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Can we say that black people are, uh, darker? Of course not, not even if it will save their lives
Sometimes the ever-running dilemma over what can and cannot be said about race and race differences produces a good laugh. BBC radio host Sarah Kennedy recently landed in a bit of trouble by saying that she has difficulty seeing black pedestrians at night. In the middle of a discussion about British school children wearing clothing that makes it harder to see them they walk to and from school in the dark (though why school children are going to and from school in the dark I don’t know), Kennedy remarked: “That’s not just children. You know what happened to me yesterday. It was this black guy. It’s lucky he opened his mouth to yawn or do something and I saw him. He was wearing a black hat, black clothes and he was just invisible.” After complaints from the public, the BBC announced: “We apologise for any offence given and have spoken to Sarah Kennedy.”
Now, the topic at hand concerned something real, the danger caused by pedestrians who don’t wear visible clothing that would make them stand out at night. If it is an offense to say that black people are harder to see at night, a statement which further implies that black people even more than white people need to wear bright clothing when they’re walking along a road at night, then we arrive at the following rule: You shall not say anything about any nonwhite race characteristic that matters, even if the result of the discussion will be to keep nonwhite people from being killed or injured. Email entry |