Young Black farmers

[Andy Hamilton]

DId anyone see this last night on channel 4.

I heard about it the other day and I did think - what on earth are channel 4 playing at. I watched it and it was pretty insperational. Good kids as well, watching a "bad boy" refusing to put his hand up a cows arse then having the courage to do it was a highlight.

As was the clip where the camera clicks to one of the young folk and he says "They obviously don't know how to deal with ethnic minorities here and it is funny to watch them try and squirm out of saying the wrong thing" - he was refering to one of the pig farm workers saying to a black man - "lets form a chain gang, you should know about this it is from your heratige" - oh dear.

I am loathed to suggest that you watch a reality TV show but this is one with a clear message and it is entertaining.

[Han&Matt]

Hi Andy,
Yep, we watched it (I needed to escape football) - I did feel for the kids at the fete (I know only too well what bizarre environments small village fetes can be, and I sure the demographics of the majority in rural England). It always makes me cross to see kids walk away when things get tough - the world owes me attitude - but the majority on this programme took it on in the end, and their growing aspirations and ambitions for their lives are inspiring. What an incredible experience they are all having!

Mind, I would be reluctant to artificially inseminate a sow...

... and I'm not sure I could shake my booty to the Wurzels with quite as much enthusiasm...

[Andy Hamilton]

... and I'm not sure I could shake my booty to the Wurzels with quite as much enthusiasm...

depends how much scrumpy you had

[Muddypause]

As was the clip where the camera clicks to one of the young folk and he says "They obviously don't know how to deal with ethnic minorities here and it is funny to watch them try and squirm out of saying the wrong thing" - he was refering to one of the pig farm workers saying to a black man - "lets form a chain gang, you should know about this it is from your heratige" - oh dear.

It casts a different light on the immensely crass slogan that the Countryside Alliance came up with to oppose the foxhunting ban - "Fight prejudice..." it began. Is it a vain hope that the CA are actually addressing the real problems of destructive prejudice within the ranks of their own members, or was that just a piece of innapropriate, insensitive, cynical sloganeering?

Maybe Channel 4 should approach them and ask them just how they are fighting this sort of prejudice.

[Millymollymandy]

I watched the programme and found it very entertaining, though I really find it hard to believe that in this day and age that you can come across people who have to openly stare at black people like they've never seen one before!!! But then again, this is TV, so it probably wasn't quite as bad as that (...... but then again, they were muttering about 'darkies'). Perhaps a bunch of white inner city kids with attitude would have had a similar effect on the locals, who knows!

[Andy Hamilton]

I really find it hard to believe that in this day and age that you can come across people who have to openly stare at black people like they've never seen one before!!!

It is likely that they have not, apart from outside their village.

When myself and 2 mates went to Romania we got a similar response of the locals in a village. This was about 10 years ago and we were long haired males, one of my mates had a bar through his nose.

In egypt the train we got from Cairo to Luxor stopped for a bit in a small village by the nile. We had a gang of kids staring at us through the window.

Perhaps it is just them being inquisitive. Although I can be far to much of an optomist about people sometimes.