The presentation in the West Island of Montreal of a play for children featuring a puppet that caricatures the features of a black person is an example of systemic racism and a lack of respect for black people, according to two groups that represent this community.
The decision of the City of Pointe-Claire to maintain the representation of Blackbeard’s Incredible Secret “Once again demonstrates the systemic racism of white municipal authorities who see no harm in showing a grotesque image” of blacks, denounces Alain Babineau, one of the directors of the Red Coalition, a group that denounces situations of racism.
Along with the West Island Black Community Association (WIBCA), the Red Coalition held a press conference Friday in Roxboro, west of Montreal, to denounce the presentation of the play for children of Martinican storyteller Franck Sylvestre, Sunday at the Pointe-Claire library. Last Monday, Beaconsfield City Council decided to cancel its performance of the same show next Monday.
According to the Red Coalition and the WIBCA, the puppet created by Mr. Sylvestre resembles a blackface (makeup in Noir), which brings us back to the days of the minstrelsy, those comedic shows of the 1800s performed by white actors who blackened their faces, and then by blacks themselves, who derided some of their features.
Such representation of blacks is unacceptable in 2023, says Joel DeBellefeuille, president of the Red Coalition.
If Mr. Sylvester was a white man who walked around North America with a black doll laughing, would that be acceptable? You have to be sensitive to what black people have endured for hundreds of years. We shouldn’t have to explain today why it’s not okay to present a black doll with big red lips and big teeth.
Joel DeBellefeuille, President of the Red Coalition
It is not a question of censoring an artist, assures Alain Babineau, but of demonstrating a sensitivity to the history of blacks. “The only censorship is doll censorship,” he says.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Storyteller Franck Sylvestre
Thursday, in an interview, Franck Sylvestre had denounced the “censorship” of which he said he was the victim on the part of the municipal elected officials of Beaconsfield who canceled the performance of his play.
He had pointed out that he had presented his show to black audiences without issue in the past.
But according to Mr. Babineau, the artist helps to perpetuate racism and dehumanize black people with his puppet.
Allison Saunders, a black citizen of Pointe-Claire, is one of those who complained to the City about the play, which she considers inappropriate for young children. “Is that what we want to present to children to show who we are? she asks, adding that she doesn’t feel welcome in a community that chooses to put on such a show.
Pointe-Claire intends to maintain the performance of the play on Sunday at the municipal library, confirmed Lucie Lamoureux, spokesperson for the City, on Friday.
WIBCA and the Red Coalition do not intend to demonstrate to disrupt the show, but they intend to request its cancellation from the City of Gatineau, where a performance is scheduled for March.