So says the UK's National Children's Bureau.
The National Children's Bureau, which receives £12 million a year, mainly from Government funded organisations, has issued guidance to play leaders and nursery teachers advising them to be alert for racist incidents among youngsters in their care.
This could include a child of as young as three who says "yuk" in response to being served unfamiliar foreign food.
The guidance by the NCB is designed to draw attention to potentially-racist attitudes in youngsters from a young age.
It alerts playgroup leaders that even babies can not be ignored in the drive to root out prejudice as they can "recognise different people in their lives".
The 366-page guide for staff in charge of pre-school children, called Young Children and Racial Justice, warns: "Racist incidents among children in early years settings tend to be around name-calling, casual thoughtless comments and peer group relationships."
It advises nursery teachers to be on the alert for childish abuse such as: "blackie", "Pakis", "those people" or "they smell".
The guide goes on to warn that children might also "react negatively to a culinary tradition other than their own by saying 'yuk'".
Staff are told: "No racist incident should be ignored. When there is a clear racist incident, it is necessary to be specific in condemning the action."
Warning that failing to pick children up on their racist attitudes could instil prejudice, the NCB adds that if children "reveal negative attitudes, the lack of censure may indicate to the child that there is nothing unacceptable about such attitudes".
Nurseries are encouraged to report as many incidents as possible to their local council. The guide added: "Some people think that if a large number of racist incidents are reported, this will reflect badly on the institution. In fact, the opposite is the case."
"Eeew!!!"
"Hey kid, eat your lutefisk and shut up."
This just goes to show that children can be cruel.
Also, wtf @ food, that's just extremely unnecessary. I hate diet foods, does that make me a racist towards people who eat diets?
Yes.
I've yet to see small children eat any kind of unfamiliar dish without somebody else pressuring them to do it.
Therefore all children MUST be racist! D<
'scuse me whilst I go serve some traditional recipe haggis to everyone in Parliament.
But they are all scots anyway! 
/Bitter.
So, if I don't like sushi, can't be bothered with Metal Gear Solid, other anime and those turn based random upgrade RPGs me dos. Does that make me a racist?
I don't understand how you brits can handle living in such a nanny state.
That's easy, we are brits. We'll complain about it for a while then have a cuppa or go to the pub.
Topic header reminded me of Batman Begins. =
While I agree that the a possible solution to cut out prejudice is to do it from the source, an infant's mind, noticing differences around them, etc. The food thing is a bit stupid, though. Kids will think any food they haven't seen before is yucky. Come to think of it, maybe it's the same thing with girls and other races.
Hm. *ponders*
I'm racist! ^_^
I at least give food a chance and try it at least once before I decide I don't like it. Falafels just happen to be on my own black list of things not good to eat.
But truly, kids will not eat anything they don't recognize. Try my sister, who only at 10 years old decided to eat eggs and chicken eggs are as common as you get.
my reaction to sushi is pretty much 'yuk, raw fish!'
I AM RACIST NUUUU ;--;
from what i've seen, children show all sorts of posative and negative reactions to nearly anything, it's all part of growing up and learning what is and isn't accepted. it's nothing to do with food, it's the adults around them who set the example they see as 'normal'.
*grumbles for ages about stupid advice people, then goes to have a cup of tea*
Falafels suck though. =(
However I love foreign food from pretty much everywhere else. Maybe I'm just racist against those damned Ay-rabs?
j/k 😛
On a serious note, silly as this guidance is it seems well intentioned judging by the rest of the article. Kids tend to be very forward about pointing out or picking on things they see as unusual - not just other races but also disabilities and the like - in ways that would come off insensitive or even offensive in adults, so it's good to point out these behaviours and why they're best avoided. With food though it's stupid to assume that adverse reactions are somehow racist; it could simply be that they genuinely don't like the look of what they're given or that they just don't like trying new things (and some people, kids or otherwise, don't). It's hard enough getting kids to eat ordinary vegetables that you could grow in your back garden if you wanted to. 😛
I see the Politically Correct lot have been taking the paranoia pills again! (guess they didn't say 'yuk' when they swallowed them either)
If I go to Indian restaurants, I'll always order scampi and chips or something like that. This does not make me racist.
That is a horrifyingly stupid, and dangerous recommendation. Guess what they are saying? Root out the kids who are intolerant of differences by being intolerant of kids who are showing individual opinion. HELL NO.
Racism is a subset of diversty intolerance, so this is, without exaggeration, like fighting violence by telling cops to execute people who express anger. It is a case of being obsessed with a political buzzword and ignoring the cause.
This is an issue on which American law actually does it better. Many countries ban hate speech or even things associated with hate speech, which raises so many implications that threaten freedom of speech. It's much better, whether it's as effective or not, to simply combat bad ideas with good ideas.
Well Vec I just think you are a bigot.
If you ignore it, it will go away
That's pretty much my philosophy on everything in life actually
For what it's worth, the article is somewhat misleading about the nature of this 'guidance'. These aren't official government guidelines in the same way that, say, the National Curriculum is. This is a commercially available guide (you can buy it here if you want) issued by an independent children's charity - the article says they receive government money, but they're not actually a part of the government* in any way. That's not to say it's completely without influence and anyone is wrong to get worked up about this, but it's not like the government is saying that kids who won't eat a vindaloo should be jailed for hate crimes.
*Besides, pretty much any charity can receive money from the government through some scheme whose name I forget whereby every £1 donated by the public the government donates 28p or something like that. Not saying that all or even any of the NCB's government money is acquired in this way, I'm just using it to illustrate the point that gov't money ↛ gov't organisation.
Still, look at the facts. Because, I mean, labeling small children from 2 year of year ALWAYS helps things. Right?
~Tobe
*Besides, pretty much any charity can receive money from the government through some scheme whose name I forget whereby every £1 donated by the public the government donates 28p or something like that. Not saying that all or even any of the NCB's government money is acquired in this way, I'm just using it to illustrate the point that gov't money ↛ gov't organisation.
That would be Gift Aid. Well worth doing for your charitable donations, if you're a tax-payer. Basically, charitable donations are tax deductible for companies, so for individuals the government assumes that when you donate your money, this was net of tax. So it gives the charity the tax back, to bring it back up to the amount you really *meant* to donate.
Alas you don't get tax deductions for your donation personally, but at least your favourite cause does. If you can set up a membership / standing order and Gift Aid it, the charity gets more cash than if you stuck £2 in a collector's tin.
Um, back on topic: I'm clearly as racist as Becca, cos raw fish = lose. As does squid, prawns, any form of seafood and any really hot curries. What do you think it says about these kids they show on Channel 5 who will only eat chocolate?
DW
They are wannabe Oompa Lumpas?
I'm usually silent on matters such as this, but I'm getting mighty tired of people's paranoia. I don't know much about kids, but for a three-year-old to bluntly declare disgust on a food he or she has never tried feels more a lack of familiarity then intolerance. Unless their family or someone managed to input racism in their minds, I'm pretty sure they don't know any better.
my reaction to sushi is pretty much 'yuk, raw fish!'
'Cept sushi is vinegar-soaked rice (with various toppings), not raw fish. =P That's sashimi.
I want to say Europeans have lost their minds...
...but America isn't any better...lol
My local radio station read this story on Monday (they were off all of last week 8O)... The host responded with a "What the hell?" and some of the others were laughing in the background as he tried to read it.
I see the Politically Correct lot have been taking the paranoia pills again! (guess they didn't say 'yuk' when they swallowed them either)
LOL! Indeed.
*reads Vec's post & applauds*
I wonder what the The National Children's Bureau would say about -this-...
*eats a Super Bean Burrito, then poots on the Bureau* 
Well then...
Next time somebody says 'yuck' at our pukka 'fish and chips' or 'bangers and mash' or 'insert traditional british dish that was once foreign to someone at some time in their life'
I think I have a right to put point at them for being racist...
... yet I think our fellow falaffel somehow has an upper hand on 'fish and chips'
And we should all worship haggas. You MUST! >:/
Your avatar is AMAZING, Bentlee. 
Why, thank you 
Glad you like my fancharrie, hedgie tycoony... Wraith :3
PS GOtta ask, how comes everyone has Sonic's gobsmacked face in their avatars these days? It's kinda strange XD
It was, and still is, a fad that came around when some of the first screens of Sonic Unleashed was revealed including one where Sonic made the face you see. It also involves a thread that Hiro said something about the face and Impossible Box/Unachieveable Container put the face on Hiro's avatar and then it exploded out from there and there you go!^_^ I've put mine up for effect. Also, I'm sure someone could give a simpler version of the lore!
zomg, Bentleee! Haven't seen you in FOREVER. Weba dude 8D
Bentleee!!
*tacklehugs*
Welcome back!
every time I see this topic, I think of the scene in Batman Begins.... If the falafel cart guy's kids don't like falafel, would that make them racist against their own ethnicity?
every time I see this topic, I think of the scene in Batman Begins.... If the falafel cart guy's kids don't like falafel, would that make them racist against their own ethnicity?
Topic header reminded me of Batman Begins. =
lol
*Chuckles at Silvershadow for reasons that may be obvous to some.*
Also *UNLEASH!*
Full metal Razor... thank you for the explanation. Interesting... >_> XD
Thank you Silvershadow. Nice to be remembered. I mean, I remember you but I didn't think anyone would remember me. Uhm. Yeah... heh.
Hiya Kayla! Many thanks for the *falls over from tackleglomp* XD Well, thanks, I remember you too. Again, thought I was somewhat insignificant here. Or something 😛
I don't see how being cautious to different things makes you racist. I don't see why I have to embrace Japanese cuisine with open arms eventhough I hate seafood and ugh raw fish. Real racism is a matter of the heart anyway.
Another random thing I just thought of. Children (especially young children) are biologically predisposed to avoid unfamiliar foods. It's an evolutionary thing. Back in pre-civilisation days wandering off and eating whatever random thing you find you probably kill you, so the kids that survived were the ones that would generally refuse to eat anything unless they knew it was safe. Thus it's natural for kids to refuse to eat things they've never seen before. Here's an old BBC News article on it.
Basically what I am trying to say is that humans are genetically predisposed towards racism. 
^^^
That's actually really true. No matter how clean and untainted people claim to be... or at least to claim not to have an ounce of racism within them... that's just rubbish.
I also dispise how the statement '*gasp*, that's RACIST!' just seems to be becoming a trump card in more and more situations of dispute. Almost daring the one accused to say something politically incorrect or out of line so that they can get done for it.
Can't think of any examples off the top of my head, but I remember someone saying the waitress in Taco bell had an argument with one of the customers who wanted tartar sauce or something- having had none, the customer's response was '*gasp*! That's RACIST!*
...then again, Customer is always right, hey? 😛
Full metal Razor... thank you for the explanation. Interesting... >_> XD
Actually, that's Rayzor lol, but anyway, you're quite welcome! If it's any consolation I remember you or at least your name, but I don't really remember any of your posts and all the archives of them were probably eaten in the great EZHack.
Hiya Kayla! Many thanks for the *falls over from tackleglomp* XD Well, thanks, I remember you too. Again, thought I was somewhat insignificant here. Or something 😛
Hey, we always welcome back those who return to the fold. You're welcome by the way, and I'm happy you remember me as well. ^-^
