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?

@thegcatsmother

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?

The whole point of the OP is not what happened back then. It's that the lyrics are not appropriate today. And that it's time for the song to be retired.

PS I'm 64 so yes, I remember the song and all that went with it, in context. There's a lot that happened when I was young that would no longer be acceptable. And you don't have to be over-PC to be aware of that and to support an end to something that was acceptable in the 60s, 70s or 80s

I hate hate hate HATE that song! I grew up in Ghana, West Africa and we DID know when it was Christmas. As for having snow, we couldn’t have cared less!!

Do you genuinely think that the song is suggesting that people in Africa are disadvantaged because they don’t know that 25 December is Christmas @Naady? Really?

Yes please. I hate it. Even in 1984, the line 'thank god it's them instead of you' deeply shocked me.

It's supposed to Bflatmajorsharp

It's supposed to shock you out of complacency.

Fucking hell. Do you really think that someone singing that line on a charity record in aid of “them” would be intending it to be taken literally?! You have completely missed the point.

Well, there's an updated version from 2014. Thank god they now only talk about 16 countries where it's full of dread, fear, and people having no clue that it's Christmas. Actually, the amount of people who think that these lyrics are in no way perpetuating any negative stereotypes and suggesting that some of my friends and relatives should be thanking their lucky stars that the UK was there to save everyone from hunger is far more offensive than this song will ever be. Thank you for making that clear.

^It's Christmas time, and there's no need to be afraid
At Christmas time, we let in light and banish shade
And in our world of plenty, we can spread a smile of joy
Throw your arms around the world
At Christmas time
But say a prayer and pray for the other ones
At Christmas time, it's hard but while you're having fun
There's a world outside your window, and it's a world of dread and fear
Where a kiss of love can kill you, and there's death in every tear
And the Christmas bells that ring there are the clanging chimes of doom
Well tonight we're reaching out and touching you
Bring peace and joy this Christmas to West Africa
A song of hope where there's no hope tonight, ooh
Why is coming first deadly feared?
Why is to touch to be scared?
How can they know it's Christmas time at all?
Here's to you
Raise a glass to everyone
Here's to them
And all their years to come
Can they know it's Christmas time at all?
Feed the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Feed the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Heal the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Feed the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Heal the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Heal the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Feed the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Heal the world, let them know it's Christmas time again
Heal the world^

I do like this parody version.

Re: but tonight thank God it’s them instead of you.

I always took that as a, “there but for the grace of God go I“ type thing.

But Bono is a twat right enough, I won’t argue with that.

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

Except Christmas didn’t exist then as it was the timing of a pagan celebration, possibly known by blue bummed (or otherwise) brits...? Lots of European countries don’t celebrate on 25th December. But I agree it’s a terrible song.

Much of it wasn't to be taken literally. To me the song is about appreciating what you have, thinking of those who are less fortunate or have nothing and doing what you can to help. I don't see the problem in that.

I can't even think about Christmas at the moment! Hasn't it been cancelled this year?

So much going on in the world and this worries you

OP, plenty of people criticised the lyrics right from the start and every Christmas since
it's a shame if people can't try and help other people who are starving without being prompted by sentimental and stereotyping rubbish songs
I do think it's relevant to now. It endorses a view of black people as other, Africa as a uniform, poverty stricken object of charity and 'we' the west/white people as benevolent and not at all benefiting from global inequity
in short, OP YANBU

I'm guessing every time the song gets played royalties are paid which I assume still go to charity ?

I can’t believe there are posters here who are ignoring basic facts:

1. The original aid in fact did not “help people” - even Bono says that with hindsight they got a lot wrong. There were in fact many aid agencies already with much more experience in this sort of area; but Bono wanted all the glory for himself, ignored all advice and warnings, and

The Charity was working in 10 countries in Africa between 2018-1019. What good they do I don,t know but is more then a song. the song isn,t great. But it was written in respionse to a drought/famine so no rivers weren,t flowing in that part of Ethiopia at the time. I think it needs to be thought of in the context it was written and not taken too literally.

Pressed post too soon:

Basically he bulled ahead with his plan to catastrophic affect.

2. there has been study after study showing that the constant portrayal of Africa as poor actually harms more than it helps, as people have essentially written off the continent as a lost cause.

And as for the smug posts telling African people that the only reason they’re so wound up is because they’re too dense to understand the nuance of the lyrics... words fail me.

@TabbyMumz my teenager knows a lot about Africa as studied in geography and covered it pretty well they should be learning some of this at school plus we can also educate our kids as well

It’s been a shitty awful week
Get rid of it if we must
But I quite like it at christmas

Apparently Bono didn't want to sing that line but was persuaded to. He also didn't want to sing it for a second time (on one of the remakes) but Midge Ure and/or Bob Geldof said that it was his line and he should sing it again.

For crying out loud!!! It was a song written to raise money for a good cause - it doesn't require all this over analysing. Take a good look at the lyrics of songs - they are not always correct or relevant, but fit in with the song, they aren't meant to be scrutinised for every meaning. I very much doubt the writers care two hoots about what any of you think, and nor should they. What have you done to help the world OP? Time to get over yourself and concentrate on something that really matters instead of expecting a song to be retired because you don't like it.

eaglejulesk the literal writers of the song have criticised it - they’ve admitted it was knocked out in a couple of hours and definitely wasn’t written to stand up to much scruitiny.

I used to work with an outreach group that went into British schools to show young people that Africa wasn't just an arid landscape of starving children.

They felt the work was vital because the western perception of "Africa" was harmful to African interests and actually prevented African countries from being able to develop free from excessive external interference.

I always remember one presenter, a lass from Malawi, being astonished that the class she had engaged with one day had categorically refused to believe that some African cities had skyscrapers and people in Africa drove cars.

She hadn't realised just how embedded the idea that Africa was just a land of impoverished, starving children actually was in the British mind. She couldn't get over it.

Another shock she had was how people saw her as "African" and fundamentally the same as someone from Ghana or Sudan. She was like "But they are different countries! With different cultures and languages! It's like saying you are the same as a French woman or an Italian!"

And the administrator of the project did blame the entire situation on Bob Geldof, saying he probably did the most out of anyone in the West to convey such an inaccurate picture of the continent and its peoples through using popular culture to make the images stick.

@SockYarn

YABU mentioning that hideous "C-word" in June.

I think Midge Ure, who wrote that song, said he rattled it off in 5 minutes after a call from Geldof , that it wasn't his best work and he really never imagined it'd be around so long.

YABU being a bit disingenuous about the lyrics - I was 12 in 1984 and those pictures of Michael Buerk's reports from the Ethiopian famine are burned into my brain. Nothing was growing. People were dying by the bucketload. That song was directly in response to that particular situation, and it did the job by raising millions.

Exactly that. I reckon ' Ethiopia' is harder to fit in a song than ' Africa'