So there’s this Australian comedian named Chris Lilley. He’s had several shows on TV and his whole shtick is creating a cast of characters and playing them all himself.
So there’s this Australian comedian named Chris Lilley. He’s had several shows on TV and his whole shtick is creating a cast of characters and playing them all himself. Over the years this has included a bitchy schoolgirl, a “troubled” Samoan kid, a gay, an AZN mum and various others. His last series, Summer Heights High, was so successful that HBO gave him a bag of money and told him to make something the U.S. market could enjoy. He put on black make-up, wrote a shit song and came back with S.Mouse, a pastiche of black American rappers. Lilley is white.
The thing is, most Australians don’t see anything wrong with this. Scan the comments of every newspaper article and you’ll find hundreds of white people furiously typing “not racist” and “I’m not offended” and “Blackface for t3h lulz.”
Since the SBTVC commenters are known for their measured and thoughtful responses, I wanted to throw this one open:
Is S.Mouse racist? Is Australia full of assholes?
The guy’s (embarrassingly shit) single recently debuted at #37 in the local charts, so apparently this type of thing is still considered okay here to some extent.
@Professor Oz
good analogy of Australia and Texas, but then your prose devolved into faux anthropological cliches.
@ausfag *laid
This is only as racist/sexist/etc as any of his other characters. The big problem with this character is that Lilley didnt do his research for Smouse. The thing that makes his characters so funny is that he gets all their attitutdes and mannerisms dead on. In this case, he has failed completely.
I also think it was silly to debut a black character when HBO is funding this, with the intention of U.S. distribution. While most Australians are smart enough to realise blackface is racist, it still lacks the historical sting that it garners in America (mostly cause we have very few African Immigrants).
Overall: A large number of Australians are dumb, racist, fools. But it’s like any other country, where the urban areas have the liberals and the outer suburbs have the racist bogans.
@Professor Oz – Just cause you havent been to Sydney doesnt mean its full of racist cunts. Melbourne is fine, but Sydney is way better. Also we have more Asian people.
@Norm, that’s a filthy lie
I love how this is about Australia being racist and not the way that a foreign country interprets American pop culture which is largely obsessed with bed room studio rap from the dirty south. I think if this were funnier than it was accurate nobody would worry about racism. Summer Heights High was funny too by the way you hyper sensitive cry baby.
@Dan – These “anthropological cliches” you refer to did not materialize magically in a vacuum. But yes, Melbourne is comparable to Austin, also in some ways to East Coast cities, other than New York. Kind of like Boston or Philly: not awesome, but with enough thoughtful, educated people to support relatively OK cultural aspects.
Melbourne, however, has had an ongoing problem with racist attacks against Indian cab drivers, but it’s pretty much common knowledge amongst the police – though it doesn’t get reported in the news – that most of the perpetrators are transplants from Queensland, who basically cause most of the trouble there and contribute disproportionately to the prison population.
@Jakobi Bryant – I actually spent a decent amount of time in Sydney. Well, Newcastle, to be precise, but same thing. Sure, there are a few token non-whites, but if you speak to them, you’ll find they’re not very forthcoming with their true opinions, until you can earn their trust, as they know most of the white majority doesn’t take too kindly to colored folk speaking their mind, especially since Cronulla.
I was born in Newcastle. It’s different from Sydney. Vastly different. Try a population of about 400,000 in the whole valley, and only about 100,000 in the city itself, compared to over 3 million in Sydney.
Plus it’s different in a ‘more bogans – less culture’ kind of way.
Enough with the generalisations, Professor Oz.
Unfortunately it seems you traveled and stayed in some parts of the country that left you with a bad taste in your mouth. Which I’m really sorry for… but if you ever come back to Australia, hit up any Australian’s who access to SC site and I’m sure they’ll be able to show you the real, cultured, understanding and rational side of our population.
Hell, even if that side of our population is a minority, at least you’ll leave not thinking we’re all a bunch of racists jerks.
This is the kind of reaction I would expect from a country that bleeps out the word “hell” and the word “god” if followed by “damn” on tv. Now that is fucked up. An interesting thing to note would be our economy and how well it has weathered the GFC. And how did we do that? By trade with China and not the US. China doesn’t care that there are SOME racists in Australia, because they aren’t a scared little girl of a country. The rest of the world has grown up, can’t wait till you do. Then again with literacy rates like yours this may a little tricky.
@Ryan Jonestown – Don’t get me wrong, I love Australia, particularly your super-easy women. I was just addressing the question posed in this article. The country is a bit backward in that regard, I mean seriously, I was just reading about how one of your former prime ministers was on TV the other night referring to your natives as ‘Abos.’
@Dan that was funny
@professoroz really? A WHOLE YEAR? Shit, if I could learn everything there is to know about every country, each in a Year’s time, I’d be ruler of the world! I did post-grad studies there for year (suck on that), and I wouldn’t dare to make such a stupid claim. I traveled most of the country, and found those I detested and those I throughly enjoyed in each place I went, just like anywhere else in the world. If you’d have traveled off the beaten path a bit, you might have found a lot more than waste cases and whores. Based on your description, you did just what most travelers in Oz do – stuck to places where all the other travelers are. Did you actually meet an Australian person, or just ogle the women that creeped the backpacker bars. Uh huh.
I’m Australian and I recognise that the content is offensive and I admit I do cringe at times but I don’t know, I tend to still enjoy some of his work from time to time. There is a lot of racist shit out there, “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” is probably worse. I dunno though, even Ricky Jervais stand up shows. It’s almost accepted to be a dick given you can capitalise on it.
@professor oz
There are people you met in Australia that you thought were racist? Amazing!
There are people you met in Australia that you thought were ‘backward’? Amazing!
There are people you met in Australia that you made some assumptions about? Amazing!
You came to Australia and learned there is racial tension in some areas? Amazing!
You made such an incredible insight comparing Oz to Texas!!!?!? WOWOWOWWOW You must be one of them real smart American people! We were so lucky that you graced us with your presence for a whole year. Please come back soon!
Weird Al has polka medleys that are way funnier than this so called comedy. There ain’t even a funny simile or a punchline in this shit.
Are there tons of aborigine folks doin “White guys drive like this…” bits in Oz? You know, just as proof that everyone’s havin’ a back slappin’ good time “takin the piss” outta each other?
I’d be remiss not to mention Australians gave the Rocky Mountains herpes. Thanks for that.
PS Makin fun of wiggers is infinitely more fun than blackface. Wodie.
“Dear person who wrote this article,
This article is redundant because Americans do not give a fuck about Australia.
Dan”
Dan for the win.
Yeah Chris Lilley should never have been marketed to Americans. I’m Australian, and yeah we’re racist, racist against fucking idiot Americans. Chris Lilley is quintessentially Australian and Summer Heights High is funny as fuck…. not so much this series i agree. WHICH im sure probably has to do with American hands having a part in the production. I thank god im not american, in my experiance you’re mostly fat, stupid, overly opinionated and had terrible taste. Australia is the country who egg’d Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber. USA sucks so much dick in everyway anyway…..oh well i’ve never lost a penny betting on the stupidity of americans. (granted there are some amazing ones) I just feel american culture, the country itself needs a do-over.
its pretty fucking funny that americans are complaining about the only american character on the show its pretty fucking accurate to me as thats how you cockheads act on your stupid reality shows etc i mean just cos chris lilley is making fun of you ‘cultured intellectuals’ i mean its just a parody; if it wasnt so accurate i doubt there would be this much fuss….and wow americans think we’re racist? thats funny as to, most australians fucking hate americans you third world losers, so much greed and ugliness in your ‘culture’…no wonder people who you can just tell are fucking dickheads (@professor oz) did react well to ‘rural red neck australians’ lol. aussies has a low dickhead tolerance, it is clear youre one of those people who knows nothing but never shuts up. thats a pretty fatal combination buddy. oh well id rather be a racist australian then the ugly american, a pretty accurate stereotype hated all over the entire fucking world. at least i live in the far superior country with health care!
Of course it’s embarrassingly shit, it’s a sendup of brain-dead Soulja Boy-type rap.
@hyperbole …actually yes:
http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2011/season/special-events/deadly-funny/
“Deadly Funny is Australia’s only Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander comedy competition for Australia’s traditional owners.”
@Professor Soz: That link actually props up my comment. “Aww naww, no worries mate, the abos got their own comedy show. There’s one a year.”
@miss America: “Australian” isn’t a race. They’re white and so am I, if anything it’s xenophobic and yeah, maybe I am xenophobic but only towards Australian travelers, if that’s a thing. There’s probably another word for that but I don’t know it.
dude doesn’t look like he’s in blackface. he looks like he’s been using too much fake-tan. jersey shore n shit. plus, this dude is very very unfunny. who fucking cares what he does? he’s the tyler perry of australia.
i see someone wrote about the australian aborigines… i think you’ll find most people in australia dont have an issue with them as a race… but they have an issue with the way they treat the things that are given to them to help them live in, this thing we call in australia, society… and before you say that white people did that to them no white person ever made them drink alcohol to the point of deserting their kids and not feeding the kids so they can drink… white people didnt make them sniff petrol which is a major problem in aboriginal communities all over australia…
also most of australia seem to be racist because until until 1973 we had over here a thing called the “white australia policy” which didnt alow anyone not white except for aboriginies of course to live in australia… rather racist if you ask me… unfortunately it takes more than just 40 years for some people to get that mentality out of their mind especially when that thought process has been handed down from generation to generation… sad but true….
but still saying that all australians are racist is like saying all americans are fat… assholes?? yeah maybe… but we have that right…
as an aussie who after reading many stupid and sensible comments on this topic i must say that i agree… to :
1) yes some australians are racist… but there is spatterings of racism all over the world… dunno why, we are all human after all…
2) chris lilly is shit and should be put out of our misery… end of fuckin story…
3) you are blowing it way out of proportion… if the US media asked him to do this and then didnt see it as wrong and offensive and decided to release it arent they just as much at fault??
4) yes australian travelers are a bunch of obnoxious assholes… i know… i was one but i had the good sense to avoid other aussies as they made me ashamed to be australian… but i’ll still answer the call to arms when addressed by a voice saying “AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE!!”
thank you for allowing me to put in my 10 cents… i hope you all realise how trivial a matter this is and have a smashingly good day…
hahaha, prof OZ’s post is even worse than the original article, it is just stupendous that he basically plays the classic american douche in this situation. If not even an actual character from sunny in philly.
“Hey bro’s guess wut, yeah i went to oztrailyastan and u’no wut, they are super racist like, everywhere hey. like no one would even listen to me like, spit my loud drivel at them at whole time, well maybe a cupla times when i wuz im melbourne but theys were still pretty racist.”
“oh but like, there women are easy and i banged a bunch cuz i’m not gay”
The ratios are simple.
2/10 Australians are racist dumbfucks.
3/10 Australians are just dumbfucks.
4/10 Americans are racist dumbfucks.
6/10 Americans are just dumbfucks.
@busted – I wouldn’t presume to know everything after just one year about a culturally vibrant country with a rich history, like most of Europe, but this is Australia we’re talking about.
@A Merry Can – I was pretty clear about the racist attacks in Melbourne not being caused by people from them. People from Melbourne are chill bros – they should be sent around the country to give lessons on how to act.
I’m not saying the US is overwhelmingly better, just certain things wouldn’t fly here, like a former President would never say the N word, let alone on TV, whereas your former prime minister John Elliot was just on TV calling your natives Abos, and barely anyone seemed to care.
…is America Full Of Air-Headed Bimbos? Or are we just watching one show on TV in order to make sweeping statements about another country?
Lilley is Australian’s most insightful comedians – he makes you feel a full range of emotions, from hatred through adoration, for his characters. He is incredibly talented. However, it seems Americans need to have foreign comedy remade (The Office, etc) to be simpler for the everyday American to understand. Can’t have anything “edgy” on TV then, don’t want to offend the USA!
In summary for the tl;dr crowd…
1) S.Mouse is critique of the self-centered American
2) Lilley takes the piss out of EVERYONE, including self-centred Americans
3) Why are there ugly chicks showing their ass and shaved pubic regions in a sidebar on this site (which is apparently meant for fashion/style)? I didn’t realise drunk and begging to be raped was in right now.
Gettin all worked up over the shortening of a word just because you have a black president won’t fly hey, america is all smoke and mirrors and it shows how little they understand other cultures by pointing fingers and screaming racist.
America is about 5 years away from becoming solely reliant on it’s tourism to stimulate the economy, as you’re dollar slumps further down to nothing because you all were stupid enough to watch it fuck off to nothing while cheering on a war that put you in trillions of dollars of debt.
You guys really have more to worry about at the moment than aussies (woah racist) and what we are doing with our television, even if its awful.
you should really be nice to us because even as i type hundreds of middle class waitresses are dancing for tips we will never give you.
bad dog.
very bad dog.
racist or not the ratings will determine how badly this unfunny shit tanks. Folks’ll vote with the remote.
John Elliot is the former President of Carlton Football Club, not the entire nation.
Top quality research there ol’ chap.
@Professor Oz – John Elliot was never prime minister of Australia nor did he ever run for it. He’s a stupid old drunk fuck and a criminal.
Didn’t the current australian president say a bunch of racist stuff when she first came into politics? I remember visiting there years ago, and there was a big controversy about her 1st speech in congress, in which she said there were too many asians and aborigines. At the time I thought, oh boy, who is this crazy, red-haired woman? Now she’s running the place!
Honestly, there are racist assholes in every country. I think an example like this is much more horrifying:
http://failbook.failblog.org/2011/07/21/funny-facebook-fails-horrible-reactions-to-japan-beating-the-usa-in-the-womens-world-cup/
(chris lilley embarrasses me and i’m Australian).
@dave jones…. that was a different crazy red haired lady…
You see, whether or not something is considered funny or taboo is a matter of history. We in Australia don’t share your history of institutionalised racism against africans, and therefore don’t see any reason for feeling guilty for something we didn’t do. WE didn’t have slavery. WE didn’t invent Al Jolson blackface, or treat black people as uncle Tom clowns in in decades of movies and TV. Just because YOU feel guilty about all the bad things that YOU did to africans over a period of centuries, doesn’t give us any reason we should feel guilty on your behalf. For us it’s just a sendup of the all pervasive rap culture (and let’s face it, it’s ripe for sendup). Maybe in your country, with your apalling record of racism, it’s considered taboo for a white person to dress up as black. Here it’s just a comedian doing one of his many characters.
Don’t go putting all your racial guilt on us.
the truth hurts eh? looks like you struck a nerve here.
plus can we do that thing where you tell us who’s posting under different names from the same IP address again? looks like the same teenager venting his pro aussie rage over and over.
im in melbourne. you can be racist in a board meeting here and its ok.
try saying ‘wog’ in london and see what happens to you.
hint: you will get leng down
also just because you are comfortably oblivious to racism doesnt mean the racism isnt there. it means you are part of it. you fucking idiot skippys.
@professor oz typical american arrogance and ignorance. having met many americans studying abroad in aus for a year ive found 95% of the time they wont venture far from the town theyre studying in, you guys go to the beach, the city and maybe a couple islands. for you to say Queensland is the worst for these meatheaded racist males is ludicrous! i play rugby league in rural queensland in a 12 team competition with 60 to 70% of players being of aboriginal decent and being some of the standout players. not once have i seen an aboriginal player targeted either on the field or off because of their race. also you might have missed all those indians that were bashed by aussies? in melbourne? racisms everywhere dude, just not to the extreme your pointing out
sorry, but before I read on… @jordytheracistaussieasshole: your mate who went to school with him is full of shit. Lilley went to a private school on the nth shore (hence ja’mai) . not in newtown, you dick.
Also @bathead: you dont know shit about shit.
this country is full of fuckwits. just like the rest of the world, but the dudes in particular really step it up a notch.
I dont think i’ll read on… point is, Lilley used to be funny… new series sucks balls and Australians, in general, are fucking racist jerks. ESPECIALLY the government.
^ kudos & thank you mr no.
that would be Ms No ;] and you’re welcome.