Posted on 01/23/2010 6:42:16 PM PST by workerbee
Two of Russia's champion ice skaters have caused outrage after dressing as Aborigines for a competition.
The couple, who are favored to win gold at next month's winter Olympics, wear skin-toned suits with red loin cloths, white body paint and eucalyptus leaves.
But experts in Australia say Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin's movements and body decorations bear no resemblance to that of the Aborigines' 60,000 year old culture.
"They have got the whole thing wrong," said Stephen Page, artistic director of the respected indigenous group, the Bangarra Dance Company.
Page said the two and half minute routine's didgeridoo music sounded more like it came from India or Africa.
He added that the body paint looked like "a 3-year-old child had drawn it on".
Indigenous leader Bev Manton, of the New South Wales Land Council, said Aboriginal people were rightly sensitive about the appropriation of their cultural heritage.
She told the Sydney Morning Herald: "I am offended by the performance and so are our other counselors."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Well then, the Aborigine skaters will just have to dress up as Russians!
Racist and ridiculous!
Oh gawd! Even the Aborigines have gone PC... LOL...
What do aborigines care about costumes on ice skaters? This is just the latest in a long line of pc bullcap. At first the story on this was humorous that the costumes weren’t authentic. Now it’s “outrage”.
Have ice skaters EVER dressed up in anything truly authentic? Next hobos and clowns will complain.
You pretty much summed up all of our possible comments with that one sentence.
Talk about hyperbole! “Outrage” implies everyone who say them skate got up and walked out in protest, or at least complained afterwards. Then we go on to read that some dance troupe leader and an “indigenous leader of the New South Wales Land Council” (whatever that is) are the only complaintants.
Until some other victim trollers hear about it. Thanks, Fox website! (at least it wasn’t another story about how to rev up your sex life).
So if they had dressed up as cowboys, it would have been a huge insult to cowboys?
This PC cr@p is completely stupid!
The only solution is to never speak of Aboriginals again, nor of their culture, lest we wound them.
We can't have wounding...
Best minstrel show I’ve seen this century!
I never saw a male aborigine look that gay...
Liberals love to find things to be offended by...
There have been stories posted here that liberals, do gooders and government in Australia basically have destroyed aborigine culture by forcing them into nightmare cities “for their own good”. Yet I’ve never read about that REAL outrage except a post or two on FR.
Bet this ice skater story gets worldwide attention, while the real story remains hidden.
But experts in Australia say Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin’smovements and body decorations bear no resemblance to that of the Aborigines’ 60,000 year old culture.
If it bears no resemblance, then they cannot take offense, so what’s all the wasted ink for?
We can't have wounding...
I like that idea. And then when people have forgotten about those who are so thin-skinned, THEN we can make fun of them!
If that’s all I had to show for 60,000 years, I’d be too embarassed to admit it.
They're like muslims that way...
“They have got the whole thing wrong,” said Stephen Page...
And so do you, Steve! Duh. They’re ice skaters. I don’t think they were TRYING to “get it right.” It’s, uh, uh ...art.
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