Northampton players + social media = PR disaster (sound familiar?)

[Munsterboy]

I think its Racist because he used a term "paki" which seems to used by a lot of racists to describe everyone with a dark skin tone.

The history of racism in south African rugby is well known. Yes i made a leap putting the two together, but I don't think its that big of a leap

The crucial difference is that he didn't actually call Farah a "paki" or use the term in that sense at all. I have no particular liking for the man but I think it's entirely wrong to willfully misinterpret and sensationalise a fairly innocuous if ignorant comment.

To do so and then justify it by claiming that the man must be a racist because he's a white South African is hypocritical, plain and simple.

[Thomond78]

Drick, the thing is, it would not be used as a racist term in SA. It's a British one. These tend to be quite specific. "Coconut", for example, is a racist term of abuse for Islanders in NZ, whereas "a coconut tackle" in SA is a high one where you try to take someone's head off like a coconut shy. Bob Skinstad caused a furore using that use in all innocence in S15 commentary recently. Now, he was being a crass idiot, no disagreement at all about that. I'm just not sure he was a racist crass idiot.

[Drick]

The crucial difference is that he didn't actually call Farah a "paki" or use the term in that sense at all. I have no particular liking for the man but I think it's entirely wrong to willfully misinterpret and sensationalise a fairly innocuous if ignorant comment.

To do so and then justify it by claiming that the man must be a racist because he's a white South African is hypocritical, plain and simple.

So he used in the sense that everyone who comes from Pakistan is a muslim called Mohammad then? OK, in that case it's more Bigotry than racist.

Drick, the thing is, it would not be used as a racist term in SA. It's a British one. These tend to be quite specific. "Coconut", for example, is a racist term of abuse for Islanders in NZ, whereas "a coconut tackle" in SA is a high one where you try to take someone's head off like a coconut shy. Bob Skinstad caused a furore using that use in all innocence in S15 commentary recently. Now, he was being a crass idiot, no disagreement at all about that. I'm just not sure he was a racist crass idiot.

T78, he's been in the UK since 2009, so it's very possible he heard the term during that time.

[Munsterboy]

So he used in the sense that everyone who comes from Pakistan is a muslim called Mohammad then? OK, in that case it's more Bigotry than racist.

Or he simply got the guy's country wrong for some other reason. Either way, it still doesn't make him a racist, no matter how much you want to tar him with that brush.

Also, guessing a guy is from Pakistan (a predominantly Muslim country) because he has an Islamic name is less offensive than stating a guy must be a racist because he comes from a country with a history of racism.

Anyway, I think you'll believe what you want to believe Drick so I'll leave it there.