Does Television Feed Racism?

Television or, if you prefer, TV or, if you are from the north of England, telly, is very much a part of our lives. When we get home from work we switch on the telly. If we aren’t working say at the weekend, we get out of bed and, not infrequently, by the time we’re drinking our morning coffee the telly is on. Of course telly is no longer the be all and end all of entertainment in our homes. The internet has seen to that. Whether that is a good thing or not is open to debate but, just like the telly, the internet can ‘entertain’ but, whilst the telly can show ‘repeats’ of shows as far back as it wants you would go a long way before you could view ‘The Black And White Minstrels’ away from the internet. Telly doesn’t show any ‘Black And White Minstrel’ repeats – at least none of the original show when white singers ‘blacked up’.

‘The Black And White Minstrel Show’ was a staple of entertainment telly for anyone over 30 or so in the early 1970’s in Britain. Somewhere in the later 70’s it became ‘The George Mitchell Minstrels’ and the ‘blacked up’ faces vanished which was clearly no bad thing as quite why they had to be ‘blacked up’ in the first place was somewhat hard to explain to begin with. Perhaps it was a nod to the great black singers of the day but I doubt it. Rather more likely is the fact that 90+% of telly viewers in Britain in the early 70’s were considered white and those who weren’t were not up for consideration anyway.

The fact that many Asian immigrants from the previous 60’s decade and many African Caribbean’s from the even earlier 50’s decade were watching was, to telly planners in the early 70’s, an irrelevance. In fairness to said telly planners I doubt anybody outside of the Asian / African Caribbean communities even realised they might be watching back then. That, I suppose, was the way of things back then.

The shortest clip I could find on Youtube of the 60’s / 70’s ‘Black And White Minstrel Show’ is 1 minute and 51 seconds long so by all means have a quick look and switch the bloody thing off again eh? My parents and grandparents thought ‘The Black And White Minstrel Show’ rocked! It must be a generational thing then?

Still, everything can be ‘of its time’ can’t it? I’m sure there was no malice aforethought nor intent to offend people in Britain of a different colour. It wasn’t intended to be racist therefore it wasn’t would, I suppose, be the argument and, in fairness, there is probably much truth in that. It was though, rather clearly, somewhat disrespectful of black people – albeit an elderly chap I happened to mention that train of thought to some time ago suggested it was a compliment, although perhaps a somewhat ‘backhanded’ compliment, to the virtuosity of black people’s abilities regarding song and dance.

Of course, as there often is, there was a sort of ‘counter balance’ to this somewhat patronising attitude to black people back then. The immortal Warren Mitchell as indomitable racist ‘Alf Garnett’ in the British telly sitcom ‘Till Death Us Do Part’ sufficiently illustrates that point. America’s ‘Archie Bunker’ of ‘All In The Family’ was the American take on ‘Alf Garnett’ in case the mention of Alf has lost you.

I suppose the word just aforementioned – ‘patronising’ – is, perhaps, nearest to ‘the mark’. I think any racism was unintended in ‘The Black And White Minstrel Show’. The show was merely ‘of its time’ much like the Golly’s (previously called Golliwogs) on the Robinson’s jam and marmalade jars. Actually, I had a cuddly toy Golliwog as a child and, as far as I know, I didn’t relate it to black people and, to be honest, as I loved my Golliwog if I had related it I suspect I would have just loved black people and, possibly to their alarm, cuddled them at bedtime.

Time moves on apace does it not?

What was accepted regardless of its rightness or not in the 60’s and 70’s is not necessarily accepted in the 80’s or 90’s or, indeed, the 21st Century. Something done in innocence on telly in the 60’s, 70′ 80’s etc loses its innocence once it is correctly established as just plain wrong.

I have previously established that, along with Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman, Patsy Kensit and Suzi Quatro, Vanessa Paradis has long been established as one of my ‘fantasy figures’. I am actually considering setting up a campaign to have all naked pictures of Vanessa Paradis taken down from the internet as, quite honestly, apart from her former husband Johnny Depp and myself, nobody should ever be able to see Vanessa Paradis naked. I’m digressing again aren’t I? Sorry. Back to my point methinks.

I was startled and shocked that back in 1987 when my Vanessa – oh all right then! Mr Depp’s former Vanessa if you must – was merely 15 and enjoying success with the glorious ‘Joe le Taxi’ that the following video occurred on telly. It didn’t, as far as I know, occur on British telly, I think it was specifically in France whence she originates but even so, if the sometimes ‘slow on the uptake’ Brits can realise by the mid-70’s that ‘The Black And White Minstrel Show’ isn’t really acceptable the where, in 1987, does that leave the French?

I am also shocked that, across the globe in predominantly ‘white countries’ there are still, to this day, telly shows that are, at best, patronising to people with a sun tan. Excuse me? have I got stuck in a time warp and it’s really still 1973?

I have it on good authority that the French still have things like this occasionally popping up on their telly programmes. That is rather sad isn’t it although, in all honesty, I’m delighted really. It just goes to show that, as I’ve always thought, the Brits are much better than the French.

I will now retire to my bed thinking of Vanessa Paradis and humming ‘Joe le Taxi’ in my sleep. Don’t tell the wifey eh? Actually there’s a video of VP singing this and she’s got such a tight t-short on and no bra and – I’ll shut up now.

Anyway. Keep an eye on what’s on telly will you? Controversial is fine. Piss taking is fine. Stuff I don’t like but you do is fine. Stuff I like and you don’t is fine but singers and musicians who are white ‘blacked up’? Come ooooon! If humanity struggles to move beyond most things in general surely we’ve moved beyond this???

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