Disclosure: Two years ago, *The Varsity published an article satirizing the University College Drama Program in its joke issue. Among other theatrical imagery depicted, students were described as using blackface makeup in an invented production. An image of an actor, digitally altered to make it appear he was in blackface, was also published. While not intended as a satirization of blackface, many students took it as such, and were deeply offended. The Varsity subsequently published a response, “A black voice on blackface,” which is available here.*
Upon hearing the outrage surrounding a few Halloween costumes, I was among those that were surprised. Five U of T students dressed up as characters from the movie Cool Runnings, four painting their faces in a dark brown colour and one painting his white to depict the characters’ race, sparking a huge amount of controversy. What’s the big deal? I wondered. Not only did I think the costumes were funny, but if I felt they were the best costumes at the party, I too would have awarded them first prize. From what I knew of blackface, their costumes didn’t resemble the horrible depictions in 1930s theatre (very dark skin and large lips). As a black person, I wondered why people were so angry. It seemed to be the equivalent of “crying wolf”—making a false cry of racism, guaranteeing people took the issue less seriously than it deserved to be taken.
I attended the Black Students’ Association meeting addressing the manifestation of blackface at U of T last Tuesday, and came out with as many questions as I did answers. Why did some black students react to this so negatively, while others didn’t? Was racism being conflated with other issues some recent Caribbean immigrants have in integrating into Canadian society? Why were we focussing on this particular incident, when so many people in the audience discussed far more serious instances of racism experienced by students, their friends on campus, professors, and other people working at U of T?
Blackface is deeply rooted in racism. The Halloween costumes’ association with Cool Runnings—already full of Jamaican stereotypes—only served to enrage those of Caribbean and Jamaican origin. Given blackface’s roots, I could clearly see why some students were legitimately upset and interpreted this as a “lampooning” of the Jamaican bobsled team, and Jamaicans in general.
What I had hoped to hear, either from the students who dressed up, or from the speakers, was if there were other ways to interpret these costumes.
Before the meeting, my interpretation of the costumes was that five friends—one black, four white—wore costumes that acknowledged both the difference in race, and the fact that racism still exists. Their message was that they were all friends regardless of the colour of their skin. I saw it as exposing the ridiculousness of racism. What could be more audacious than using what was previously used to promote racism to denounce it? When one of the speakers at the meeting mentioned Halloween costumes of this type seem to be on the rise in North America, and expressed disappointment, I felt the exact opposite—I felt hopeful.
Those who have grown up with friends of different races are pushing back against those still thinking they should be segregated. There are people besides the U of T students who have made similar costume choices as a clever, albeit risky, appropriation of blackface in order to provoke genuine dialogue, and poke fun at the well-
intentioned, but inadequate claims that we live in a multicultural, post-racial world, made by both governments and institutions.
That being said, the five students and the SMCSU member who awarded them the best costumes prize were naïve. They did not fully think through the ramifications of the costumes , leaving them open to the criticism levelled against them. If you’re going to draw attention to a contentious issue, you’d better be prepared to take flack for it and defend your stance intelligently.
While the meeting itself was called an educational event concerning the manifestation of blackface at U of T, the number of angry and reactionary responses during the discussion—including rants against “the white supremacist racist unconscious,” exhortations that white people never experience discrimination as a result of their race, and implications that both the student unions involved and U of T administration were keen to avoid the issue—overshadowed the articulate and intelligent statements made by the speakers, and made me and probably others uncomfortable.
Given that the meeting was a reaction to an incident, it was no surprise that those who showed up were full of indignation. However, such anger alienates those who would benefit the most from such a meeting: those unsure what the fuss was about, those unsure of what blackface is, those confused about the incident, and those who aren’t even sure that racism is still a problem on a multicultural campus in a multicultural city. Anger is a powerful and useful emotion in helping us recognise when we have been wronged, but it is just as powerful and destructive when trying to come up with a solution.
I’d like us to move from the “me, me, me” attitude so prevalent at this meeting—my anger, my experience, my life—to what we can do both as individuals and as a community to address the real issues and inequities still facing us. Only last year, Maclean’s reported that black students at the University of Windsor were subjected to racial slurs, assault, harassment, and intimidation from police officers called to a party where fights had broken out. As evidenced by the speakers, the difficulties of recent immigrants in integrating into Canadian society leaves many feeling angry, isolated, and unwelcome. There are still people who hold onto negative stereotypes of both new immigrants and black people, and find it surprising when they meet a black person who doesn’t conform to those stereotypes.
As one of the Aboriginal speakers pointed out, we still have to live with one another, and diplomacy is required for that. I’d like to call on the BSA (with the involvement of the university administration) to hold more forums, and not just in response to a particular incident. Hopefully this episode will lead to an ongoing discussion at U of T on the issues surrounding racism, discrimination, and prejudice.
