As for whiteface and blackface, I think it's repugnant IF the aim is to ridicule another race (as was done in the old blackface minstrel shows). -SharonA

If you do something in and as part of your own culture - innocent of any intentional mockery to any other culture. Should not that innocent intent (or lack of intent to offend) first be taken by somone in a different culture at face value? -The Shambles RE: Padstow Darkie Days thread.cfm?threadid=78748#1447880


-snip-

While intent is important, by no means do I think that intent should be the entire criteria for an individual's or a society's determination of what is or is not offensive to an individual or to groups of people.

robomatic gives this example in one Mudcat discussion on Padstow's Darkie Days:

It is possible to see Darkie Days as a homegrown folk tradition that can be tolerated by minorities who have an understanding of its origins and intents. But it may also be perceived as an inherently flawed activity in the light of current population.

"In Anchorage about fifteen years ago, one of the better and more enlightened high schools had a series of student rendered paintings on the sides of its hallways. One of the paintings depicted a figure hanging by a noose from a tree, below which the word "Prejudice" was printed. The figure was faceless and, as I recall, purple. The mother of one of the students, who was black, maintained it was a racist illustration and wanted it removed. It became a "letters to the editor" issue and went on for a few weeks. Most people thought it was a good "anti-racist" message and tastefully displayed. This one woman was adamant. In the end, the image was removed."
thread.cfm?threadid=78748#1432283
-snip-

It's likely that that artist mentioned in that quote had no intent to cause offense. Some folks may disagree about whether this example went over the non-offense/offense line. Imo, it did.

In that previously cited Padstow thread, I wrote that I cringe when I see photos of people blackening up {regardless of whether those people doing so are White or non-White}. I do so because to me blackening up is so closely associated with the American blackface minstrel tradition. The blackface minstrel tradition was a highly influential artistic tradition- influential in the sense of its impact on theater, and music, and comedy in the USA, Europe, and elsewhere. Yet, imo, that tradition is rooted in the creation of distorted & highly insulting visual, musical, and theatrical caricatures of Black people.

Although I still cringe when I see photos of "corked up characters" such as "Hector in the Abram/Lancaster Pace Egg Play", it's when blackface traditions are combined with afro wigs & 19th century {or 19th centuryish} minstrel songs, that my visceral cringing reaction to blackface traditions become even more pronounced. I think that afro-wigs, minstrel songs, and corking up should never be combined, regardless of who is doing it or when and for whatever reason it is done. The least of all reason for my position about this is whether or not I cringe or other people of color cringe at these depictions. I believe it's far more complicated than that.

In the aforementioned discussion of Padstow Darkie Days, I was interested in learning about the origins of pre 19th century European "blackening up" traditions. As a result of that discussion and my online and offline reading & consideration of these European customs, I continue to believe that the Turkish character-and other elements of these traditions-hark back to the darker skin Moors. And, as a result of my online reading noted in this comment to that Padstow Darkie Down thread, I believe that the custom of blackening up is very much related to the cultural traditions which associated kissing a chimney sweep and/or being the first person to see a sooty faced chimney in the first of the year as being good luck. {See my post about the beliefs about of good luck that are associated with the chimney sweep: thread.cfm?threadid=78748#1427096

**

I have written elsewhere, if not in that Padstow thread, that since at least the 1970s, mime groups who perform dance-like movements to gospel music have very much become a fixture in many Black American churches. Performers in these mime groups put on white facial paint and wear white gloves. I'm not fond of this tradition, in part because it gives cover to those who would argue that "corkening up" is alright because "Black people routinely wear white paint" in certain artistic performances. Another reason why I personally don't like this "whitening up" custom is that, for me, it detracts rather than adds anything of value to the mime-like dance performance. In other words, I think that Black church/community mime groups wear white paint because they are following the miming tradtion. Yet, it doesn't appear to me that they know the history and core reasons for why Marcel Marceau and other famous mimes used white facial paint & wore white gloves in their acts {i.e- to call attention to the pronounced facial expressions and hand movements they made}. For the most part, it's been my experience that Black mime groups pay little attention to their facial expressions-nor do they expect their audiences to pay attention to the performers' facial expressions. Does seeing Black mime groups make me cringe? No. Do I like the "whitening up" aspect of that performance? No. Do I believe that it's meant to offense to White people? No. Do I believe that it actually does cause offense to White people? No.

**

In summation, thanks to Dave Polshaw, and other Mudcatters, in spite of my visceral reaction to European blackening up traditions, I have learned something about and become more accepting of blackening up as it is associated with Pace Egg and some other European traditions. I think that particularly in the context of the Pace Egg and other traditional plays-sans the afro wig & degrading minstrel songs, blackening up is acceptable and not offensive.

I also think that within the context as I understand it of the play which is the subject of this thread, the purpose and the act of "whitening up" is acceptable and not offensive.

Needless to say, these are my opinions and are not meant to be construed as the opinions of other Black people or any other person or group of people regardless of his, her, or their race or ethnicity.