What's In A Name?

Two weeks ago, a Dutch court ruled that one of Santa Claus' helpers, known as "Black Pete", was a negative stereotype of black people.  His thick red lips, fuzzy hairdo and black-face make-up, the court said, perpetuated a racist caricature that should not be tolerated in modern society.  Critics argue that "Black Pete" is a harmless fantasy figure, loved by children for generations - besides no harm was intended.  Banning "Black Pete" is political correctness gone mad they say.  Across the English Channel, another "beloved" character, the "gollywog" doll is also under threat.  Created in the late 19th century Victorian era, this rag doll had white-rimmed eyes, fuzzy hair, a clown smile and black skin.  It's popularity went well into the 1970's and even today, you'll find it in many toy stores in the English-speaking world.  Again, critics defend this cute children's toy - it's harmless, it's been around for 150 years, it's part of our heritage.  As far as I'm concerned, both "Black Peter" and "gollywog" should be cast out of the culture forever.  The argument that they weren't meant to be offensive is ridiculous - look at the period when they were born.  Even fifty years ago, black people around the world were commonly felt by Europeans and North Americans to be inferior to their white brothers and sisters in every way imaginable.  This ingrained, generational racism has gradually disappeared over time (In 2013, an English chef who used the term "gollywog"  in front of a black colleague was ruled guilty of racial harassment by the Court of Appeal.  The judges agreed that the term was inherently racist.)  but the vestiges linger on, all in the name of tradition and "We don't mean to offend".  Look at any movie from any Western country prior to 1950 and you'll see racial stereotypes - acceptable, normal - from "Stepin Fetchit and "redskin" in America to Gunga Din in Britain to "Black Pete" in Holland.  Check out the 1951 American "epic" - "When The Redskins Rode".  If you really want to experience what it's like to be the victim of racial stereotyping read "Equiano Travels " by Olaudah Equiano.  It was published in 1789 (the year of the French Revolution)  and it's still in print or on the internet.  Equiano, a slave transported to England, educated, treated like a "curio"   by polite society, wrote about his first look at a slave ship and white men when he was a child:  "When I was carried on board, I was handled and tossed up to see if I were sound by some of the crew.  I was now persuaded that I had gotten into a world of bad spirits and that they were going to kill me.  Their complexions too differing so much from ours, their long hair and the language they spoke.... I fell motionless on the deck and fainted.  When I recovered a little I found some black people about me.  I asked them if we were not to be eaten by those white men with horrible looks, red faces and loose hair."

So what's in a name?  If you or your ancestors had ever experienced racism, subtle or blatant, you intuitively recognize the hurt, the pain, the memories.  As for the rest of us, look up the meaning of the word "empathy".