Rastamouse provokes complaints of racism and teaching bad language





We read:
"He is an animated reggae-singing mouse who has become a hit for the BBC, entertaining children with his attempts to fight crime and spread love and respect. Yet dreadlocked Rastamouse has provoked more than a hundred complaints to the corporation with parents expressing fears the show is racist and encouraging the use of slang.

The BBC has received complaints from six viewers that the animated show stereotypes black people, while another 95 have complained about the language used in the show.

The Rastafarian mouse, who leads a band called the Easy Crew and speaks in Jamaican Patois, uses phrases such as "me wan go" ("I want to go"), "irie" ("happy"), "wagwan" ("what's going on?"). His mission is to "make a bad ting good".

Source

I don't have much sympathy with the claim that it stereotypes Jamaicans. I think it glorifies Jamaicans, if anything. But I am amazed that the BBC is teaching non-standard English. I thought that the BBC had an educational role.

I know what is going on though. Accent is very important in England, with RP ("Oxford English") being far more prestigious than any other. BBC announcers all used to speak RP but Leftists hate anything that is not "equal" so the BBC has made a point in recent years of using announcers with "Regional" accents. Teaching Jamaican English is just the logical endpoint of that process, I suppose. The fact that Jamaican English is not even used by all people of Jamaican ancestry does not matter, obviously. Tearing down good English is all that matters.

5 comments:

  1. Just yet another attempt by the BBC to glamourise street life and appear street cred and cool, when in reality people will continue to see them as sucking upto and trying to appease minority groups, by using sterotypes in an out of touch way, pathetic really, feel sorry for black people yet again being misrepresentated.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am dissapointed that this show is being aired, but not on the grounds of bad language or racism. Childrens television should be a neutral zone, I dont believe that any childrens shows should contain religious connotation (The rastafarian movements primary belief is to worship Haile Selassie, reject western society and smoke drugs for religious enlightenment. I am sick to death of people trying to ram their religious beliefs down everyone elses throats, but to do it to Children is just plain low.

    ReplyDelete
  3. people who hate rasta mouse have to open there eyes for ones its just a show trying to encorage
    kids about difffrent cultures what is so wrong with that!
    there are tones of american tv programs that are inaproprate
    so why complain about this.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I've just sat and watched an episode of this. The use of the language is disgraceful. . I do not want my child speaking in that way. I'm spending all my time teaching dog not doggy. Bottle not boc boc or boccy . I don't want to have to them re teach a proper sentence such as "I don't like it" from "mi no likey dis man!" I get the culture thing but at a higher age group that understand that this isn't how you talk .

    ReplyDelete
  5. This show should be taken off the air or at least aimed at a higher age group as the way the English language is used it is causing learning .speaking. Sentence making . Pronouncing and spelling of words so much more difficult for children. Doggy instead of dog/bocboc or boccy instead of bottle are bad enough . . But when it comes to a whole sentence of "mi no like dis man!" rather that "I don't like it" . . That is disgraceful. . Please let me know anyone that knows of a petition to have it removed. Thanks

    ReplyDelete

All comments containing Chinese characters will not be published as I do not understand them