Tuesday, 22 September 2009

Me likee McFlied Lice!

McDonalds in Japan have a new advertisement campaign with one Mr. James as star. He is a stereo-typical Caucasian businessman in Japan and can't speak Japanese. Oh, Mr. James!



The adverts are on TV, billboards, flyers, on trays. Basically everywhere McDonalds can get, just like here. To me this is a very realistic example of someone trying to learn Japanese and quite funny. However a group in Japan called the Foreign Residents and Naturalized Citizens Association (FRANCA), has written an open letter (of which can be found here) to the McDonald's HQ in the US to shut down the ad campaign.

Among other points they say:
"To illustrate the issue more clearly, would McDonald’s USA (or McDonald’s in any other country, for that matter) choose to promote, for example, a new rice dish with a “ching-chong Chinaman” saying, “Me likee McFlied Lice!”? Of course not."

Personally I think FRANCA should just learn to laugh and get over it. It will blow over soon enough.

'The Escapist' (from whom I borrowed this post) said 'Baka gaijin!'(Silly foreigner) of Mr. James. Perhaps it applies to FRANCA more aptly?!

Till next time!

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