Tintin in the Congo : Ban racist literature

In 2007, Congolese campaigner Bienvenu Mbutu Mondondo launched legal proceedings to ban the book, ‘Tintin in the Congo ’arguing its portrayal of Africans was racist.

But a court last week in Belgium has rejected the call to ban the book for potentially breaching racist laws. The court conveniently decided that the 1946 edition of ‘Tintin in the Congo’ was not intended to incite racial hatred, arguing that, 'at that time these colonial ideas were prevalent’.

Interestingly, in 2007 some British bookstores removed the book from their children’s shelves after the then Commission for Racial Equality called for its removal. It stated that, “It is unacceptable for any shop to stock or sell the 1930s and 40's cartoon adventure of the Belgian boy journalist because of its crude racial stereotypes.”

A solicitor who complained at the time stated he was, “aghast to see page after page of representations of black African people as baboons or monkeys, bowing before a white teenager and speaking like retarded children. “

The Belgium courts were right to suggest racist views were even more prevalent in the 1930’s and 40’s, but would be completely wrong to argue these views did not incite racial hatred. The Nazi regime targeted not only Jews, but also Africans, deeming them to be genetically inferior. Also the African continent was engaged in the brutal struggle to free itself from European colonial rule.

There is little doubt that back then these books perpetuated racial superiority and hatred. And today they continue to inflame and incite unnecessary racial hatred. Given that now we are in full agreement of the degrading nature of these books other than to incite racial hatred what use are they?

Bienvenu Mbutu Mondondo, you are a brave soul.

We believe that he is planning to appeal the case. Here in the UK the overwhelming majority of Black people, and I’m sure White people too, support you. Free speech be damned if it incites racial hatred.

Simon Woolley