South African DJ, comedian and host Darryl Rees. SUPPLIED

Seven Filipinos in Dubai have accused comedian Darryl Rees of racist remarks against them during a recent visit to a restobar in the emirate that ended up with the group walking out. Speaking to Expatmedia.net, Dubai-based architect Ryan (full name withheld) said he and six of his friends left upset during the Quiz Night hosted by Rees at Urban Bar and Kitchen (UBK) in JLT, which included what he called targeted harassment toward their table of Asian men. “He was making rude and racist jokes at us right from the start. He did this only to our group, which made us very uncomfortable especially since we were the only Asians in the crowd,” Ryan said. Rees has denied the allegation, telling Expatmedia.net: “I’m shocked to hear this as I was never rude or racist to the group.” He did not elaborate further as of this publication. In a statement to Expatmedia.net, UBK confirmed that the incident happened on June 28, adding that it was "truly disheartened" about the recent incident with the third-party performer. The South African DJ, host and comedian allegedly made a number of racist jokes that Ryan described as perpetuating offensive stereotypes. “When he asked for our group name during quiz night, he said, ‘Your group name should be Gang Bang,’ We were shocked beyond words. He also said, ‘I know you guys can’t go out much.’ Did he think we couldn’t afford to go out? He gave demeaning laughter after every statement,” Ryan told Expatmedia.net. Ryan said his group walked out after Rees’ tirade. “He said 'The next question goes out to the non-intelligent group (while pointing and looking at us). I don’t know why I directly looked at you guys’. He then gave a demeaning laugh,” Ryan said. The Filipino said his group tore their quiz paper in protest and reported the incident to the restobar’s manager, who apologized. He said that initially Rees was unapologetic when he was called to explain. “He said we should not have come if we are sensitive,” Ryan said. “Then as we were making our way out, he came after us to say, ‘Guys, hope you don’t take this seriously’, and apologized,” Ryan said. He said that the incident ruined their evening, but that he is thankful that the restobar manager acted quickly to diffuse the situation and offered them complimentary drinks. A staff member confirmed the incident to Expatmedia.net, adding that Rees has been reprimanded following the incident. In a statement to Expatmedia.net, UBK said: "At UBK, we strongly encourage a warm and inclusive atmosphere for guests to enjoy and foster an inclusive work environment with employees welcomed from countries all around the world. We were therefore truly disheartened to hear about recent guest experience that occurred during Quiz Night last week. Our main focus at UBK is always our guests and we take these matters very seriously. We are working very closely with the team to ensure all third-party performers hired to represent UBK are in keeping with our ethos of being an inclusive and inviting venue for everyone." Meanwhile, Ryan urged comedians to have ethical responsibility against insensitive remarks and "be more careful with their jokes". “As my friend pointed out to Rees, jokes are supposed to be funny and not demeaning to anyone,” he said. PIA/ICA/Expat Media
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