I might jump in here and add my say to this interesting debate from a Chinese person’s point of view, if I may. I recently went to a Chinese relative’s wedding (with many English guests too) and the English DJ played that very song ‘Kung Fu Fighting’ at the disco! None of us were insulted by it and in fact, many of the young Chinese lads were doing some sort of weird dance involving kung fu moves! (could have been the alcohol though!). However, having said that, I can’t help but think there might be more to this story than has been reported. If that chap sung it in a mocking manner, say in an exaggerated Chinese accent, then I don’t know if I would have been that impressed either (but I wouldn’t have gone to the police though). Also, the chap didn’t help matters when he posted what he did on Facebook. I can take jokes and laugh about myself without taking life too seriously but sometimes people use unkind words, jokes, etc, at others’ expense and if anyone reacts to it, they just say people nowadays can’t take jokes, etc. A classic example is a particular kid in my son’s school who has a habit of making horrid comments about people and then ends it with a ;) winking face, as if that makes it ok. By putting the wink at the end of his horrible comments, it’s a safety net for him so if anyone tells him he’s being mean, he just says ‘it’s only a joke’!
Growing up, I have had my share of kids pulling their eyes and making fun of me being Chinese but I had lots of other friends who didn’t and my school life wasn’t ruined by the minority of ignorant kids who did call me names.
With regards to calling the Chinese takeaway a ‘chinky’, I must confess, I do find that term not too nice. The word has a derogatory feel to it but I also believe people who say it to refer to it as the local takeaway probably aren’t sayin