Admittedly, I’m a little behind on the country club sports. I didn’t even know Jed Clampett was still alive, let alone yapping for CBS. From the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Ed Zieralski :
Another ethnic slur has reared its ugly head from the golf world, and once again, it’s from a golf announcer.
Bobby Clampett, a former pro and CBS announcer, referred to Chinese golfer Wen-Chong Liang (above) as “the Chinaman,” on the air on Friday.
Clampett issued an apology, albeit a rather weak one, on the air: “It has been a privilege to be here with you the last two days describing action of the players. In describing the Asian player Wen-Chong Liang if I offended anybody please accept my sincere apolgies.”
These are sensitive times in the golf world. Golf is trying hard to join the 21st Century and be part of he the diverse world, but there are times the old world, too often the Old South, shows up at the microphone.
I know “Chinaman” isn’t the right word to describe someone from China, but it’s more exact than globalist ignorance like “Asian,” and did it really originate in the South? I’m betting California.
did he take his legs?
It is definitely not the preferred nomenclature. We are not talking about the guys who built the railroads here, dude.
It was probably originated by English speaking people who went to China before California was on a map. It’s definitely not a word I use, and I’m not some wacko who’s afraid of a non-contemporary word getting taken away from me. It has a marginalizing quality that’s disrespectful, but pinning it on Americans with southern accents is pretty ignorant.
“It has a marginalizing quality that’s disrespectful, but pinning it on Americans with southern accents is pretty ignorant. ”
But in two different posts now you’ve tried pinning it on Californians and then on “English speaking people” in general.
I was speculating on the origin of the word, and was originally way too U.S.-centric. It was acceptable for a long time, and I doubt Chinaman, just like Englishman, was originally intended to be insulting. Regardless of something Wikipedia won’t solve, it’s safe to say racism, just like China, and Chinese immigrants, has plenty of history outside of the Old South.
I agree. I myself was thinking the damned japs may have started it, but we’ll probably never know.