German UNICEF ad puts kids in blackface at Racialicious - the intersection of race and pop culture

German UNICEF ad puts kids in blackface

by Carmen Van Kerckhove

What do you think of this UNICEF ad campaign currently running in Germany?

According to the blog Black Women in Europe (where you can also see the other 3 ads in the series), the translation is as follows:

The headline translates “This Ad-campaign developped pro bono by the agency Jung von Matt/Alster shows four german kids who appeal for solidarity with their contemporaries in Afrika”

The first kid says:

“I’m waiting for my last day in school, the children in africa still for their first one.”

second kid:

“in africa, many kids would be glad to worry about school”

third kid:

“in africa, kids don’t come to school late, but not at all” (!)

fourth kid:

“some teachers suck. no teachers sucks even more.”

Hat tip to TAN.

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Breaking Rumors, News, Truemors on 22 Jul 2007 at 1:01 pm

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Comments

inciquay wrote:

Um, why does that kid have a big shit-eating grin in his/her face? None of the statements that are on these ads are anything to smile about.

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 1:40 pm ¶
mamazilla wrote:

omg. that’s awful - the ads, the so called apology, etc….

i just read the latest post on this and apparently, the ad campaign has been dropped because “it was explicitly developed for the g8 summit”. (??!!) (not because it was racist or anything…)

and apparently, after testing public reaction with the german public they received no negative comments so that’s why they ran it. (??!!) (because surely no one in canada, france, germany, italy, japan, russia, th uk or the us would find this remotely disturbing…)

it’s also interesting that they had originally planned to use adults in blackface and not children. things that make you go hmmm…

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 2:47 pm ¶
brunsli wrote:

Hmmm….

On the one hand, between Germans and Africans, the “blackface baggage” may not exist. On the other hand, on a global scale, being in blackface does have a tangible significance and this is an ad by a global organization.

Plus, there is a lot more to being African than having a brown face. Not to mention that European children without exposure to people of African descent often exclaim that they are “dirty” upon seeing them for the first time. These kids are not black; they are dirty.

UNICEF should have known better.

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 2:57 pm ¶
Charles wrote:

Question born out of my global ignorance: while Americans are well aware of the loaded historical significance of whites-in-blackface, is it possible that many european countries are unaware of such history and significance which might alter the equation to some degree?

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 3:03 pm ¶
mireille wrote:

Words can not describe how patronizing this ad is. It asserts the only way that western children can have solidarity with ‘uneducated’ Africans is by smearing mud on their face. I am sick to DEATH of this pan-african crap. YES many parts of Africa are in extreme need of better education, but this kind of ignorant “poor poor little dirty brother Africa” rhetoric is sickening.

I’d like to add here that I’m writing this in my college library, surrounded by many people from the huge landmass that is Africa who use community college as a cost-effective way to transfer to good American schools (like many Europeans, Asians, Latin Americans and Americans). I’d like to note that they are not covered in mud but are indeed studying and/or watching youtube videos. Some of them are refugees who went to high school in the States, but many of them also are students who went to school in their native countries and came here for the American college experiance…like a lot of Europeans.

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 3:29 pm ¶
really wrote:

I am so mad, I do not think I can fully articulate what I am feeling right now, Africa this, Africa that, there are motherfucking 50+ countries in Africa. And that child with a painted face just makes me want to smack someone and drive over every single person that approved the ad. I cannot believe the friggin U.N approved this,oh oh, arggggghhh, gah!!!!!!!!

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 3:50 pm ¶
Brioche wrote:

Global ignorance cannot be an excuse for UNICEF, Germans or Americans. It is a crime that someone in UNICEF would think the ad ok. It is amazing that there were no complaints from Germans who are the most internationally traveled people in the world and overall well-educated. One would expect Germans would have an appreciation of the negative images these ads portray would be part of their global understanding. And Americans who are probably the least internationally traveled people have a poor record of getting outside of themselves or culture. If we imagined our faces portrayed in whiteface, blackface, yellowface, redface or any other color that is not our natural color, or even better to live for a day in another skin color, it might go a long way in appreciating that others have different experiences other than our own.

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 4:05 pm ¶
Wendi Muse wrote:

re: blackface in europe…

blackface also has a history in europe…as well as a multitude of stereotypes surrounding africans, many of which helped legitimize the slave trade (lest we forget where white slave-owning americans had roots…hello, europe?…p.s. this is not an attack on white people, before y’all get started…i am just saying, america and europe at the time slave trading in the americas got going were not culturally separate entities)… oh and how could we forget colonialism?

the stereotypes that fostered both of those institutions of oppression most certainly had media to back them up…so i don’t think it’s safe to assume that europe is ignorant of black stereotypes or even blackface…b/c they certainly aren’t…

wikipedia does a good job outlining blackface around the world:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackface

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 4:16 pm ¶
Sharon wrote:

I’d like to share the email with you that I wrote to Unicef Germany (19.07.07), copied to Unicef US, Media Watch organisations etc.
Thought it might help out on the German / European context of white children colouring their faces in solidarity with ‘African’ children…

The response I received didn’t address any of the points I raised.

_______________________

Colleagues,

I, as many people, have been shocked and disgusted by the advertising
campaign featuring German (white) children ‘blacked up’ in sympathy
for their ‘African’ counterparts. I have used my networks to forward
the link to your campaign as widely as possible, so there can be
absolutely no mistake or misunderstanding on your part - the advert is
unacceptable, and many people of all ethnicities within Germany and
outside are agreed about this. The Unicef Schools for Africa campaign
racist and patronising. I am pleased to hear it has been removed from
the Unicef website, however a lot of damage has been done.

Even in the response to the criticism, the German Committee for UNICEF
has displayed a profound lack of judgement and awareness of the
effects of racial and cultural stereotyping. It simply isn’t good
enough to make sweeping judgements about “the children in Africa”,
“the schools in Africa”, “the teachers in Africa”… Africa is a
vast continent, as varied and diverse as any other continent in the
world - perhaps even more so.

I would like more information about the discussions that were had
surrounding the possible misinterpretations of the advertisment - what
was there to misinterpret? In your advert you are showing that
children from Germany are white (that German = white) - and these
white children show solidarity with African children, presumably all
Black, by colouring their faces - please explain?

From the little I know about some aspects of white German culture
(Children’s Book Struwwelpeter springs to mind) being Black is seen to
be something of a curse, something to be pitied, “they can’t help it
if they are Black” - so perhaps these white children colouring their
faces shows solidarity for how unfortunate it is to be Black? It
isn’t clear to me, or other people I have discussed this with, how
else to interpret this visual statement.

And now that this error in judgement has occurred, what is the public
relations exercise going to look like in order to correct the
misinformation that has been spread by this campaign? In the UK it is
common for apologies to be carried in the newspapers were those errors
occured. I would suggest this as a possible way forward. I would
suggest that these apologies should be as large as the original
adverts, that they contain a proper explanation about why the adverts
were offensive and finally, that Unicef at all levels of the
organisation and in every national committee agrees unequivocally on
this advertising campaign should simply not have happened.

I look forward to your response.

Sharon Otoo

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 7:04 pm ¶
michelle wrote:

I am surprised by the reaction to this ad.

Yes, I am offended by the ad but only based on the fact that I am a woman of color in America. However, UNICEF is a global organization. Not every country has a fascination with “blackface” the way that we do as Americans. This ad apparently was not meant to run in America. And in the innocent mind of children, I can see how this ad would make sense. Again, the ad seems to be posit itself as coming from the perspective of a child, not an adult. If this is a way that German children can see themselves as a part of the struggle for a better world for all children, then maybe it is not such a bad campaign, from that persepctive.

Look, there are many things wrong with this ad, but did they really know better? Or have the necessary training and cultural sensitivity to know better. Are we perhaps being a little egotistical in our America-ness. Why should we assume that the rest of the world gets why this ad is so outlandish? If this ad ran in America I would want to tear down the walls of whoever responsible, but it was not for America. I guess I can see both sides of the issue. And they were really trying to do some good, weren’t they?

From what many people on this site have said about Black Americans needing a more global perspective and how we are obsessed with race, I am shocked that people are so offended by this UNICEF ad.

Posted 19 Jul 2007 at 9:16 pm ¶
muslim_gal wrote:

Charles: They’re aware of the history behind it. They just choose to ignore it and display their prejudices anyway because its much more acceptable to be outwardly racist in Europe than America and such racism is even seen as harmless. What you see here is nothing new and believe me, there have been worse! As a black person, when you complain about such things your often told a few things in European countries:

1) you have a chip on your shoulder
2) if you don’t like it you can go back to where your from (even if your born and bred there)
3) freedom of speech (thus meaning that such racism and prejudice is acceptable because they’re only speaking they’re mind)

I’m British myself but having been to many western European countries- incl. Germany (i have no intention of going to eastern Europe because they kill people like myself over there on the regular), racism is much more flagrant and openly acceptable. Some close friends of mine was born and raised in Germany and neighboring countries like Netherlands and France- but now live in U.K- and they’re regularly got called chocolate, n’words at school, work and other aspects of life and it seen as ok. They complain, it gets dismissed. If a teacher or pupil called a black kid, chocolate, over stateside or britain, they’d be expelled and in serious trouble. Its just so common that much of the people in these countries see it as almost harmless, like friendly. To the white Germans, a white kid being slapped on with a blackface on an ad is not deemed offensive. Now try that same ish with a jew and boy, they wont know what hit them (and such a campaign would not even be conceivable). Its a case with one form of racism being acceptable while another isnt and racism towards blacks is deemed perfectly fine.

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 3:40 am ¶
muslim_gal wrote:

If you guys find this ad offensive, let me tell you its only the scratch of the surface.

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 3:43 am ¶
squidfly wrote:

#10.
I’m surprised, that you’re not surprised…shocked that your not shocked.
Blackface is Blackface, that’s all there is to it, no matter what country you reside in.
Blackface has a European history dating back to the mid 18th C.

Many Black were sent to concentration camps; the artist Valaida Snow for example.

This is why white children ask…does it rub off?

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 11:49 am ¶
WomunOfColour wrote:

michelle: Why do you assume that only Americans find this offensive?

Imagine that someone of a different race put on makeup and dressed up as your “race” to show solidarity with you. Is that person really showing solidarity, or is the person dressing up as a caricature?

“And in the innocent mind of children, I can see how this ad would make sense. Again, the ad seems to be posit itself as coming from the perspective of a child, not an adult. If this is a way that German children can see themselves as a part of the struggle for a better world for all children, then maybe it is not such a bad campaign, from that persepctive.”

This is even worse if it’s intended for the innocent minds of children. What would a black German kid think? Would s/he not need to smear mud on his/her face because s/he is already black? Would s/he already understand the struggles of being uneducated in “Africa” because s/he is black?

As for the white German children, you’d be teaching them at a young age that “seeing themselves as part of the struggle” is what’s important, not actually being part of the struggle. Once again, good intentions are valued higher than actual effects.

UNICEF is a global organization, which is why it’s even more wrong. As the linked Black Women in Europe blogger says: “Bottom lines of this campaign are: Black = mud = African = uneducated. White = educated.”

The problems with these ads are not only within an American perspective.

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 11:54 am ¶
Kai wrote:

The outrage here is not an American hypersensitivity; this has to do with global white supremacy. Let’s remember that Europe is the birthplace of white supremacist imperialism, which used ideas and images like those advanced in this ad campaign to bolster notions of the white man’s burden to colonize and civilize people of color the world over.

In the realm of modern sports alone, I know that German newspapers used blackface depictions and the n-word to portray Jesse Owen (in the runup to the Berlin Olympics) and Joe Louis (before his second fight with Max Schmeling) as primitive black boys, in contrast with heroic strength and noble intelligence of whites. So let’s be clear: Germans know all about blackface. Let’s be clear on where American white racism came from.

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 12:47 pm ¶
Lahari wrote:

“in africa, kids don’t come to school late, but not at all” (!)

also, in addition to the offensive blackface, the ads are not true. free primary education was introduced in kenya in 2003, allowing millions of kids to go to school.

africa isn’t just one huge mass of “blackness.”

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 1:14 pm ¶
Kai wrote:

Lahari, this is one of my biggest beefs with popular discourse: generalizing about “Africa” as a monolith, instead of talking about, say, an actual country or ethnicity or cultural-historical-political situation. This type of lazy discourse is a manifestation of racism. One of my informal policies in my own writing is to pretty much never talk about “Africa” in the abstract, but rather to always name a specific country or regional situation that’s being discussed. I wish all media would do something along these lines. UNICEF too.

As an addendum, I also thought I’d mention that the first publication of blackface that I’m aware of was a character named Sambo who appeared in a British cartoon depicting a South Asian (Indian) man. Indeed some might say that Shakespeare’s Moorish character Othello is a kind of blackface. To this day, check out how the Dutch celebrate Christmas (”Six to Eight Black Men” by David Sedaris).

Peace.

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 2:00 pm ¶
Sue wrote:

I run a small ad firm. We specialize in advertising to/for social issues. And I’ve done lots of work for the UN. Most of the time the client is so concerned about political correctness that the impact is often lost in all the revisions. So I can sympathise with the firm who did this concept … sort of. (God, who can even say the words “black-face” these days though … much less depict it!!!)

I’ve also lived in Europe for many years. And I would say without hesitation, that Americans are way too consumed with race. So I think this hail-storm is a wee bit over-the-top. My complaint about this ad is the craftsmanship. I agree, why does that kid have a shit-eating grin on his face when the quotes are not worth smiling about? Cognitively, this ad mades absolutely NO SENSE to me. If I were to put a kid in black-face (and I wouldn’t) … but if I did - I’d find a compelling tag-line like …

“Did I have to go into black-face to get your attention??”

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 5:44 pm ¶
liliana wrote:

I also recently wrote about the “lovely” tradition involving blackface that takes place every year in The Netherlands. There is definitely some cluelessness in Europe (another reader refers to the “acceptable racism” in Europe). I’d like add to that “serious arrogance” about Europe’s self-proclaimed supremacy. For instance, the Dutch regularly assure me about how great The Netherlands is because it’s a secular nation and the president doesn’t use the word “God” (unlike us “backward bible-thumping” Americans). However, 2/3 of Dutch children attend religious schools, which are financed by the Dutch government!!

You can read more about the Dutch Santa’s “black helpers” on my blog.

As for this campaign, after 4 years in Europe it doesn’t surprise me much. Sickens me nonetheless. It does make me think twice about working for UNICEF (nice place to help kids??). Sigh! But more importantly, this Latina will definitely NOT be raising her children in Europe!!

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 7:17 pm ¶
Sugar wrote:

As a Black woman originally from the South (South Carolina to be exact), who HAS been called a nigger to her face, I too think that the criticism of this ad is way over the top. I’m one of the first, if not the first to make the cry of injustice, especially when it comes to my people, but UNICEF is an organization that has done more for Africans than many other organizations anywhere on the face of this planet.

I don’t think their intentions were to harm anyone in this ad and I’m sure the ad company new very well what UNICEF’s reputation stands for, so I’m guessing they were looking for something compelling and that would really get people’s attention.

I think if those of you who are so upset would take a closer look at the pictures, I think that you’d see that the last three kids, even though we all know they are white, actually look like any other black child, and makes me, anyway, realize that all children are alike deep down inside and they all deserve the best in life…which could have only been possible using the black face. How many times have we seen the typical ad with the dusty looking little African boy or girl that tries to get people to donate money?

I think there are many worse offenders than UNICEF to be pouncing on. Let’s forgive and move on. Besides, forgive me if I’m wrong, but I’m willing to bet that most of those among us who are so quick to cry foul about this haven’t donated so much as a nickel to any “Save Africa” cause recently. Let’s not push one of the most enduring and compassionate organizations around like some school yard bullies.

Posted 21 Jul 2007 at 1:02 am ¶
Mina wrote:

“This is even worse if it’s intended for the innocent minds of children. What would a black German kid think? Would s/he not need to smear mud on his/her face because s/he is already black? Would s/he already understand the struggles of being uneducated in ‘Africa’ because s/he is black?”

Good questions. As for the American angle, I heard that a whole bunch of young black Germans are American too (born in America and adopted internationally).

“Lahari, this is one of my biggest beefs with popular discourse: generalizing about “Africa” as a monolith, instead of talking about, say, an actual country or ethnicity or cultural-historical-political situation. This type of lazy discourse is a manifestation of racism. One of my informal policies in my own writing is to pretty much never talk about ‘Africa’ in the abstract, but rather to always name a specific country or regional situation that’s being discussed. I wish all media would do something along these lines. UNICEF too.”

Right on.

Posted 21 Jul 2007 at 12:17 pm ¶
Kai wrote:

Stef, I can say without reservations that here’s what I think about people who snivel about “political correctness”. But I’ll charitably assume that when you say America is too focused on race, you’re talking about the centuries of white racist brutality which continue to profoundly impact our society today, rather than denying the reality and effect of that history while dismissing the voices and experiences of people of color.

Sugar, hehe, I think you just took blogopspheric argumentation to a new low with the baseless and bizarre accusation that people who think blackface is racist have never contributed financially to “Save Africa” charities. That’s a new one. And you actually think blog commenters are bullies compared to the meak powerless UN, eh? Interesting analysis. And the “dusty African kids” stereotype you mention seeing so often? See, that’s part of the problem with paternalism that we were just discussing.

Listen and learn from Nigerian novelist Uzodinma Iweala.

Posted 21 Jul 2007 at 12:37 pm ¶
Jay wrote:

First, yes, Africa is a continent, with many different countries and even more cultures and ethnicities. The use of “Africa” is thoughtless at best. Nonetheless, I saw this from another viewpoint:

There’s a tendency for white Americans, at least, to not quite see darker people as people. (see, for example, most American’s response to the Lancet’s study regarding deaths in Iraq since the invasion)– those Americans who decry death in Iraq do so almost entirely with regard to other Americans– dead Iraqis don’t seem to matter so much.

For white people, those are still white kids under the makeup– a (clumsy) attempt to say that “these are real people, real children who need help.”

J

Posted 21 Jul 2007 at 12:56 pm ¶
WomunOfColour wrote:

#20: I’m not condemning UNICEF as a whole. I just condemn these UNICEF ads and the messages they perpetuate.

Of course, racist UNICEF ads aren’t anywhere near the top of the list when it comes to racism, since people today still suffer from explicit forms of racism and hate crimes and such. But it’s still wrong and should be criticized. The majority of people in the West know that it’s wrong to call people the n-word, and those who do it are in the tiny minority. However, in terms of these implicit types of racism, the majority don’t see a problem with it, which is why it should be pointed out and condemned.

Of course they had good intentions. I’m just concerned about the actual messages and stereotypes these ads reinforce. Patronizing attitudes usually arise from good intentions, but they are still patronizing.

“I think that you’d see that the last three kids, even though we all know they are white, actually look like any other black child, and makes me, anyway, realize that all children are alike deep down inside and they all deserve the best in life…which could have only been possible using the black face.”

Um… I think that’s what the creators of the ad intended and believed, but not everyone thinks like that. I don’t think of just white children when I think of “children”. I don’t need to see white kids in black face to understand that black children are also children. Black children are children, not “children except black”. Why is whiteness the default? Why do black children have to be thought of as black white children in order for people to have empathy?

Posted 21 Jul 2007 at 3:23 pm ¶
Jay wrote:

“Why is whiteness the default? Why do black children have to be thought of as black white children in order for [white] people to have empathy?”

There, fixed that.

J

Posted 21 Jul 2007 at 7:23 pm ¶
Fabian Williams wrote:

Wow! They have these big ol’ minstrel show styled grin on. And they’re speaking on the behalf of african children. Just bizarre how they could arrive to this point in the name of good will.

Posted 22 Jul 2007 at 2:21 am ¶
Kai wrote:

Um, in my previous comment I meant to address “Sue” not “Stef”…sorry!

Posted 22 Jul 2007 at 12:11 pm ¶
liliana wrote:

Yes exactly! Why is whiteness a default? Of course “white” is a troublesome category as well. In Europe they don’t see themselves as white, yet I recognize the same behaviors as in white Americans. Euro-white-whatever you call it, the problem is the deep seeded conviction in their own supremacy and ignorance over their lack of empathy with fellow humans. That’s what makes continued discussion necessary. To make people aware of how they make OTHERS feel: belittled, dehumanized, denegrated.

In 27 years in the U.S. I never felt denegrated, but 4 years in Europe and I’m almost crushed. The open discussions in the U.S. at least give me hope that things will change, are changing. Here, there is little discussion and it’s like I am expected to keep my mouth shut and accept, unacceptable behavior. The day we lay down and do that, is the day we put the shackles on ourselves.

I am glad Americans are more consumed with race, although really the discussion is about much more. The African American experience is an example for new immigrants of many colors in the quest for rights and equal status. I found the Civil Rights movement to be an important example for young Latinos in New York. So race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or whatever the group, the right to be recognized as equally human and equally valuable to the society you live in is certainly not a discussion that can be called “over the top.” It is a discussion that can be ported all over the world because discrimination is found everywhere and is not just a white thing.

Posted 22 Jul 2007 at 3:13 pm ¶
sev7en wrote:

Ya, I’m African, I don’t understand how this is helping Africa. I don’t like it AT ALL, but whatever, in this case (raising money for Africa), the ends justifies the means for me.

Posted 22 Jul 2007 at 11:09 pm ¶
cw wrote:

“Chuch”(church) meaning preach, in agreeance with the comment above by liliana

Posted 22 Jul 2007 at 11:12 pm ¶
Kaywil wrote:

Oh yes, the great country of Africa! I love it! Save that country, someone! I’m being sarcastic, in case anyone missed it. Maybe they could tell me what country they’re saving…or what region in Africa, because the last time I checked Egypt and Morocco were in Africa. Are they suffering the same? Should we send money to them too?

Posted 23 Jul 2007 at 2:03 pm ¶
michelle wrote:

I feel like I am beating a dead horse, but when Angelina Jolie darkens her skin, wears contacts and a curly wig to look more like a woman of color and that is generally okay, why would a German ad agency think that they would culturally insensitive by putting children in dark makeup to make them feel like they are standing in solidarity with their “African” brothers and sisters.

I think that there should be some consistency about Blackface until it is no longer holds such cultural significance. It’s just not okay, ever. And if it’s okay for Angelina because the story is a human story and she’s an actress, then I think the ad agency can claim a similar defense.

Posted 24 Jul 2007 at 2:41 am ¶
Mrs Noah Sow wrote:

Hello all,

I started this campaign (not the UNICEF campaing of course :-), I wrote and posted the initial letter against it) because I didn’t want to go through this alone and beacuse I felt that our black german media-watch organisation “der braune mob” would need your help. So far: THANK YOU so much for sharing your thoughts and doing this altogether!

Another question: Please do help educate the German public by explaining WHY blackface is wrong (they actually don’t know).

I thank you so much for your contributions and sharing your feelings. Makes me think it’s worth going through all this crap.

The original link is here.. It’s frequently updated.

yours sincerely,
Noah

Posted 24 Jul 2007 at 2:55 pm ¶
Mrs Noah Sow wrote:

sorry, the link is:

http://blog.derbraunemob.info/english-scandalous-german-unicef-advertising-campaign-please-help/

hope it works now

Noah

Posted 24 Jul 2007 at 2:56 pm ¶
zzz wrote:

First, let me say that the generalized treatment of Africa annoys the hell out of me. Not just in ad campaigns like this one, but in media - no mainstream Western media ever reports about Africa, unless there’s a war or famine. It’s not as much offensive as it is stupid and ignorant.

But, let’s not get carried away. There’s nothing inherently offensive in dressing up or approximating the look of another ethnicity of race. If that were so, Germany would be up in arms every time a German is played by an American actor in a Hollywood movie, possibly bleached and blue-eyed. The same goes for blackface. Its offensiveness comes from its history, and it’s mostly an American and British history. Yes, it was (and is) used elsewhere for entertainment purposes, but in most other places, race issues were and are completely different and it never came to be seen as offensive. As a commenter up there said, Germans don’t even know it’s offensive. So, if offense is not intended, and not detected by the ad’s intended audience, why insist on being offended?

For another example of looking for offense where none exists, google for Yugoslavian candy called “Negro” and its appearance in an American newspaper.

Posted 26 Jul 2007 at 1:45 am ¶
Arisa wrote:

I find this ad totally offensive. Aren’t there people from other countries in Germany? What message does this send to visiting Americans who understand the concept of blackface? I think Europe gets more of the benefit of the doubt than it deserves when it comes to racism. Just because it has a different background doesn’t mean it doesn’t have it’s own fair share of ignorance and insensitivity.

Posted 01 Aug 2007 at 2:36 pm ¶
J in LA wrote:

I don’t understand why it is unclear that blackface is offensive!! I’ve seen way to many white frat boys having “ghetto parties” where they are in blackface eating watermelon and drinking 40s.

To smear mud or paint on yourself to make your face black is offensive, please check your history books, blackface has always been a way to mock African-Americans.

And these ads are even more offensive because they are geared towards children. So let’s teach another generate how to mock and ridicule African-Americans

Posted 10 Aug 2007 at 1:56 pm ¶
Christa wrote:

I am shocked, embarrassed, and unbelievably mad about this campaign. I am German, now living in the US, and this is NOT anything that my family or friends - at home or here - believe in or support. My husband is black and our children are a beautiful mix of both of our colors. How dare does UNICEF use our donations to run such a “smear” campaign? I fail to understand how smearing a white child’s face with color or dirt demonstrates or emphasizes support for a black child. My children are black but they are not dirty or painted on.

I can’t believe that not one person in the executive staff realized how racist and explosive this ad was? Is there any excuse for being this insensitve? One would think that as they (UNICEF) deal with so many inequities, racism, and ignorance they would be on the forefront to fight for the rights of every child.

This ad would have been effective if they left the white children showing off their beautiful faces and declaring support for children in African countries. Instead it not only disgraced the campaign but Germany and Germans as a whole. While “blackfacing” as form of discrimination may not be commonly known to all Germans, there is absolutely no excuse for such a large and multinational organization not to run this by a staff of diversity experts.

It is imperative that the responsible parties for approving and running this ad must be held accountable for their hurtful, disrespectful, and discriminating actions. This will have an immediate impact on donations and most importantly the image of this otherwise great organization.

Thank you for bringing this to everyone’s attention. I urge everyone not to judge German citizens or their intentions by the irresponsible ad UNICEF ran in the country.

Posted 13 Aug 2007 at 1:23 pm ¶

German UNICEF ad puts kids in blackface

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