Racism on TV

[LittleMy]

I think it’s censorship being taken too far now. I didn’t personally like Little Britain anyway, but that’s besides the point. Shall we just ban everything in case it may offend someone out there? The examples given weren’t even done maliciously. Shows like Little Britain feature characters of all races, cultures, abilities.

 

[DoctorWho]

But white chicks won’t be taken down because it’s not racist if it’s a ‘white face’

 

[Oohthedrama]

Ant and dec really need to apologise for
1) driving under the influence
2) let’s get ready to rumble.

 

[Boredinstagrammer29]

That’s exactly what it feels like. Why not then? Why now?

Because there is a movement happening where black people are finally being listened to.
it has always been offsenive but people were gaslighted POC by being told things such as ‘don’t be so sensitive’ or ‘they’re not even racist it’s just a joke’

this also stands for other races as Ant and Dec’s Japanese impersonation has been removed too.

black facing never has and never will be funny.

You could contact Netflix or Sky about showing Netflix?

Just out of interest is anyone who has commented so far black?

 

[Blade Runner]

Keith Lemon has also apologised. He owes us all an apology just for being on TV

 

[KateESJ]

This is so tone deaf it hurts to read...

that user has made their distaste for the whole movement obvious before. Easier just to scroll past!

Carry on laughing, I think for myself, I don't jump on bandwagons.

By the time you all wake up, it will be too late.

bAnDwAgOn

If you think it's a bandwagon then you're part of the problem.

 

[hrh89]

I was a bit surprised to see Little Britain removed from streaming services. Just seen Netflix has now taken down League of Gentlemen and Mighty Boosh?? Is this getting a bit ridiculous? I’ve never thought of either of those shows as racist. I’m assuming with LOG it’s the Papa Lazarou character. I thought he was just supposed to be the complete antithesis of a happy entertaining circus clown? He’s not meant to be a black character. Am I super uneducated? What do you guys think?

 

[AliceD369]

It's all getting out of hand, this is the UK, why are we pandering to the minority?

Our historic statues are being removed, this is our history, for those that don't like it, either don't look or move elsewhere.

Half of the idiots protesting haven't a clue why they are doing it, just jumped on the bandwagon.

What next shall we change,
White wedding, white as snow, snow white, The White House etc etc
It's ridiculous, they are trying to wipe out our heritage & history.

Saw a couple of horrific videos on Twitter this morning, one a White officer being beaten up by a black man, where's the outrage.

The 2nd was a old black lady sitting on the tube being kicked in the face and head by a black man, where's the outrage

Just glad I won't be around in 30yrs,but I fear for my kids & grandkids growing up in what could well become a 3rd world country with people so feral running around attacking & killing each other.

More riots to come this weekend, all over a criminal who was a nasty piece of work dying 4000 miles away.

This is so tone deaf it hurts to read...

 

[Basicbasic]

So going forward what will happen? your going to have to hire a black person to do the black sketch.

Or maybe don't have sketches which make fun of people of colour, disabled, or any other minority? Blackface is rooted in caricature and racism. Just like drag is offensive to women as it depicts us all as overly made up tarts. Some of the comments on this thread are shocking, and to think social media is full of people saying there's no racism in the UK.

Why hasn't it been brought up before? Well maybe because black voices and the voices of the disabled are always ignored. No one listens. Even now blm is drowned out by mainly white people removing statues of racists because they have more of powerful voice and footprint. Of course, it's people of colour who are being attacked for the removal of statues.

Seriously, if any of you don't have an issue with blackface then please understand that you are racist. Go away and reflect. Read up on the history of it, why it's offensive, instead posting on a forum when you can easily Google the answers to inane questions like 'why are people offended though hun?'.

 

[Yel]

Has Matt Lucas made any comment yet?

The fat fighters stuff pretending not to understand an Indian accent or puking when someone with a foreign sounding name were jokes at the expense of racist bigoted people.

 

[Boredinstagrammer29]

Right I’m going get off here for now to take my mixed race self off get ready to celebrate my anniversary tonight with my Turkish partner. We’re going enjoy a Japanese made sushi take away which I’ll drive to collect in my French made car this evening.
It’s even more special as he got me to hospital in time a couple of weeks ago which could have been fatal but I’m on the mend (I was looked after by nurses and doctors from all over the world. So grateful for them)
Ahhh isn’t diversity wonderful

 

[Platypusfattypus]

You write as if we are unaware of what is happening. I'm loving the changes, the discussion, the fact that hatred isn't being tolerated. I'm excited to see where this goes and that my children and grandchildren have a better world to live in. This isn't getting rid of history, this is history in the making and its brilliant.

 

[Platypusfattypus]

You do realise that taking down a statue doesn't erase history? I imagine the majority of us know who Hitler and the third reich were? And Jimmy Saville? I'd bet a lot of money that the majority of people didn't even know who these statues were of until they were taken down so I'd say its done wonders for education. If we are that worried we will forget all about these slavers and imperialists we should get behind a movement to overhaul the history curriculum to include slavery and the British empire and the cost of it all. I'd get behind that

 

[Platypusfattypus]

I don’t tweet sorry I don’t understand it

Just remembered an episode of LoveThy Neighbour from the 70s and the black man whites up and pretends to be a flat cap wearing northerner in one episode, so should I be horrified one because a black man was pretending to be white and two because I’m from Lancashire, actually I’m neither.

Only if being a white northern man had the history of oppression and dehumanisation that black people had. Which it doesn't.

Blackface is offensive. Its not for us to argue that it isn't, that it's fine if you don't mean offence, or that there is two occasions of whiteface that you may or may not be offended by.

The reasons why blackface is so offensive

Minstrel shows might not happen anymore, but blackface still appears in countless ways

www.independent.co.uk

 

[Luce0331]

What I don’t understand is why all these programmes are suddenly offensive, weren’t they racist all those years ago when they first broadcast? Just feels like jumping on the bandwagon

 

[TescoSainsburys]

I haven’t seen an episode of Tom and Jerry in years and years however, so I don’t know what the adult me would think but... I’ve just been reading and article and i had absolutely no idea (based on my childhood memories) that the lady who walks about telling Thomas off was a maid, I have always assumed up until 10 minutes ago, that it was her house and her cat.

 

[Pinchme]

It's all getting out of hand, this is the UK, why are we pandering to the minority?

Our historic statues are being removed, this is our history, for those that don't like it, either don't look or move elsewhere.

Half of the idiots protesting haven't a clue why they are doing it, just jumped on the bandwagon.

What next shall we change,
White wedding, white as snow, snow white, The White House etc etc
It's ridiculous, they are trying to wipe out our heritage & history.

Saw a couple of horrific videos on Twitter this morning, one a White officer being beaten up by a black man, where's the outrage.

The 2nd was a old black lady sitting on the tube being kicked in the face and head by a black man, where's the outrage

Just glad I won't be around in 30yrs,but I fear for my kids & grandkids growing up in what could well become a 3rd world country with people so feral running around attacking & killing each other.

More riots to come this weekend, all over a criminal who was a nasty piece of work dying 4000 miles away.

 

[Platypusfattypus]

People get more offended by being called racist then they do about racism

 

[Platypusfattypus]

I am not offended but to be fair I have always said there are only 2 kinds of people in this world, good and bad what race nationality or religion people are is irrelevant, respect should be universal.

Yes in an ideal world it should be. However as a white woman my skin colour has never put me at a disadvantage nor meant I am disproportionately more likely to die. Yes white people can experience discrimination and racism and that should not happen but they do not face the same institutional and systemic disadvantage that black people do.

 

[Horatio]

I feel exactly the same as you tbh LOG's papa lazarou and the boosh's spirit of jazz are both brilliant bizzare other worldly creations to my eyes, I can't imagine Pemberton, Shearsmith, Gatis or Noel Fielding and Julian Barrett having nasty racist intentions when they wrote them but as you say we could be wrong .

This is the first I’ve heard of this. I’m not usually a fan of blindly removing things in this way because it doesn’t serve to educate and rather fuels the ‘PC gone mad’ brigade who deny racism is an issue at all.
I quote your post because I do think it’s important to say “nasty intentions” are beside the point in issues like this. It’s not that the creators of these shows outright hated black people - racism is rarely in that form these days. It’s more that it was so woven into the fabric of our society, to find it funny to paint your face black and clown around as something strange and exotic which is the result of what started as minsterly, essentialy a de humanising of a black person for white entertainment. Again none of this is supposed to go through the minds of the mighty boost or little Britain writers, it’s supposed to be unconcjous.

So I will repeat that I don’t support removing things in this way, especially something as borderline as this appears to be. But at the same time what people intend is rarely the point. And actually we all have subconscious biases it’s healthy to try to confront when we can.