A lively score, matched to a saucy and humorous narrative, an unassuming yet charming cartoon short, what could possibly go wrong? Yep Scrub me Mama... is not just an above average cartoon of it's era, it's one of the best, it's for this reason it received a whole lot of attention. Unfortunately a lot of that attention was from a people, some of them quite earnest in their conviction, that this cartoon was a source of unmitigated evil.
Racism, the violence, the misery and destruction that flow from its propagation are not to be taken lightly so it's not unreasonable for people, reasonable people that is, to act with a certain caution when they're informed that something is racist. It's also prudent to be aware of apologists seeking to justify something that supports their own malice. So when faced with an entity like the continuum between Scrub me Mama and its reputation, and the dichotomy that, that represents, I find myself posing a number of questions.
Q. Is Scrub me Mama... intrinsically racist?
A. Probably not.
Q. Were those who made it racist?
A. Probably yes.
Q. Is it harmful?
A. Depends...
To expand on those answers, I don't believe anyone making the film set out to denigrate and humiliate anyone of any particular race. We might find the caricatures offensive or not, but such interpretation is culturally derived, if we're taught or conditioned to believe something is offensive it become offensive. And that reaction is real, yes there might be a certain degree of feigned injury from some but on the whole, those who take offense are genuine about their feelings. Likewise, the gleefulness from those who see a portrayal that they perceive to support their own prejudice, is also genuine.
I get fed up with arguing about my second answer, yes people who inhabit a racist context are racist, it's inescapable I'm afraid. No it's not a matter of choice but then again it doesn't mean you're irredeemable either, it just means that you largely reflect the attitudes and beliefs inherent to your social context. Then again though, there are remarkable individuals who swim against the tide. The bad news being, the overwhelming likelihood is that you're not one of them but you wouldn't want to be, those people generally don't have a good time.
So is it harmful? Well that -depends- don't it, in a mature enlightened context it's as innocent as a slice of jam sponge. In a divide society, riven with injustice and ignorance, it could be thoroughly toxic.
My feeling is that the controversy surrounding this short film is mostly counter productive and worse, it's self perpetuating. The greater the outrage expressed, the greater the abhorrence at its portrayals becomes. That's a problem for one particular reason, it puts caricatures of particular races beyond the pale, in other words, puts them beyond the bounds of social acceptance, and that's when they can become weapons. From there one of two consequences are likely to follow, either an aura of otherness is generated about those deemed untouchable through caricature or, all caricature become unacceptable. I don't think either of those are particularly happy outcomes because A: I'm rather fond of Dick Van Dyke's cockney sparrow and B: trust me, otherness is just not a good idea.
Racism, the violence, the misery and destruction that flow from its propagation are not to be taken lightly so it's not unreasonable for people, reasonable people that is, to act with a certain caution when they're informed that something is racist. It's also prudent to be aware of apologists seeking to justify something that supports their own malice. So when faced with an entity like the continuum between Scrub me Mama and its reputation, and the dichotomy that, that represents, I find myself posing a number of questions.
Q. Is Scrub me Mama... intrinsically racist?
A. Probably not.
Q. Were those who made it racist?
A. Probably yes.
Q. Is it harmful?
A. Depends...
To expand on those answers, I don't believe anyone making the film set out to denigrate and humiliate anyone of any particular race. We might find the caricatures offensive or not, but such interpretation is culturally derived, if we're taught or conditioned to believe something is offensive it become offensive. And that reaction is real, yes there might be a certain degree of feigned injury from some but on the whole, those who take offense are genuine about their feelings. Likewise, the gleefulness from those who see a portrayal that they perceive to support their own prejudice, is also genuine.
I get fed up with arguing about my second answer, yes people who inhabit a racist context are racist, it's inescapable I'm afraid. No it's not a matter of choice but then again it doesn't mean you're irredeemable either, it just means that you largely reflect the attitudes and beliefs inherent to your social context. Then again though, there are remarkable individuals who swim against the tide. The bad news being, the overwhelming likelihood is that you're not one of them but you wouldn't want to be, those people generally don't have a good time.
So is it harmful? Well that -depends- don't it, in a mature enlightened context it's as innocent as a slice of jam sponge. In a divide society, riven with injustice and ignorance, it could be thoroughly toxic.
My feeling is that the controversy surrounding this short film is mostly counter productive and worse, it's self perpetuating. The greater the outrage expressed, the greater the abhorrence at its portrayals becomes. That's a problem for one particular reason, it puts caricatures of particular races beyond the pale, in other words, puts them beyond the bounds of social acceptance, and that's when they can become weapons. From there one of two consequences are likely to follow, either an aura of otherness is generated about those deemed untouchable through caricature or, all caricature become unacceptable. I don't think either of those are particularly happy outcomes because A: I'm rather fond of Dick Van Dyke's cockney sparrow and B: trust me, otherness is just not a good idea.