Can we now finally get rid of 'Do they know it's Christmas'?

[Tokenminority]

This song drives me absolutely up the wall. It's patronising, reductive, and it completely harms efforts towards equality.

I understand the focus on equal opportunities and stopping police brutality, but other narratives, such as the pictures painted in the 'Do they know it's Christmas' song, can be just as harmful.

'Africa' is not a country. You did not go on holiday to 'Africa', similarly to how you wouldn't have sent that you went on holiday to 'Europe' when you in fact went to France.

Of course there are major problems surrounding poverty on the African continent, just as there are in other places, but African countries are not only filled with begging, malnourished children who have never seen a Christmas present.

The picture attached is a photograph of Lagos. If I went on the street and asked random people on which continent that photo was taken, would anyone even consider the possibility that it may have been Africa?

I agree with ArgumentativeAardvark above - I read it as not literally about whether Ethiopians know it's Christmas, but "Christmas" in that 'Oh go on, have another Baileys, it's Christmas!' mentality of tinselly indulgence: a challenge to British people sitting in their cosy homes thousands of miles away, feeling uncomfortable - or not - that while they're scoffing Quality Street there are children dying in the dust on the same planet

Agree. And all the big aid agencies used these same tropes to raise funds for famines and natural disasters. Geldof and Ure come in for a ludicrous level of criticism, considering they were two blokes with no experience of fund-raising or aid who had 24 hours to come up with a song.

That's not to say we should keep playing it - it hasn't aged well. But all the Millennials frothing about what Geldof and Ure wrote 35 years ago can do one. Most of the world saw that report on the Ethiopians who were starving, said, "How sad", and did fuck all about it. Geldof and Ure got off their arses and tried to save their lives.

That song has dated sooooo badly.

No it hasn't, it was always a bag of wank.

Thank you for this thread, even if the subject's been done to death on MN for years. I hadn't read the SPIN articles and now I have. I knew that the money was of no help to the actual people and had merely bought weapons for genocide and to enrich the bastard Mengistu, but I hadn't read the details and now I have.

@ArgumentativeAardvaark - oops, I meant to quote the post about "Thank God it's them instead of you". It's uncomfortable, but it's true. But the rest of the song is patronising and offensive.

“They meant well” is not really a great excuse for still playing the song today.

It did its job but it most definitely has outstayed its welcome now, I am totally with you there, OP!

Although it would rob me of hearing my “African” friend’s epic rants about how “yes, they do fucking know it’s Christmas time!”

Yanbu for the simple reason that it’s a terrible song and always has been. Offends my ears every Christmas being blasted out everywhere.

The Ethiopians were christian in the 300ADs. They were perfectly aware of when it was Christmas when the Brits were painting their arses blue.

MrsNoah Most of the world saw that report on the Ethiopians who were starving, said, "How sad", and did fuck all about it. Geldof and Ure got off their arses and tried to save their lives.

This ^

It's snowing in Zimbabwe right now!

You're swinging from one extreme to the other to make your point. Just as the lyrics read as though they were dashed off quickly to raise funds for charity. Your photo of Lagos doesn't represent all of Africa either. There are still parts where there is famine, refugee camps, etc.That's the problem with generalising about a continent.
I also think people misunderstand if they think the people involved in the song didn't realise that they were painting with a broad brush to elicit a particular response. That doesn't mean it's a good song. It's obviously rubbish but it's purpose was to raise funds not to educate everyone about a continent.
Rushing to say 'Africa' can cope with a pandemic is just as naive as saying all of Africa can't cope. There are vast differences in infrastructure across the continent and I think it's a tad ironic that you're criticising the song's over simplification whilst offering up some of your own.

I doubt very much that Bob Geldof was I aware of the Ethiopian Coptic Christian church.

I wouldn't have a clue, but I read his autobiography back in the day where he talks about visiting Ethiopia during the Coptic Orthodox Christmas. He might not have known much about it when he wrote the song, but he learned a lot, and fast, immediately afterwards. And in turn I learned a bit about it from his book.

I'm quite sure he would have done things very differently if he had to do the same thing today. But in 1984 he got things rolling very fast and raised an enormous amount of money. He did more than pretty much anyone else at the time (or since? I don't know).

I agree that the remake was absolutely unforgivable.

@bonsaidragon

I taught a geography lesson to secondary pupils based on the reality of Africa, they were amazed that it wasn't all mud huts and poverty.

Seriously? An entire class of secondary school students and not one of them had ever watched the news, or had family from any African country, or read the internet? Where do you teach, the moon?

Thank you @ArgumemtativeAardvark for articulating exactly what I wanted to say and saving me time and my usual waffle! 😊

That goes particularly for the Springsteen song and what is clearly reported speech and a sign of what was being said and thought in those times. Yes, I can see how someone missing the message of the song could find the world yellow offensive there I suppose, but it's a brilliant song that says so much. Love Bruce and - incidentally - American Skin (41 Shots) couldn't be more apt listening at this point in time.

@ArgumentativeAardvark sorry, have never managed tagging and now it seems even spelling is beyond me!

I knew that the money was of no help to the actual people and had merely bought weapons for genocide and to enrich the bastard Mengistu, but I hadn't read the details and now I have

It is nowhere near as clear cut as that. This article, while highly critical of aid agencies' collaborations with the Mengistu regime, gives a more balanced view of the uncertainties.

This is always a dilemma for aid agencies that work in areas controlled by repressive governments. You cannot provide aid to the population unless you work with the government, and that comes with risks.

Radi-aid is a good starting point for people not quite getting the problem:

www.radiaid.com/

Oh my. Song lyrics include metaphors, sarcasm etc. I think people are deliberately misunderstanding Bono's contribution in particular. He's Irish, Ireland had their own famine. It wouldn't be written today because there isn't the same othering that there was then. But it is part of the reason that there is less racism now than there was then.

Also this:
"Meh, I can't get too ranty about a song that was made nearly 40 years ago and raised millions to help starving children. "
As a pp said.

Where it says "do they know it's Christmas time at all" I thought it then said "we know oh oh" for about 20 years. (Instead of "feed the world" ) as if westerners were gloating about superior knowledge of Christmas. Now that would have been a horrible lyric

Also this
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2010/nov/09/bbc-apology-bob-geldof-ethiopia

If people are too thick to understand Born In The USA for what it is, an indictment of the betrayal of the working-class in Reagan's America, that is not my problem.

For a proper critique of Springsteen, I recommend Prefab Sprout's "Cars & Girls"

Little Boy got a hot rod,
thinks it makes him some kind of new god
But this is one race he won't win
Life's no cruise with a cool chick
Too many folks feeling car sick
And they never pull in
Brucie's thoughts, pretty streamers
Guess this world needs its dreamers
May they never wake up

I used the then current Band Aid 30 in lessons to discuss these types of themes/ sterotyping about the continent of Africa. It was the lesson of the Africa unit that was most thought provoking and attention grabbing, along with the starter where it turned out that all the diverse images of various natural and human environments were from across the continent. With map distortion, showing the UK and Africa together at the correct scale was also mind blowing to a community with umpteen large geographical blind spots, and a tendency to believe "Africa is a poor country" (Oh we enjoyed picking that one apart!)

To learn from the past you have to have access to it. For all the faults of the song, its popularity each November December makes for a very accessible, regular discussion point about these issues. Context is important, and by considering what we do badly, it helps us to change and make improved decisions.

How about the Yank version?

"Because God has shown us by turning stones to bread......"

Famine problem solved.

I grew up in South Africa. It was summer at Christmas so no snow. We sat down for a Christmas lunch and got presents and everything! I roll my eyes at that song every year.

I'm shocked at the voting as it stands, and horrified at some of the comments on this thread.
Seriously, if anyone thinks those lyrics are reasonable today, words fail me.

What good the song or the charity did back then isn't the point now. Those lyrics would not be acceptable if they were written today.

The point is that those lyrics weren't written today, but back in 1984, when I was 18, and I am now 54 (just to illustrate that 1984 was a long time ago). We all watched the news reports with horror, and this was a way to raise funds. The world was a different place, no internet, no social media, no smartphones. This was a way to connect, to raise the issue and the money and to try to do something to help. It was of its time, and those of us who were there in the 80s understand that. As a PP has said it was about the Ethiopian famine only, but as a way to get the message across and the money, it worked.

Funds would be raised in a different way today; but why criticise the tools that could be used at the time?

It did what it was intended to do at the time. I was a student. I bought the record because well, you know, you had to. I have never actually liked the song. Does anybody?

I do hope so. But then I would happily set fire to every fucking Christmas record ever made.