FAO Russell

[yanpa]

New Black Pete still in blackface
June 12, 2014 — After years of protests against the practice of white people in the Netherlands blacking up every December to play a character called Black Pete, a new Black Pete was unveiled this week. To more protests.

People of African descent in the Netherlands, and many white Dutch people, too, have for years protested the practice of white people blacking up every December to play the troublesome character they call Zwarte Piet (Black Pete; read our previous post about this character and the highly amusing defences of the apologists, here).

Last year, the complaints and protests went all the way to the UN, making it world news, which might be why officials decided it was time for change, despite the Dutch Prime Minister’s attempt to brush off the character as harmless.
...controversy continues...

[Russell]

Yep, dunno whether it was exactly a bright idea to make Zwarte Piet look more like black people.

Time to revert back to the old status, because the protests won't go away.

Actually, maybe they need a Japanese solution, that is, going beyond the old situation (like increasing the frequency of visits to Yasukuni shrine by J-politicians in the face of Chinese and SK protests).

I mean, maybe it is time to have Zwarte Piet put on some shackles.

OK, maybe not...

[Russell]

Dutch Court: "Black Pete" Is Negative Stereotype

An Amsterdam court says the figure known as "Black Pete" — the sidekick to the Dutch equivalent of Santa Claus — is a negative stereotype of black people and the city must rethink its involvement in holiday celebrations involving the figure.

Debate over Zwarte Piet has intensified in the Netherlands in recent years as opponents say the black clown with thick red lips and a frizzy Afro hairstyle is a racist caricature. Most Dutch people argue he is a harmless fantasy figure and say no insult is intended.

Thursday's ruling ordered the City of Amsterdam to re-examine its decision to grant a permit for an annual winter festival attended by thousands of children. In Dutch tradition, St. Nicholas arrives by steamboat with scores of Black Petes handing out presents.

More

Not sure whether this will change things in the short term, but it will likely lead to increased debate between the two sides. (which is how it should be)

[Russell]

UN surprised the Dutch don't see Zwarte Piet problem

A UN working party in the Netherlands to look at the position of people of African origin in the country said on Friday it is ‘surprised’ that so many people do not understand the ‘problem’ with Zwarte Piet.

‘We understand that Zwarte Piet is part of a long cultural tradition, but we do believe attention should be paid to this subject in education,’ the working party’s chairwoman Mireille Fanon-Mendes-France told a news conference on Friday.

The current discussion is a good step forward, broadcaster NOS quoted the committee as saying.

More

In the mean time the UN has recognized Nowruz, the Iranian New Year celebrations, that feature Hajji Firuz, the Iranian equivalent of Blackface, to be included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.

LOL. Talking about double standards...

[Russell]

Blackface Continues in Japan

Above, you can see a photo the members of Momoiro Clover Z, one of Japan's most famous idol acts, and long-time pop group Rats & Star. And this is apparently how they'll appear on Japanese television next month.

[...]

Blackface, of course, refers to people who are not black painting their faces. In the United States, there is a long history of blackface being used in minstrel shows during the 19th and 20th century to mock black people and perpetuate racial stereotypes.

But this isn't the U.S., right? It's Japan. There aren't many black people. (Hell, there aren't many white people.) There are lots and lots of Japanese people. This is a country that is 98.5 percent Japanese (that doesn't mean there are not Japanese of mixed descent, as there are). Among the minorities, 0.5 percent are Korean, 0.4 percent are Chinese, and 0.6 percent are "other."

This appropriation speaks to a larger series of issues with how non-Japanese are depicted by the Japanese mass media, whether that's black people, white people, brown people, or any of the non-Japanese Asians living in the country—groups that rarely factor into the national discourse because their numbers are so small.

[...]

On March 7, Momoiro Clover Z and Rats & Star will appear together in blackface on Music Fair.

More

At least the Dutch have a good reason to do blackface...

[matsuki]

Another testament to Japan's rich history of racial sensitivity.

[Taro Toporific]

... members of Momoiro Clover Z, one of Japan's most famous idol acts, and long-time pop group Rats & Star. And this is apparently how they'll appear on Japanese television next month.
On March 7, Momoiro Clover Z and Rats & Star will appear together in blackface on Music Fair.
More

Tonight was the scheduled Minstrel ShowNo-Show.

https://twitter.com/ThatDanRyan/status/574212489899986944

Screen Shot 2015-03-08 at 1.28.18 AM.png

[Coligny]

image.jpg

http://www.tylervigen.com

To cheer up sleepless nightz...

[Samurai_Jerk]

More of the same ....

Japan's blackface problem: the country's bizarre, troubled relationship with race

When Japanese actor Koichi Yamadera appeared on the popular variety show Monomane Battle in 2009 to perform the classic "What a Wonderful World," it was likely meant as a tribute to the American jazz tradition that still has a small, dedicated following in Japan. Yamadera, in apparent affection for the jazz master Louis Armstrong who popularized the song, did something that would have elicited gasps in the US but raised only polite applause from his totally unfazed Japanese audience. He put on full, unironic blackface:

It wasn't just him: Japanese singers imitating African-American performers have done this often. Baye McNeil, a black American writer who has lived in Japan for a decade, told me he found the blackface appalling — but didn't think it was worth wasting too much time on in a country he loves, despite suffering from routine racism.

"These singers were some old guys doing niche music and weren't that terribly popular, so it wasn't like they were in my face all the time," McNeil told me.

But McNeil lost his patience last month when members of a popular mainstream Japanese group posed for the promotional photo that appears at the top of this page. In it, the members of girl band Momoiro Clover Z grin in full blackface alongside old crooners Rats & Star, who have been performing in paint since the 1980s. The two bands were set to appear together on Fuji TV, a major network.

It was Black History Month, and McNeil had had enough. He was not going to let prominent young pop stars pass what he called the "baton of ignorance" to Japan’s next generation on national television.

He organized a petition on Change.org to get Fuji TV to drop the segment. Combined with an avalanche of tweets hashtagged #StopBlackfaceJapan, it worked: the show "Music Fair" aired on March 7 without the blackface performance.

But as McNeil knows all too well, this episode was only part of a much larger problem with race in Japan, a problem that cannot be quickly fixed with a petition. To Americans, and indeed most people, it’s pretty obvious that blackface is extremely racist. How could the Japanese, as well-educated as they often are, tolerate this practice? The answer goes way beyond mere ignorance of blackface's ugly history, to a powerful national belief in Japan's ethnic purity that leaves the country incapable of dealing with its race issues.

[wagyl]

I am sure most of you are aware what internet name Baye McNeil uses... and through that knowledge know his state of mind and location.

[Samurai_Jerk]

I am sure most of you are aware what internet name Baye McNeil uses... and through that knowledge know his state of mind and location.

No clue.

[wagyl]

Baye McNeil = Loco in Yokohama (he makes no secret of it), so this is just a rechurning of the original news.

[Samurai_Jerk]

Baye McNeil = Loco in Yokohama (he makes no secret of it), so this is just a rechurning of the original news.

This is the only non-work related site other than news sites and Facebook I use regularly.

[wagyl]

If you have to limit your access, I think you have chosen well, but I would ramp down the FB and "news" sites

[Samurai_Jerk]

If you have to limit your access, I think you have chosen well, but I would ramp down the FB and "news" sites

I lied. I also use Sp@ankw!r3 pretty regularly.

[matsuki]

More of the same ....

I wonder if they use "bojangles" in their music at all...

[Russell]

To Americans, and indeed most people, it’s pretty obvious that blackface is extremely racist.

The Dutch have pretty much exposure to American culture, but to them it used to be not very obvious at all. (Well, after all the uproar from abroad about that nice Dutch tradition, they are now surely aware (but won't repent, because zwarte Piet has a different meaning in the Netherlands))

So, you can't really blame the Japanese playing for a Japanese audience for being unaware of these sensitivities. In the end the Japanese are probably more aware of traditions in U.S. culture than the other way around.

[Coligny]

To Americans, and indeed most people, it’s pretty obvious that blackface is extremely racist.

The Dutch have pretty much exposure to American culture, but to them it used to be not very obvious at all. (Well, after all the uproar from abroad about that nice Dutch tradition, they are now surely aware (but won't repent, because zwarte Piet has a different meaning in the Netherlands))

So, you can't really blame the Japanese playing for a Japanese audience for being unaware of these sensitivities. In the end the Japanese are probably more aware of traditions in U.S. culture than the other way around.

'Murka where it's OK to shoot but not to make fun of black people...

[matsuki]

To Americans, and indeed most people, it’s pretty obvious that blackface is extremely racist.

The Dutch have pretty much exposure to American culture, but to them it used to be not very obvious at all. (Well, after all the uproar from abroad about that nice Dutch tradition, they are now surely aware (but won't repent, because zwarte Piet has a different meaning in the Netherlands))

So, you can't really blame the Japanese playing for a Japanese audience for being unaware of these sensitivities. In the end the Japanese are probably more aware of traditions in U.S. culture than the other way around.

'Murka where it's OK to shoot but not to make fun of black people...

[wagyl]

You want to read it in Dutch? You pay!

[Russell]

You want to read it in Dutch? You pay!

Being a Dutchman, I do not need to tell you what language I read it in.

NRC is one of the better newspapers in the Netherlands, but unfortunately more of it is disappearing behind a paywall.

Anyways, very nice article. Thanks for the link!

Now I will try to figure out whether my old man went to that same school.

[wagyl]

[kurogane]

So is that lefty satire? Couldn't understand a word but it seemed well done, and I am quite sure that except for the usual necon whinebabies most Danes will get a good giggle from it. Even those ones smart enough to see the closed door policy is by far the best of far too many shitty options. If all the cat lady lobbyists and their elected toadies could actually think instead of just feeling they could present a united front, and get the poor beggars some tents, stoves and blankets so they can stay where they belong. And maybe some nice rifles for all those spineless 20fuckthing crybaby pissants running away instead of fighting for their homeland. I piss on their Aloha Snackbar bacon sandwiches.

An interesting and surprisingly rational and humane idea:
EU seeks to persuade refugees to wait for free flights to safe countries

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/wor ... e26975355/

That should help quiet all those idjits claiming that every single one of them is a welfare hunter, save a lot of pain and hardship and help keep the gates closed, or at least enable some proper gatekeeping. Smart money says the young men will still complain about the quality of the in flight meals.

[Russell]

Starts out well.

But gradually goes down the drain...

Yep, you criticasters of Zwarte Piet are equal to the Khmer Rouge!

[Takechanpoo]

i highly doubt about regarding blackface, brownface or yellowface itself as offensive or racism. the point is what kind of the context it is used in. at least the blackface of rats & star has not been used in negative context. i dont think its offensive as well as racism. Baye McNeil is wrong about it

this song reminds me of my little child days. its one of the representative j-pop songs in the late showa era.

[Samurai_Jerk]

i highly doubt about regarding blackface, brownface or yellowface itself as offensive or racism. the point is what kind of the context it is used in. at least the blackface of rats & star has not been used in negative context. i dont think its offensive as well as racism. Baye McNeil is wrong about it

this song reminds me of my little child days. its one of the representative j-pop songs in the late showa era.

Either way their shitty soulless performance is far more of an affront to black people that their ridiculous face paint.

[Takechanpoo]

Either way their shitty soulless performance is far more of an affront to black people that their ridiculous face paint.

your and other white fellows' sense of guilt toward blacks make you think like that, asshole. this song is of showa era full of souls.

[Russell]

Either way their shitty soulless performance is far more of an affront to black people that their ridiculous face paint.

your and other white fellows' sense of guilt toward blacks make you think like that, asshole. this song is of showa era full of souls.

Ah Takechan, you're wasting your time.

I would've thought that by now you would've posted about the latest Japanese Nobel prize...

[Grumpy Gramps]

No, I think tihs is all about Japanese culture. Deep...

[Samurai_Jerk]

Either way their shitty soulless performance is far more of an affront to black people that their ridiculous face paint.

your and other white fellows' sense of guilt toward blacks make you think like that, asshole. this song is of showa era full of souls.

No my love of good music makes me think that.