Arab-American groups claim Coke Super Bowl ad is 'racist'

Must not suggest that Arabs are mostly losers.  In fact, Arab countries would be nothing without oil money.  They produce very little else

Arab-American groups have sharply criticized a Coca-Cola Super Bowl ad depicting an Arab walking through the desert with a camel, and one group said it would ask the beverage giant to change it before CBS airs the game on Sunday before an expected audience of more than 100 million U.S. viewers.

Coca-Cola released an online teaser of the commercial last week, showing the Arab walking through a desert. He soon sees cowboys, Las Vegas showgirls and a motley crew fashioned after the marauders of the apocalyptic 'Mad Max' film race by him to reach a gigantic bottle of Coke.

'Why is it that Arabs are always shown as either oil-rich sheiks, terrorists, or belly dancers?' said Warren David, president of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, or ADC.

In its ad, Coke asks viewers to vote online on which characters should win the race. The online site does not allow a vote for the Arab character.

'The Coke commercial for the Super Ball is racist, portraying Arabs as backward and foolish Camel Jockeys, and they have no chance to win in the world,' Imam Ali Siddiqui, president of the Muslim Institute for Interfaith Studies, said in an email.

CBS declined comment. Coca-Cola spokeswoman Lauren Thompson said Coke took a 'cinematic' approach with the ad, employing the characters as a nod to movies of the past.

Source