The Working People’s Alliance (WPA) has added its voice to growing condemnation of a cartoon that depicts a black man holding a gun in his hand, emblazoned the word “crime,” on his back the words “Guyana’s Future” and in a back pant pocket “poverty.”
The WPA in a statement said it is appalled at the racially insensitive cartoon published in the Stabroek News May 9 edition and calls for universal condemnation of this publication.
The Party said, “while the cartoonist may have intended to highlight the high crime rate in Guyana, the assigning of a racial face to it is most counterproductive to race relations in general and an assault on the dignity of African Guyanese.”
The Party reminds that it is not the first time African Guyanese have been shamed by a section of the media which have generally been too flippant on the race question and cited a recent incident.
WPA recalled the equally racially insensitive editorial in the July 3, 2012 edition of the state-owned Guyana Chronicle which opined that the then political opposition was socialising African Guyanese men as criminals to attack Indian Guyanese.
The Stabroek News’ cartoon, the WPA said, suggestion that crime is a consequence of poverty cannot be denied, but the image of a black man with gun in hand apparently attacking citizens who are begging for their lives is racially loaded.
“The image of African aggression and the consequent fear from other ethnic groups can only feed already strained race relations. Further, the cartoon’s location of this imagery in the context of Guyana’s future is explosive to say the least.”
WPA warned “this is an image that has been utilised throughout the world over time to criminalise African people which in turn frames the violent approach of the police, the criminal justice system and other state agencies to African men.”
The party said it is carefully characterising the cartoon as racially insensitive, but also wishes to point out that one of the standard definitions of racism is the attaching of negative labels to particular ethnic groups.
“We therefore call on the Stabroek News to, in the first instance. apologize to the African Guyanese community. Nothing short of that should suffice. WPA is also recommending that media personnel undergo training in racial sensitisation.”
The habit of avoiding conversations on race in the public sphere and characterising those who do so as racists have led to a palpable ignorance of this central component of our national being, the parry advise.
Finally, WPA calls for some form of discipline to be meted out to the author of the cartoon and the functional superior who gave the permission to publish it.
Last evening on Politics 101, Dr. David Hinds, political scientist, academic and host of the programme offered the provide education to the media on race relations. Hinds is also a WPA executive member.
Studies find the media play an important role in entrenching or debunking racial stereotypes. It has been argued, based on findings, the mass media as a powerful social force could influence society, discourses, policies and the environment around us.