Mexico Issues Stamps Of Black Cartoon Character Weeks After Racial Flap

[The Straight Story]

Mexico Issues Stamps Of Black Cartoon Character Weeks After Racial Flap

MEXICO CITY -- The Mexican government has issued postage stamps depicting an exaggerated black cartoon character known as Memin Pinguin, just weeks after remarks by President Vicente Fox angered U.S. blacks.

The series of five stamps released Wednesday depicts a hapless boy drawn with exaggerated features, thick lips and wide-open eyes.

His appearance, speech and mannerisms are the subject of kidding by white characters in the comic book, which started in the 1940s and is still published in Mexico.

Activists criticized the stamps as offensive, though officials denied it.

http://www.local6.com/news/4666113/detail.html

[sasquatch]

1. Does that mean Daffy Duck will be on Mexican stamps?

:shrug:

[Kraklen]

2. Hmm.

Interesting.

[KlatooBNikto]

3. I have seen similar depiction of black people in Brazil,Egypt and

China. It seems like racism is a universal affliction.

[Kraklen]

5. Meet Mr. Popo.

Big red lips. Black as the ace of spades. Looks like your average lawn jockey. He's from the classic Japanese "Dragonball" catoon series.

Racist?

[KlatooBNikto]

6. Yes.Throughout Asia the contagion is widespread.

I remember a trip through India in my younger days.I was on a bus going from Bombay to another town about 100 miles away. I happened to be seated across the aisle from two young men from Rwanda who were attending College in the town we were headed toward.The bus made a stop at a small village and we decided to get some drinks at a small stall on the road. The stall person was very solicitous of me and completely ignored the two young men.I insisted that he serve them first.Later when we were back in the bus, the two men said,"you know from the way we are treated in this country you would think we are savages or something." I told them I understand.I have direct experience of such treatment from our Deep South.They were insistent that the racism in India is well entrenched with no sign of any change because it is sanctioned by their own experiences with the caste system.

A very sad day that was for me.But I came away very impressed with the young Rwandans. I often wonder what happened to those two young men with the massacres in Rwanda.

[Kraklen]

7. See, I disagree.

I mean, I know there's plenty of racism in India. And Japan too. But I think characters like the Japanese "Mr. Popo" aren't racist at all. Sure, they look identical to lawn jockeys or similar "golliwog" characetures, but the context is completely removed. I think they're perfectly innocent drawings boiled down to extremely simple recognizable features. There's no mocking of another race involved like you see in the American golliwog. In those rare instances you see asian characters in anime, the "slanty eye" is equally exaggerated.

I'm curious if the same thing is going on with this Mexican comic.

[KlatooBNikto]

8. May be you are right about these cartoon characters but the real

experience I had with the Rwandan young men was no innocent incident.The slight and the insulting demeanor were real indeed.

[Kraklen]

9. Of course.

I mean the cartoon characters.

[BOHICA06]

4. The revenge of Speedy Gonzales ...

... de fastest mouse in all of Mexico!

[Lisa0825]

10. I find the mexican cartoon to be more offensive than the

other one posted in this thread. At least the guy with the turban looks human. The kid in the cartoon looks like he was intentionally drawn to look like a chimpanzee. Look at the positioning and shape of the ears! I think that cartoon is hideous and very offensive. You can exaggerrate details without making someone look like a monkey.

[bdot]

11. Why is George Bush hanging out with Aunt Jemima?

That's my first thought when I saw the picture of the stamp.