If you, as a viewer, knew that Steve Carell intended to cause harm with his jokes, the jokes wouldn’t be nearly as funny. So tell me, if you found out that Steve Carell really believes that people from the Middle East are lesser human beings than the rest of us, but you already laughed at the joke, does that make you racist, too? Maybe it’s all about intent. But do audiences ever stop to wonder exactly why they’re laughing in the first place? It’s discrimination, people. Needless to say, audiences would laugh and think Steve Carell is brilliant for pushing the envelope, once again. It’s easy to imagine Michael Scott dressing up as Achmed the Dead Terrorist for Halloween or as some sort of demonstration.
As a culture, are we innately discriminatory? Does playing up stereotypes make someone a racist? Is calling something “satire” really just a way of covering up what could be seen as discrimination? It’s easy to consider something satirical when it’s in reference to a broad stereotype, but what if it’s more personal than that? Is it really ignorance that equals racism?
I laughed at the jokes occasionally, but I also thought the entire charade was a bit sad. Following dinner, someone went online to YouTube, where I witnessed the following: Kyle’s brother-in-law referenced some YouTube video known as “Achmed the Dead Terrorist,” and I was obviously the one left out of the joke when the rest of the family started laughing and I just sat there, confused.
This past Thursday, during Thanksgiving dinner, my cousin Kyle decided to amuse my family by telling absurdly racist jokes.
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