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BBC's 'All Black People Like Fried Chicken' Video Is 'Unbelievably Racist'
BBC's 'All Black People Like Fried Chicken' Video Is 'Unbelievably Racist'

BBC's 'All Black People Like Fried Chicken' Video Is 'Unbelievably Racist'

BBC's 'All Black People Like Fried Chicken' Video Is 'Unbelievably Racist'

The BBC has come under fire for the release of a video that discusses the stereotype about black people eating fried chicken.

For the last day of Black History Month the BBC published a video asking: "Is it true all black people like chicken?"

The short clip shows a number of young people talking about the stereotype, ranging from young white men and women to young black men and women.

"Loads of black people I know love chicken…There's a stereotype but it's true," one white person offers.

The video then transitions to a black girl that states: "It's not the only food that we eat."

The BBC Newsbeat account initially tweeted "Black people and fried chicken – is there any truth in it," but then replaced with the following after receiving some backlash: "We're talking about being black and British & the stereotypes you might face, like this one?"

The video does not do anything to create an insightful discussion around the topic, with other commentators trivializing the stereotype instead of talking about the ways in which it's problematic. When an actual commentary could be made (such is the case when one men talks about how the stereotype is perpetuated in cartoons and films) the video fails to explore it any further.

The clip was made as part of a series of short films produced for Black History Month. Other discussion topics include "Is it ever OK for white people to use the n-word?" and "The myths around swimming and being black."

A BBC spokesperson defended the video, saying: "These short films show young people from various backgrounds discussing their experiences of dealing with different stereotypes, which accompanies a wider documentary looking at racism in the UK."

But the problem with this is that the experiences of black people are packaged in a way that undermines the complexities of these stereotypes, and makes light of something to where an informative dialogue is not even made.