The laugh out loud viral BBC interview that took over the internet this weekend has sparked debate over racial stereotyping.
Professor Robert Kelly’s live television interview on the BBC about South Korea was going well until his two children interrupted.
When professor Kelly’s wife, Jung-a Kim, rushed into retrieve her children, many people assumed that she was the nanny.
An article on Time.com initially said “a frenzied nanny burst in, in a cartoon-like blur, and corrals the children out of the room”, according to The Guardian.
They have since updated the story.
Why did people assume the mother was the nanny?
The presumption that a woman who LOOKS LIKE HER KIDS is the NANNY, by people who presume everyone employs Asian STAFF is making me … #bbc pic.twitter.com/8VIZsKbRrR
— Meryl O’Rourke© (@MerylORourke) March 10, 2017
Top Comments
The woman has jet black hair and the kid has a light hair color.
I probably did not notice the race of the woman when I first saw the video.
Was probably busy thinking "did he forget to lock the door?"
Yes. I thought she was a maid, because maids are common in asia. My expat friends in Hong Kong, singapore, malaysia all have maids who care for their children. It's a simple mistake, no offence was intended. I'm thinking storm in a teacup here.