Is 'Paki' a racist slur?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Thinker
  • Start date Start date
  • Replies Replies 43
  • Views Views 15K
Status
Not open for further replies.
:sl:
Hmm, while 'paki' has become commonly used here for the Pakistani's, its been only recently.
I wouldn't say its thought to be racist here, nor 'India papa' which Indians are are called. These words are used more between the Pakistanis and Indians or any Muslims for that matter.

Non-Musims, either call us 'osama', 'terrorist', 'Moslem' (anyone waering kurta and topi, hijaab)
 
Thinker said:
According to the newspaper, the person he called a Paki was a Pakistani; he was an officer from the Pakistan Army at Sandhurst. I can understand how an Indian or anyone who is not a Pakistani might be angry at being called a Paki (or even a Pakistani) because it shows an irritating ignorance of geography and ethnicity on the part of the speaker but I am struggling to understand how anyone who is from Pakistan could feel offended by being called a Paki.

I don’t think the analogy with black people and nigg*r is valid.
Click to expand...

You would feel offended if you knew the context around the word. Brits, mostly chavs, would say things like you 'dirty paki' simply because they were brown and from pakistan, other things said would be like 'go home you paki'.

Its not just a short word for pakistani, its a word that can be used to make you feel inferior and not wanted in the country

Hopefully you won't struggle with this explanation , ay thinker?
 
Now a days its not that offensive unless you want it to be, to start a fight.

Otherwise I use the word all the time, even though im paki
 
what you say doesn't really have as much impact as how you say it (tone of voice) and the use of body language!

I can use a fairly innocuous term like 'Good for you' in both an encouraging and derogatory manner!

He being in the public eye, should know better.. but to be quite honest, I am not fond of the British -- there is always beneath the surface this undeserved feeling of superiority that I am not quite sure where it comes from..

peace
 
:sl:
Is 'Paki' a racist slur?
Click to expand...
Yes, same as 'Jap' or 'Chink' are, which are also contractions/simplifications of the actual name of the ethnicity.

aadil77 said:
Now a days its not that offensive unless you want it to be, to start a fight.

Otherwise I use the word all the time, even though im paki
Click to expand...
Its only okay to use it if you are Pakistani though, because it is a bit difficult to be racist to yourself. In America, apparently many black people use the n-word amongst themselves, but it is still incredibly racist for somebody who isn't black to use it.
:w:
 
yeah thats true Fishman... if i were to say to the N* word to a black person it would be racist but if he says it amongst his black people then its okay...
 
Taboo language has always fascinated me. Especially slurs that objectively on the face of them don't seem offensive. I think people need to get over these taboo words, or adopt them like some have (homosexuals did this well with "gay") so to disarm the taboo.

I mean I'm white, and if you call me a "cracker" I'll tell you I'm a Ritz.
 
Whatsthepoint said:
Why are people from Kazakhstan called Kazakhs? Why not Kazakhstani?
Click to expand...
:sl:
'Pak' is not an ethnicity, Pakistan is not named after a group of people but rather it means 'land of the pure' or something. Qazaqs (or if you don't like Qs, Kazakhs), on the other hand, are an ethnic group, and Qazaqstan is named after them.

Ironically, it seems like racists who call people 'Paki' are actually calling them 'one of the pure' or something along those lines. But they don't know this, and intention is what matters.
:w:
 
Whatsthepoint said:
Why are people from Kazakhstan called Kazakhs? Why not Kazakhstani?
Click to expand...

Because that's how they were referred to, when they used to be part of Russia/Soviet Union, and it just stuck even after independence. (I think)
 
Hamayun said:
I would be offended if someone called me a Paki because my parents are both Indian.

I don't see why all brown people are put into the same box? Not all brown people are from Pakistan!

Saying that I think we need to stop crying about silly things like this while Israel is massacring hundreds of people in Philestine. I don't think we should start crying about it and condemning Harry. Lets concentrate on what's important.
Click to expand...

but y'all look alike..lol

Can't tell you guys apart..though I must say that I find the indians to be much friendlier mashaAllah.
 
Banu_Hashim said:
Because that's how they were referred to, when they used to be part of Russia/Soviet Union, and it just stuck even after independence. (I think)
Click to expand...
:sl:
Nah, they are an ethnic group of their own, its not a slur. Wikipedia's article on the Qazaqs:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazakhs

This is the same as many other countries in central Asia. Uzbekistan is the land of Uzbeks, Turkmenistan is the land of the Turkmen, and Kyrgyzstan is the land of the (awesome but unprouncable) Kyrgyz.
:w:
 
Last edited:
And good point, Fishman.

If you look at the true meaning of "Paki"
Pak means pure or clean
So I must be doin something right.
 
Fishman said:
:sl:
'Pak' is not an ethnicity, Pakistan is not named after a group of people but rather it means 'land of the pure' or something. Qazaqs (or if you don't like Qs, Kazakhs), on the other hand, are an ethnic group, and Qazaqstan is named after them.

Ironically, it seems like racists who call people 'Paki' are actually calling them 'one of the pure' or something along those lines. But they don't know this, and intention is what matters.
:w:
Click to expand...
I though all stans were named the same way.
 
Whatsthepoint said:
something tells me you're Indian yourself..
Anyway, I don't think I've ever met any Pakis or Indians (restaurants and tube stations excluded) so I can't tell the difference.
Click to expand...

Well, ethnically. Only been there twice!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar Threads

Back
Top