George Floyd copper

Instant ban for these 2 stereo types.

 

we're (rightfully) mocking the situation but there will be those (who shall be nameless) that won't be happy...(left = humour bypass) for example...

 

I'm confused...
The picture on the left is Matt Lucas (a white man) playing a character called Precious (a black women) in the BBC comedy Come Fly With Me
The programme has been branded insensitive and racist. It has since been removed from streaming services.
The picture on the right is Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans (two black men) playing the characters Brittany and Tiffany Wilson (two white women) in the comedy film White Chicks
The film is still available on all streaming services.
My question... Why is one branded insensitive and racist and the other isn't?

 

You can always find humour even in the darkest times, even our old friend Covid-19 can generate humour.

 

Answer...'cos that's the crazy world we have sleepwalked in to...

 

Haven't you seen the news? It's black lives that matter only.

 

I'm not sure we've sleepwalked into it Tony, there have been warning signs for many a years but they were classed as odd balls and take no notice, someone needs to get some balls and stop these mass gatherings, even given they would normally have a right to protest these are not normal times they obviously have no respect for others.
Then again that IMO sum's today's modern society up, I'm alright Jack, and some were going ballistic with regards Dominic Cummings, strange how many are not criticising these gatherings.

 

Regarding the statues which serve as a (bad) memory to people. In this regard, shouldn't Auschwitz now be taken apart and deleted from memory?
(In my opinion, no it should not. It serves as living history of something that was terribly wrong.)

 

Anthony Joshua Stood at a protest and told people not to invest in white business.
He told people to invest in their own communities. What he should of said is ... stop smashing up your own communities.

He could have said LOOK AT ME! I stand here as a successful black multi millionaire and proof that I am not oppressed by the system.

He could have said the only time he was in trouble was when he engaged in drug dealing, criminality and gang culture and explained how the system supported him and gave him another chance fighting in the Olympics.

He could have explained how the British public were proud to support him whilst he represent his country at the Olympic Games ... he could have explained how by hard work anybody in this country can make it.

 

And he did it whilst getting paid by a company to wear their clothing brand, and yes it is owned by a white man. Do as I say not do as I do

 

Exactly and this is what I posted yesterday with regards what the Germans did to the Jews, Gypsies, Homosexuals, Disabled etc, and can the German kids of today be held responsible, 400 years ago was Colstons dealing in slavery was..

https://bantamtalk.com/index.php?threads/george-floyd-copper.3923/page-34#post-361969

 

Team Joshua ?.

 

This man is the 1st registered American slave owner.

 

Maybe it’s been doctored, but Wikipedia paints a different picture.

 

except slavery in America had been going for a lot longer than that.

 

Hence my 1st registered quote .

 

Agreed, it must remain. (Apologies to the other readers of this post, to whom the following reference will probably be incomprehensible, but you might recognise what I'm on about. In my opinion, the remains of the bombed-out buildings on Harju St. in Tallinn should have remained, as a memorial, rather than being paved over for cafe patios (and also, this year, a potato patch! (or was it wheat; I've forgotten what the owner planted this year).)

I think the way to deal with the problematic elements is to have associated with the statue, or site, explanatory signs / pamphlets / books / guides (as appropriate) available that lay out the details, in a neutral fashion, and thus give the visitors a chance to think about things in their own time.

So I would recover, repair, and re-erect the Colston statue, and others of historical figures that may now suffer the same fate, with the addition if necessary of suitable explanatory texts. People need to know history, warts and all.

Mind you, I feel somewhat differently about some other similar events, such as the removal of statues of Lenin & Stalin or Saddam Hussein from their places of public display. (I would have keep such in a nation's main museum(s), again with suitable explanatory texts.) The difference is that in those cases, it is the people themselves who suffered personally under those dictators, along with their children and grandchildren, doing the removing. Perhaps not an important enough difference for some, but for me it is.

Hmmm... I realise, having typed all that, that a reader could now justifiably say "Well then, put Colston and co. in museums as well." Perhaps that would indeed be the most appropriate solution.

RCB

 

The thing I have a little trouble with regarding this, though, was that the statues themselves went up in a time period that was completely unrelated to the life of the person it depicted. They weren’t put up until long after their death.

It can hardly be argued that they were a living part of history (as in your examples of Auschwitz and Tallinn) - and likewise I believe that their educational value is somewhat negligible. People have learned far more in taking their statue down than they ever learned while the statue was standing.

Given the fairly flimsy historical link, why should the state be expected to uphold these symbols of division (all statues are ultimately divisive, society is largely incapable of talking about history without pigeonholing into ‘goodies’ and ‘baddies’)?

There’s an argument there as to why we need statues at all. They’re not a problem government needs to step in and solve, and at best it’s going to create some kind of division whoever it is that is being commemorated. The state shouldn’t be in control of who we get to commemorate, and ultimately even if we don’t agree, continue to pay for their upkeep.

 

Starting with the ancient Greeks onwards, especially once they moved from idealism to realism in portraiture, we've had the tradition of commemorating our societies' worthies in public statuary; it is a tradition I want to see continued, and respected. Here is an example of a viable public-private partnership, in that the original commissioner of a commemorative statue may be a private individual, or the village / city / state, but the passing of time means that, inevitably, upkeep of said statue will fall on public rather than private hands. One erects the statue in good faith, and hopes subsequent generations will respect that. We need reminders of our history, and this is one way to keep that history alive.

It may be that subsequent generations find elements in these worthies' lives that are to be criticised. Here is where education comes in. One way is as I have mentioned: explanatory plaques set up with the commemorations; another is in the schools, where history should be (where it isn't) a compulsory subject from the earliest years onwards. Begin with natural history, and add in local, national, and world history as you go, taught dispassionately and without pandering to the latest faddy ideas. But put in both the good and the bad. Extras can be added in during the final year or so, and then pursued fully, if desired, at university. And if a student doesn't go on to uni., at least there will still have been a solid grounding.

Iconoclasm also has a long history. But it really doesn't teach anything other than that only one viewpoint is to be accepted -- so much for inclusiveness. Also, as we've now seen in Bristol, it suggests that violence and mob rule are the ways to go, which would be disastrous if not stopped. It's even worse if the police stand by, watching, and civic officials do not, unreservedly, condemn such events.

Alright, time to get off my soapbox! As you might guess, I'm firmly on the side of the statues.

RCB