Friday 24 June 2011

'Being called ginger is the least of his problems'

Price Harry is about to undergo intensive stress testing prior to his redeployment to Afghanistan later this year. According to an SAS source, Harry will suffer ridicule during interrogation sessions.
'Any sensitivities he had about his family or love life will be smashed open to see how he copes. Being called ginger is the least of his problems.'
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Am I ginger?

The Doctor regenerates and asks the question, 'Am I ginger?'

Domino's Pizza labels customer 'Ginger Kid'

A young boy was left shocked and upset after a Domino's Pizza employee labelled his order as 'Ginger Kid'. 11 year old Ross Wajgtknecht had given his full name when ordering the takeaway pizza yet the employee had decided to refer to him by his hair colour instead.


Ross's father thinks the labelling of his son as 'Ginger Kid' was malicious.
'It is totally disgusting. You would not describe someone by the colour of their skin or by calling them fat so why is it okay to call Ross ginger?

'Surely if they were writing his name on the receipt it would have been easier to write Ross. That only has four letters. Why write Ginger Kid instead?

'I think they picked on him because he is just a lad and they knew he wouldn't defend himself.

'It is prejudice. There is no way this should happen from adults in a workplace.

'They offered him a free pizza but the damage has already been done and he doesn't want to go back in case it happens again.'
Domino's has apologised for causing upset but does not accept that the labelling was malicious.

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Is 'ginger' a derogatory word?

Guardian columnist Barbara Ellen takes a look at the recent Domino's pizza incident and questions whether the use of 'ginger' to describe someone with red hair should really be considered a prejudicial attack on the individual.

It's horrible to hear of children crying, but was "ginger kid" in this context malicious? The whole tone of the story is that Ross suffered some kind of sub-racist, or otherwise discriminatory, attack – almost on a level with "spaz kid" or "paki kid". Rather more likely is that the Domino's staff meant no offence – it was just a description of who the food was for.

Which raises the issue of who or what we are allowed to describe without getting our PC knickers in a twist. "This pizza is for that boy who has… erm, hair of a vivid colour, the shade most associated with fire and sunset; on an artist's palette you could mix it with yellow and get orange… ah, sod it, the pizza's gone cold!"

In reading this article, you can't help wondering if Barbara has considered the evolution of language. She uses the the phrase "paki kid" as a genuine example of prejudice. Originally, the word "paki" was a non-offensive way of describing a person from Pakistan (in the same way a Gam is from Gambia or a Scot is from Scotland). The word has since evolved and is now always considered offensive.

The word 'ginger' is evolving in the same way and in the same direction. Eventually, it is likely 'ginger' will be considered a derogatory word and the only unoffensive way to describe a person with red hair will be to call them a red head.

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