Golliwog Etiquette

September 27, 2009 4:02 PM

Golliwog etiquette required.

There's an emboiderer's shop in a very public place near my supermarket which has put up a display of golliwogs in their window. There's nothing ironic or historically self-referential about it, they're just a bunch of red-lipped fuzzy-haired black dolls in minstrel clothes.

Is it appropriate to confront the owners about the display, and if so, what's the least pompous or self-righteous way of going about it?

I'm an Anglo bloke, the owners(?) of the shop are a middle-aged Asian couple, and the shop's in a major shopping centre in the inner west of Sydney.

posted by Fiasco da Gama to human relations (14 comments total)

I've seen people do the same here in NZ. My approach has been to not buy things from these shops, but that's because I'm fairly confident that it's a pointed part of that painfully stupid 'anti-PC' backlash. Your situation may just be the result of ignorance about the culturally loaded background of golliwogs, so I would carefully let them know that some people would find it offensive (and that they would probably shop elsewhere accordingly).
posted by Paragon at 4:16 PM on September 27

I think an anonymous letter would be ideal.

If you confront them face to face you will come across as pompous & self-righteous, lets face it you are not black and you are not hugely offended by the window display (if this did cause a huge offence you would of complained instantaneously)

Sorry if this came across as a bit harsh.
posted by errspy at 4:20 PM on September 27 [1 favorite]

Maybe you could print out a history of the dolls and leave it anonymously with a "did you know..." note.
posted by aquafortis at 4:21 PM on September 27

I would at least mail the letter to the store owner personally. You want to make sure they get it. Plus if I was the guy who opens the store every day and found an anonymous flier with the racial history of one of our products, I would throw it out before the boss found it and I had to deal with it.
posted by aburd at 4:34 PM on September 27

I'd be inclined to send a polite note written with the assumption that they don't know they're offending anyone. Explain why someone might be offended, and what message(s) the store is sending by having the display. Personally, I wouldn't leave the note anonymous because I don't think there's anything shameful or embarrassing about politely bringing this up, but I don't think that's a critical point. I would go with a letter rather than an in-person or phone conversation simply so that you can lay out the exact point you want to make in a dispassionate tone.

I don't think it's pompous or self-righteous at all to react to what is either cultural insensitivity or outright racism by saying something, politely, to those responsible for the display.
posted by Meg_Murry at 4:45 PM on September 27

the owners(?) of the shop are a middle-aged Asian couple

Definitely say something, but don't come in with your guns blazing. Golliwog-type characters are still fairly common in Asia. I have no idea what Asian people think of them (black people are funny, it's just a cute character), but I'm fairly certain they don't know the history and connotations behind the image.

I think the owners would appreciate and prefer a calm explanation from you, in person or in a letter, before someone else sees the figures, blows their top, and embarrasses them in front of their patrons one day.
posted by Rora at 5:06 PM on September 27

Letter, preferably with a printout or photocopy of a newspaper story and encyclopedia page or two.

It's quite possible they have no idea, so be kind.
posted by rokusan at 5:25 PM on September 27

Funnily enough, I was in this exact situation, when I went into a small craft shop in Brooklyn, NY and noticed blackface buttons for sale. I mentioned it to the owner, saying I was surprised that such things were for sale and that I thought they were highly offensive, and she said that though they might have been offensive at one time, "people just love them now." It was a friendly enough conversation, I suppose, but I left thinking all I can do is not buy anything there. I think the right thing to do is to mention it to the owners, so at least they know that there is a business cost to carrying these kinds of items.
posted by agent99 at 5:45 PM on September 27

people just love them now

It's hard to tell what's going on with this shop, but I can vouch for this as someone who's worked in history museums. "Black collectibles," "black memorabilia," and "African Americana," are all ways of referring to this collecting category, in which you'll see there is a lot of activity. In the U.S., many of the most avid collectors of black memorabilia are themselves African-American. The most scholarly source on the items and images themselves is the amazing online reference, the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia. You might want to read this great consideration of the topic of reproductions of racist images offered as country-ish collectibles: New Racist Forms: Jim Crow in the 21st Century.

Knowing some background doesn't take away all of the complexities of context in your question, though. If it's all right for a high-end antiques dealer who's cognizant of the history and use of the objects to sell them to a collector audience who's similarly knowledgeable, on what basis is it not all right for other stores to sell similar images? Is it just an understanding of the connotations of this kind of representation? Who needs to understand - the seller only, or the buyer only, or both buyer and seller? Recognizing the ambiguity of the item offered for sale to anyone without context, writing a gentle letter with some history and a "Did you know..." could allow them to make an informed determination as to whether to carry these products. I think it would be much more honorable to sign the letter, and include contact information for followup discussion if desired, than to send an anonymous letter.

It may simply be that these items sell well (they do), for whatever range of reasons. The context may not be understood at all.
posted by Miko at 7:44 PM on September 27 [10 favorites]

Are the shop owners Asian or Japanese?

There's this Ganguro phenomenon....
posted by porpoise at 10:27 PM on September 27

On the issue of the racism, offensiveness, and collecting antiques--I will point out a related thread, and this comment in particular, and note that question of whether or not it's ok for stores to be selling this sort of thing... isn't without complication.
posted by danny the boy at 10:29 PM on September 27

Your link doesn't, danny-boy. Probably not alone when I say, love to know which thread you mean.
posted by Rash at 11:53 AM on September 28

Anecdata: I grew up in Michigan. I'm 51. I never heard of 'Goliwog' except as in DeBussy's "Goliwog's Cake Walk".
posted by Goofyy at 10:52 AM on September 29

Oh bloody hell sorry. Here is the correct link!
posted by danny the boy at 5:27 PM on September 30