Aussie comedian Monty Franklin defended the use of the term ‘Mexican Wave’ in a TikTok video in February, claiming that it has an innocent origin. The comedian, who had moved to Los Angeles, realised that the term was not as common overseas as it was in Australia when he returned with his American wife.
Franklin explained that the term was coined in Australia and New Zealand and is used to describe the friendly sporting staple where crowds simulate the fluid motion of a moving wave. He attributed the introduction of the ‘Mexican’ description to the 1986 World Cup, where many around the world saw it for the first time.
Franklin noted that there were cultural differences between Australia and other countries, which he worked into his comedy.
He expressed surprise at how many things in Australia sound racist but are not, such as the Mexican wave. He stated that the term was created by “Krazy” George Henderson in 1981 during a Major League Baseball game, and it gained global prominence during the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
Franklin’s video has since been viewed more than one million times, and he received numerous messages from Mexicans who found the term hilarious but preferred to call it ‘La Ola,’ which is Spanish for ‘the wave.’
Franklin commented on other oddities he had discovered since moving to the US, such as Aussie cheese fries, which he had never heard of in Australia. As an Australian living in America, he said that he found many things that sounded odd and raised eyebrows, such as the term ‘flat white.’
»Aussie comedian Monty Franklin defends the use of the term ‘Mexican Wave’«
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