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 GUS IN EASTENDERS - What an insult!! |
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Village Newbie
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Posts: 1
Join Date: Apr 2008
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GUS IN EASTENDERS - What an insult!! -
29-04-08, 10:39 PM
I watched some of Eastenders this week and on Monday (28/4) witnessed the character of Gus being tied to a chair and threatened with violence by Sean's character. I could not bear to see a black actor cowering and sobbing in fear, all in the name of ratings. How many more times are black people on TV going to be cast in submissive and humiliating roles? I switched over channels in disgust as I was outraged to see Gus being treated in such a shocking way by Sean. As a black women I find Eastenders scriptwriters appear to be totally out of touch with the average black person. We are not all doe-eyed, compliant, passive individuals who shake and tremble anytime a bullying Caucasian person tries to intimidate or belittle us. The scene in where Gus is terrorised by Sean WOULD NEVER HAPPEN IN REAL LIFE. Black man can defend themselves when the need arises, and are powerful and noble. Watching the character of Gus reduced to a sobbing wreck due to the psychotic acting of Sean was pitiful. Gus is meek and mild in the series and appears to have no further ambition than to sweep the streets of 'Walford'. Why has his character never developed into him marrying, having children or setting up his own business? What kind of message is this sending out to our young black men? That we cannot aspire to achieve anything further than cleaning up people's mess? In view of the negative press that we constantly attract this portrayal in Eastenders is unhelpful, unconstructive and totally out of touch. The token black person's role in TV programmes such as Eastenders is an insult to all black people. These characters are not a true representation of how we live in multi-cultural Britain. In fact EE is notorious for depicting black characters as drug dealers, prostitutes or the village idiot. When are we going to see a positive, well-rounded black character or family on this programme? Its been running for 23 years yet still insists on caricaturing us as happy-go-luck, laughing, unambitious simpletons who are content to stay on the bottom rung of the ladder, cannot hold a job down or stay within a marriage or relationship. I challenge the BBC writers of EE to spend one day amongst intelligent, articulate black people who are eduated,successful and driven and are a million miles away from the poor characterisation of black people in EastEnders. BBC scriptwriters please wake up and take a reality check! This is the 21st Century - black people stopped picking cotton and shining shoes over a hundred years ago.
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Villager Senior
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Posts: 4,292
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: London, , United Kingdom
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29-04-08, 11:20 PM
Without a doubt the script writers of this show are racist with a capital R. Same with Hollyoaks, Coronation Street and a few others.
I partially agree with you about the character Gus. However its not so much that there is such a character, as I'm sure there are plenty of Gus's that exist, its the fact that Eastenders will ONLY ever find roles which are either demeaning, dead-end, Coonish, sellout, Stereotypical etc etc etc.
In fact the Gus scenario brings back memories. I bought my first buy to let property when i was 19 and made the mistake of renting it out to an Irish bwoy who i played football with. Now to say this guy was "as hard as nails" would be an understatement. Still after a few months of renting the place out to him he turned round and blatantly told me he was not going to pay the rent any longer and would move out when he was ready. I was fuming but thought well what can i do, because the truth was i was scared shitless of him, he was a bad bwoy. Anyway me and mate tooled up one night and left to deal with him, but when we reached the house we just both said "Nah" made umpteen excuses and bottled it....lol.
The bottom line was i could have got my people involved, but this Irishman had the psyche over me so much i feared the repercussions. So i just waited until he moved out like a pussy.
So it can happen especially at that age when you've yet to develop a fear of no-one. And there are definitely some bad ass white bwoys out there. Still the good thing is i learned something which has kept me in good stead ever since.
Never EVER rent your property to a tenant who looks harder than you...lol
Last edited by Le Moor; 30-04-08 at 12:02 AM.
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Villager Senior
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Posts: 2,024
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29-04-08, 11:50 PM
So there you go, gus does exist in real life, the view of the powerful black man towering over the afraid white man was banished a long time ago when white men realised black men would sell their own mothers for a taste of their women!
Anyhoo, if you have a problem with the black characters on TV i suggest you speak to the black actors, if they refused to take these roles the writers would have to flip the script.
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Villager Senior
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30-04-08, 06:22 AM
Gus leaves Eastenders thisweek, and exposes Sean in front of the Slater family.
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Villager
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30-04-08, 09:01 AM
I suspect this has spilled over from the DS forums. I think there's a reason why Eastenders isn't worth discussing here and the character Gus is prime example...a totally wotless person that's black.
In the old Eastenders days black characters fought back but today's script writers believe black people and in particular men should be newtered like dogs into submissive animal roles.
Sorry Le Moor but if Sean was a real person he would have killed long time ago. No person would tolerate his s*** least of a black man. But you have a character like Gus who likes cleaning streets and jumping when massa tells him to jump - he's an insult. If I were Mohammed George I would have spat in the producers face and told them to f*** the contract.
And to add insult Sean goes and bangs Guss' so called girlfiend in his own flat. To me that's worthy of the death penalty. But not in Eastenders, Guss just runs around to avoid being whupped by massa Sean.
I hear that Guss is leaving with his so-called girlfriend that the scriptwriters havent given the decency of allowing to kiss on screen. Why's that then?
But at least we have black WAG Chelsea but I suspect she'll be dropping it for the next white dude - oh I forgot Sean's been there too.
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Super Moderator
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Location: Babylon
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09-05-08, 05:30 PM
Eastenders is no more realistic than Dr Who and is probably the stupidest soap opera in tell-lie-vision history.
I had the displeasure of watching those sickening scenes, it's bad enough they portray 'black' man as homos these days, now we're supposed to be straight pussies??? I've never witnessed such blatant racist and dehumanising shit since Goodbye Uncle Tom. "Yeah we'll give Gus a 'black' girlfriend but let's have massa f*ck her first before he damn near bullies him to death'. What a clever way of reenacting the Maafa.
That Gus character was just straight up pathetic and deserved what came to him to be honest and i'm glad he's left - too bad that even when he 'confronted' Sean at his family's house he still managed to go out like a sucker. The only 'black' thing he did was kiss his teeth in the end lol. Shame on that actor whatever his name is, if he had an ounce of self respect he would turned that role down.
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Villager
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Posts: 562
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Location: vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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09-05-08, 08:32 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Melissa
So there you go, gus does exist in real life, the view of the powerful black man towering over the afraid white man was banished a long time ago when white men realised black men would sell their own mothers for a taste of their women!
Anyhoo, if you have a problem with the black characters on TV i suggest you speak to the black actors, if they refused to take these roles the writers would have to flip the script.
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Ain't that the truth. Did'nt think that the show was still on the box and that some folks are still watching this shite.
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Villager Senior
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09-05-08, 08:48 PM
lol gus aint as half bad a "julie"

Only the best is good enough....
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Villager
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Posts: 133
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10-05-08, 12:38 AM
hmm would you feel better if it was the other way round? like if he was the 'badman' bashing everyone around, knocking up the ladies
Eastenders is a bit like that Jeremy kyle show, cant believe people watch it!
A mind troubled by doubt cannot focus on the course to victory.
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Villager
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10-05-08, 01:47 AM
i think its silly to claim that a watless blackman depicted on tv doesnt exist in real life. as if there is one kind of black person, or just 4 kinds. there are many 'gus's in reality, many even worse.
still its just as silly for you lot to watch all these lame boring british soaps anyways that you never see anyone like you in it, yet you can probably quote the ending credits correctly. so be like me and not give a shit about british soaps that never represent or reflect the real UK, and make do with
the wire,
csi
prison break
that new programme with taye diggs in it
law and order
and all the other shows that you can find a brother and sister you know. 
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Villager
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10-05-08, 09:26 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by manwiththemirror
i think its silly to claim that a watless blackman depicted on tv doesnt exist in real life. as if there is one kind of black person, or just 4 kinds. there are many 'gus's in reality, many even worse.
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I disagree - there is no human being like Gus. Most peoples instinct is to fight back either physically or mentally. Gus's reaction (as ordered by the scriptwriters) is to cower in the corner like the good old days of slavery- but even slaves fought back!!
And despite his nice guy image nobody gives a s*** now that he's gone. That should be a lesson to any black actor who thinks they're on the same level as their white counterparts.
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Village Newbie
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Posts: 62
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Originally from UK, live in Stateside for a good length of years, now back in the UK
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10-05-08, 09:43 AM
Why on earth black people watch Eastenders and crap is beyond me .... that stuff is so depressing !!!
Live life for you, not nobody else.... don't live under pressure from others just to satisfy their ideals about you .... you only live once, you only have one life, it's yours not anyone else's !
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