Minstrel drag

Written by

Ophelia Benson

in

Michael Deacon in the Telegraph:

From 1958 to 1978, the BBC broadcast The Black and White Minstrel Show: a series featuring white entertainers who had caked their faces with ridiculous make-up, in order to impersonate black people. These days, the BBC is understandably rather embarrassed about this. So much so that, in the wake of Black Lives Matter, it published an article on its website, wondering how on earth its past bosses could have been so blind.

“It didn’t seem to occur to anyone in a position of authority at the BBC that the series really was offensive to more than just a few ‘killjoys’,” the article lamented. As a result, “this infamous programme” constituted “arguably the BBC’s most glaring failure to understand the damage it could do when it traded in outdated stereotypes”.

True enough. I’ve got just one question.

If, as the BBC now accepts, it’s wrong to show white people dressing up as grotesque parodies of black people, how come it’s fine – indeed, wonderfully enlightened and progressive – to show men dressing up as grotesque parodies of women?

WHY INDEED???

I’ve asked this question a billion times.

I only ask because the BBC’s peculiar fixation with drag queens shows no signs of abating. Just this week, Newsnight invited one to participate in a discussion of the UK’s floundering economy. Perhaps we could boost quarterly growth if we each buy a pair of size 12 stilettos.

Meanwhile, the BBC has been eagerly plugging the new series of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK. Apparently we can look forward to meeting contestants who use such charming stage names as “Anita Piss”, proclaim themselves to be a “Bikini Bottom Bimbo”, declare that they’re “feeling lit to the tits”, and challenge the “other girls” to “step their pussies up”.

No doubt the BBC would argue that this is harmless, light-hearted entertainment, to which only killjoys could object. But then, 50 years ago, that’s what its bosses said about The Black and White Minstrel Show.

And they know that, so Beeb please do explain to us what the difference is.

Comments

2 responses to “Minstrel drag”

  1. Alan Peakall Avatar
    Alan Peakall

    I find it hard to avoid the conclusion that the BBC cares little about the prospect of having to pass retrospective judgement on itself 50 years hence, as it preens itself in preparation for martyrdom at the hands of the forces of conservatism on a much shorter timescale.

  2. Mike Haubrich Avatar
    Mike Haubrich

    There are, indeed, some glaring problems with the idea that it’s good harmless fun. The whole thing of cross-dressing being a comedic mainstay since forever gives it some momentum, and we have become “used to” it, so that most people don’t question it at all. Monty Python’s circus certainly got great mileage from cross dressing as frumpy women. Even at that, they weren’t portraying the characters in clown makeup as you see so much in drag.

    Gender-based clothing norms are largely arbitrary, but with drag shows they are doing something quite apart from dressing for commentary. They are deliberately demeaning women as the lesser of two sexes (putting the lie to the “sex is a spectrum” claptrap.) To point that out is to be called homophobic, MAGA, or transphobic.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More posts