Hetalia is offending - and racist?
Hello there everybody, I don't know if you guys have experienced the same, but lately I wonder.
I had many talks with Hetalia "haters" - the really trolly ones and people who simply dislike it. And everytime I hear "Hetalia is so racist!".
Well.
I wonder.
We all know Hetalia isn't harmless, the setting WWII alone is very offending, history is always something people can hate each other for.
Not to talk about stereotypes, oh my God. Is it right to picture France as a sexmaniac and America as a hamburger junkie?
But that's not what got me thinking. So we know Hetalia is offending, but racist?
One thing, I don't want to skip this, was the "Shinatty-chan" stuff, alright. Shinatty is a bad name for Chinese people.
But other than this? Where's the difference between offending and racist?
Is "limey" for England or "Spaniard" for Spain as racist?
Personally, I don't think stereotypes like "France runs around naked" is racist. Offending to French people, maybe. As is the old joke that the French army loses every battle (which isn't true as we know, it's just a prejudice).
I don't want to talk too much about the "Shinatty"-thing because I know the relationship between China and Japan isn't good at all and it maybe can't be compared to, for example, British people calling Germans "krauts" or "nazis" (and I as a German think "krauts" isn't as offending as "nazi", but I think none of them is racist - even though nazi is a harsh name, too, and no German would take it as a joke, like kraut maybe).
Now, before I talk too much and make this confusing and maybe even losing every sense in it - what do you think?
Is there a difference between offending and racist?
Where (exept for the example above) is Hetalia racist?
Or do you simply think not Hetalia but its fans are racist? Why?
I had many talks with Hetalia "haters" - the really trolly ones and people who simply dislike it. And everytime I hear "Hetalia is so racist!".
Well.
I wonder.
We all know Hetalia isn't harmless, the setting WWII alone is very offending, history is always something people can hate each other for.
Not to talk about stereotypes, oh my God. Is it right to picture France as a sexmaniac and America as a hamburger junkie?
But that's not what got me thinking. So we know Hetalia is offending, but racist?
One thing, I don't want to skip this, was the "Shinatty-chan" stuff, alright. Shinatty is a bad name for Chinese people.
But other than this? Where's the difference between offending and racist?
Is "limey" for England or "Spaniard" for Spain as racist?
Personally, I don't think stereotypes like "France runs around naked" is racist. Offending to French people, maybe. As is the old joke that the French army loses every battle (which isn't true as we know, it's just a prejudice).
I don't want to talk too much about the "Shinatty"-thing because I know the relationship between China and Japan isn't good at all and it maybe can't be compared to, for example, British people calling Germans "krauts" or "nazis" (and I as a German think "krauts" isn't as offending as "nazi", but I think none of them is racist - even though nazi is a harsh name, too, and no German would take it as a joke, like kraut maybe).
Now, before I talk too much and make this confusing and maybe even losing every sense in it - what do you think?
Is there a difference between offending and racist?
Where (exept for the example above) is Hetalia racist?
Or do you simply think not Hetalia but its fans are racist? Why?