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Donald Trump calls bankers 'Shylocks', drawing criticism for antisemitic term. (www.usatoday.com)

submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by Davriellelouna@lemmy.world to c/usa@midwest.social

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Shylock is a fictional Jewish money-lender invented by Shakespeare.

The story ends when Shylock is defeated and forced to abandon Judaism.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shylock

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[–] LetMeBeMe@lemmynsfw.com 5 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

It's a racist slur for a Jewish banker

[–] OccamsRazer@lemmy.world -1 points 10 hours ago (4 children)

Do you think Biden was also being racist when he used the term? Or was he using it in a more general sense, as a term to describe immoral and unethical bankers in general?

[–] goferking0@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 6 hours ago

This time? https://www.politico.com/story/2014/09/joe-biden-shylocks-reaction-111053

Pretty obviously him being racist

Biden used the term when he spoke at the 40th anniversary celebration for the Legal Services Corporation and referred to his son, Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, and his experience while in Iraq.

“People would come up to him and talk about what was happening to them at home in terms of foreclosures, in terms of bad loans that were being — I mean, these Shylocks who took advantage of these women and men while overseas,” Biden said.

[–] Bakkoda@sh.itjust.works 4 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

Yes. Biden is/was a known racist. What is your point or is it just what about ism?

[–] OccamsRazer@lemmy.world 1 points 20 minutes ago* (last edited 11 minutes ago)

Was he racist in 2014? While he was vice president to a black man? The point is that some terms that old people use don't mean the same thing to them that they do to average people today.

Edit: lol, oops. Yes, Obama is black and not Jewish. I guess Biden could be antisemitic and not racist against black people. Or I suppose he could be racist and still work closely with a black man and appear convincingly to be on good terms with him. In any event it doesn't prove much about Biden being antisemitic. I think he just used a dated term because he is old.

[–] Glytch@lemmy.world 5 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

Yes. More specifically, Biden was being antisemitic when he used an antisemitic term to describe a group of people, regardless of their behavior.

[–] OccamsRazer@lemmy.world 1 points 9 minutes ago

What if he used a term for crooked bankers to describe crooked bankers and didn't consider that it propagated harmful stereotypes?

[–] jacksilver@lemmy.world 2 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I had to look it up cause I didn't recall that Biden had used it. To be honest I think using the term probably falls into two categories in modern area; anitsemtic or way too old to be running anything.

[–] OccamsRazer@lemmy.world 1 points 23 minutes ago

I agree. There are a lot of terms like that. People used to use them commonly, but now there is more awareness of the harm in these stereotypes. A lot of old people have a hard time adjusting. Someone I know used to use the term cottonpicker until I pointed out how racist it is. Somehow he had never made the connection, which seemed crazy, but I actually believe him.