maybe we should do a bit of self reflection as to why we're so desentisized against reports of Asian discrimination before actually trying to combat it.

I don’t think we are desentisized against reports of Asian discrimination. It’s just that this specific situation is not the most suited to go deep down into the discussion. The fact that someone was rude in a line and that the person that experienced that rudeness was an Asian tourist who may have taken the situation differently from someone else for me is not necessarly the best way to introduce that discussion.

Maybe saying that this situation is not necessarily representative of anything is insensitive already but I stand by what I said.

The real issue here is to see how a big city like Paris can be a better host for the millions of people who visit it. The problem is that France has it own culture and French people are particular individuals even in the whole «*western civilization*».

And it’s maybe time to stop with that Parisian myth. It’s ridiculous because obviously, that’s not that Paris that those tourists experiences at the end. It’s maybe time to extend the vision of Paris sold to the world ( which means Le Triangle D’Or) to the whole diversity of the city. It’s maybe less glamorous and luxurious but it is interesting and couldn’t be worse than a shopping spree in a department Store.

Racism is France is very special because it is rooted in the fact that France, unlike the UK for example never really took responsibility for it colonial past and is kind of uncomfortable with that part of it history. And while it is a country that is very much about diversity and all, I think that they were forced to take «*us*» but never really asked themselves why and how to do it. And i also include Asian people in that as France had a colony in Asia.

 

[billiejbob]

Wasn't it an Australian politician who publicly vowed to fast track immigratio only for white Africans under the dubious guise of 'genocide'? Which was followed by a protest within Australia to back his ideas?

Yes to the first part. His name is Peter Dutton and he's an absolute flog. Thankfully our current government will lose the next election for a plethora of reasons, mainly it's conservative views ie immigration, views on gay and lesbian Australians, environment, and now with our banking commission to name a few.

There were plenty of protests and outcry about his comments but the only ones in support of his comments were purely from a very small Afrikaaner community in Australia. The VAST majority of protests slammed his comments and rightly so.

 

[dsamg]

Wasn't it an Australian politician who publicly vowed to fast track immigratio only for white Africans under the dubious guise of 'genocide'? Which was followed by a protest within Australia to back his ideas?

Yeah we are a fabulous bunch...

 

[Phuel]

Have I... they block the entrance to my apartment no kidding. The first year I was so confused, it was DAYS with a freakin' row of folding chairs outside..

I'm not sure about assuming they gotta be tourists, they kind of sound like they live in Paris and probably just resell stuff online. Even the way of referring to these guys as the Albanians, that's advanced knowledge .. which brings me to a theory I've had for the longest time: every country has a haircut. That's how you identify an Albanian, if you know a few I guess- I know none but if you line up four blond men with masks, same height and weight in front of me, I swear to god I can tell exactly who's Russian, who's American, who's Brazilian and who's French. Haircut profiling, people..

And yeah, I don't know about bonding with mom at such an event LOL.. plus didn't the French recently catch up with Black Friday ways? sounds like a recipe for disaster.

I always just picture you walking all around LA topless wearing Lemaire pants with your long hair modestly and strategically just covering your nips-- and when it’s time to sleep, you just climb up a tree somewhere or head back into the Pacific Ocean… not go home to an apartment like the rest of the mere mortals: My image of you is now totally shattered LOOL

“Those Albanians” does come across abrasively suspect to PC/polite-folks, so I can understand the readily tongue-clucking of racism pointed at the Chinese twosome… But in general, Chinese do talk in an extremely unPC-manner even amongst themselves, that some may find offensive: It’s like a culture of Lucille Bluths. And it is rather a point that if you know a certain people/culture long enough, it can be more matter-of-fact in identifying a people than racist-profling to conclude as “those Albanians” without some deep-rooted racism attached to the words— as Chinese living in Paris may say (so weird how some just conclude that the Chinese mother/son are tourists and not French citizens…). I can definitely tell you who's Iranian, who’s Kenyan, who’s Somalian, and don’t assume all Brown people are East Indians; Some Pakistanis and Sri Lankans would be offended to be classified as East Indians… And I hold no ill will to anyone that can’t tell the difference between Chinese, Korean and Japanese LOL

 

[Benn98]

......And I hold no ill will to anyone that can’t tell the difference between Chinese, Korean and Japanese LOL

Sssssassy!

 

[dodencebt]

I don't mean this as an attack on anyone, just a clarification to the question "How can you identify an Albanian?" First of all, they speak Albanian. If you've been around a few Albanians in your life you'd recognize the language, and the guy who told this story on social media clearly lives in Paris and can easily recognize them. What's slightly ignorant is saying they could be Turks or Romanians, because they couldn't. All three have often different physical features and very different languages, even if they may seem similar to you. A person who's been around Albanians, Turks and Romanians would be able to tell them apart in a split second.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

“Those Albanians” does come across abrasively suspect to PC/polite-folks, so I can understand the readily tongue-clucking of racism pointed at the Chinese twosome… But in general, Chinese do talk in an extremely unPC-manner even amongst themselves, that some may find offensive: It’s like a culture of Lucille Bluths. And it is rather a point that if you know a certain people/culture long enough, it can be more matter-of-fact in identifying a people than racist-profling to conclude as “those Albanians” without some deep-rooted racism attached to the words— as Chinese living in Paris may say (so weird how some just conclude that the Chinese mother/son are tourists and not French citizens…). I can definitely tell you who's Iranian, who’s Kenyan, who’s Somalian, and don’t assume all Brown people are East Indians; Some Pakistanis and Sri Lankans would be offended to be classified as East Indians… And I hold no ill will to anyone that can’t tell the difference between Chinese, Korean and Japanese LOL

Come on, do you actually belive they can recognise Albanians? Unless like Mullet said they are resellers with “advanced knowledge” (it does not get old )because they are in the middle of some turf war ( making this whole discussion absolutely pointless), there is absolutely no way they could have been that specific.

I have a huge, actually massive problem, with this idea that some countries can justify what is in fact deep rooted racism as some sort cultural quirk. I should know I happen to live in one.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

I don't mean this as an attack on anyone, just a clarification to the question "How can you identify an Albanian?" First of all, they speak Albanian. If you've been around a few Albanians in your life you'd recognize the language, and the guy who told this story on social media clearly lives in Paris and can easily recognize them. What's slightly ignorant is saying they could be Turks or Romanians, because they couldn't. All three have often different physical features and very different languages, even if they may seem similar to you. A person who's been around Albanians, Turks and Romanians would be able to tell them apart in a split second.

I strongly disagree with you. I’ve been speaking in a language that is not my own for the bigger part of my life, and last time i checked i still haven’t changed nationality. i’ve lived bang in the centre of London for decades, i think I’ve met every nationality and ethnicity under the earth and if there is one thing I’ve learned is this idea that you can infer people’s origins by way they look or speak is totally bull. Unless someone tells you specifically where they are coming from, you are just setting yourself for a massive faux pas.

 

[dodencebt]

Come on, do you actually belive they can recognise Albanians? Unless like Mullet said they are resellers with “advanced knowledge” (it does not get old )because they are in the middle of some turf war ( making this whole discussion absolutely pointless), there is absolutely no way they could have been that specific.

So what you are saying is that they are resellers with "advanced knowledge" in the middle of some turf war for being able to tell Albanians from Turks and Romanians? Am I a reseller with "advanced knowledge" in the middle of a turf war as well for having the same ability?

 

[dsamg]

I don't mean this as an attack on anyone, just a clarification to the question "How can you identify an Albanian?" First of all, they speak Albanian. If you've been around a few Albanians in your life you'd recognize the language, and the guy who told this story on social media clearly lives in Paris and can easily recognize them. What's slightly ignorant is saying they could be Turks or Romanians, because they couldn't. All three have often different physical features and very different languages, even if they may seem similar to you. A person who's been around Albanians, Turks and Romanians would be able to tell them apart in a split second.

Hard to say this without sounding racist, but if you live in Paris long enough you absolutely recognise French Albanians.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

So what you are saying is that they are resellers with "advanced knowledge" in the middle of some turf war for being able to tell Albanians from Turks and Romanians? Am I a reseller with "advanced knowledge" in the middle of a turf war as well for having the same ability?

But that’s exactly the problem, i do not believe anyone is able to tell someone’s origins without some prior knowledge. If you are familiar enough with certain nationalities you can certainly guess, but you won’t have enough authority to declare it as an absolute certainty in a public forum without justifying your opinion through stereotype or racial profiling. I would not even be sure of picking up my fellow nationals in a line up.

 

[MulletProof]

What's slightly ignorant is saying they could be Turks or Romanians, because they couldn't.

What’s great is that nobody said. I mentioned the similar way people refer to other immigrant groups (dismissively, racist) and how it’s ironic when making a case on racial profiling.

Les_Sucettes, it’s the total opposite in the US lol, even if you’ve never been outside the US, interacting with a few nationalities makes ‘guess the nationality’ acceptable small talk and god forbid you don’t look like what they think people of your country look like..

Thing is, if you know how migration movements work and what triggers them, you’ll know it’s by groups with shared characteristics (poverty based on ethnicity, class, you name it). Once in a new place, I believe a foreigner is completely capable of identifying these characteristics and correctly associate them with that group (habits, traditions, they all have a role..) and confirm them every single time. The mistake they make is assuming that group (a small portion of x country) sums up an entire nationality.. especially if it’s a group that for an number of reasons was historically marginalized by that society, most likely you’ll encounter different ‘looks’ when you actually visit the country.