Cruise captain accused of racism

In a comment captain Christopher Wells made in jest and with no apparent malice has nonetheless landed the British seaman in hot water. The captain was sailing a cruise ship to the Grand Cayman Islands and Antigua, Mexico, and consistent deckchair wars led the captain to make an announcement that upset some passengers of German descent.

Travellers on cruise ships and on beaches can usually attest to at least one experience of a German tourist ‘reserving’ a place on a beach, a chaise lounge or some other kind of sunning seat, by laying a towel or a personal item in their ‘spot’.

On the cruise ship in question, people that were reserving spots with towels were having them removed by staff (the towels are property of P&O after all) to discourage such practices, but to no avail. Repeated announcements by the captain were also ignored, after he said a 20-minute vacancy was as good as giving up the spot. He was led to this decision after many holidaymakers complained about al the chairs being occupied by only books or bags.

When he said, “We don’t want that kind of Germanic behaviour here!” the die was cast, and Wells was reported to human rights watchdogs for making racist comments. Evidently calling ‘em like he sees ‘em is racist, though a modicum of tact could have been in order.