Racist joke minister retains jobBritish politician jokes 'UK could put golliwog back on jam jars now Obama's been elected'
イギリスの大臣が、「オバマが当選したんだから、イギリスでも、ジャムの瓶のラベルのキャラの黒い顔もラベルとして復活させてもよいだろう。」と言ったら、人種差別的発言として非難されていた、ということです。
で、このgolliwog とそれにまつわる匂い、というか、意味合いが、僕にはいまいちわからない。
写真のようなお人形さんなんですが、しかし、これが例えば、日本で、肌の部分が、白だったり、あるいは、典型的な日本人や中国人の色だったら、可愛らしいお人形さん、ということでおしまいだったろうと思うのです。
それはともかく、イギリスでは、この写真のキャラがジャムの瓶のラベルに使われていて、かなり人種差別的ではないか、という論争があったらしい。企業は結局違う理由ですが、このキャラを取り下げたといいます。
British jam manufacturer James Robertson & Sons used a golliwog called Golly as its mascot from 1910, after John Robertson apparently saw children playing with golliwog dolls in America. Robertson's started producing promotional Golliwog badges in the 1920s, which could be obtained in exchange for tokens gained from their products. In 1983, the company's products were boycotted by the Greater London Council as offensive, and in 1988 the character ceased to be used in television advertising. The company used to give away golliwog badges making up different sets, such as playing jazz instruments, or with sports equipment, or other such themes. The badge collection scheme was retired in 2001.
In a statement reported by the BBC, Virginia (Ginny) C Knox, previously brand director for Robertson's and now Chief Operating Officer of the Culinary Brands Division of RHM, told the Herald Newspaper in Scotland in 2001 that the decision to remove the Golly (Golliwogg) symbol from Robertson's jam and marmalade jars was taken after research found that children were not familiar with the character, although it still appealed to the older generations. "We sell 45 million jars of jam and marmalade each year and they have pretty much all got Golly on them," said Ms Knox. "We also sell 250,000 Golly badges to collectors and only get 10 letters a year from people who don't like the Golliwogg image".[2]. Today, Robertson's Golliwog badges remain highly collectible, with the very rarest sometimes selling for more than £1,000, and even comparatively common and recent badges being worth £2.00–£3.00.・
もっとも、イギリスでは、アフリカ人、イタリア人、インディアンなどの肌の色が濃い人たちを指称する蔑称になっている、ということですから、大臣の発言が失言であったには違いありません。
・・・・In Britain and the Commonwealth, "golliwog" perhaps became "wog" a racial slur applied to dark-skinned peoples worldwide, including Africans, Italians and other Mediterranean people, Native Americans, Middle Easterners, Hispanics, and Indians. wiki
本で読んでは知っていましたが、イタリア人もdark-skinned なんですねええ。
欧米人の一部の人の肌の色に対する細かな分類とそれに付随する人種の分類と、そのヒエラルキー、そうしたものに対するこだわりというのは我々にとっては非常に理解しづらいものがあると同時に、非常に根深いものがあるもんなんですね。
