To ask if there's something I'm missing about the allegedly "controversial" Diversity performance

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

Diversity performed on Britain's Got Talent, a performance which incorporated a message about BLM. Their performance, as usual, was incredible and sent out some great messages. The video is below.

It's had 10,000 complaints. Why?! am I missing something? Did someone's nipple pop out or something? What is the basis of people's complaints? The only reason I can think is that some people (probably because they're part of the problem) don't like it when others point out that there's racism in the world? Boo hoo to them

'It's fairly obvious why a group of BAME dancers might want to draw attention to an event that highlights systemic racism, but we get it, they should know their place and not draw too much attention to pesky race issues because they're successful.'

The 'pesky race issues' was actually police brutality in the US. I have sympathy for our police officers who are assaulted every 17mins yet they have this act recreating police brutality from another country, when in fact when it was the 'protests' in this country they had to creep around and put up with verbal abuse and attacks.

It is ironic to suggest there is systemic racism everywhere they are a successful and privileged act. But like Hamilton saying F1 is 'systemically racist' when he is the world champion (or was).

GetOffYourHighHorse
Your recent reply only highlights why it's needed to raise awareness.

What next?
Education doesn't matter because Alan Sugar has millions?
We've had 2 female prime ministers so there's no structural sexism against women?

The only irony is a poster who denies systemic racism complaining about a BAME act raising the issue of systemic racism.

Diversity were amazing. My blonde haired blue eyed brother used to be best friends with a black boy with Caribbean heritage (in England and they are 23 now so not all that long ago). This was from primary school through to upper school. They would mess around and sometimes get in trouble as kids do but guess who always got the blame. Yes the little black kid. Couldn't have been my angelic looking brother. They both noticed it. Must have made that little boy feel so shit.

'Your recent reply only highlights why it's needed to raise awareness.'

Oh I'm sorry, you misunderstood. They are of course free to raise awareness! Recreating a scene of police brutality in the US is not that though is it. It is just gratuitous.

I wonder if if they work in their local communities, perhaps volunteering to 'raise awareness' about gang culture. Now that would be of benefit surely. They must do, perhaps they don't publicise it as they aren't attention seekers.

The black population in the U.K. is 2.7%, but stop and search is 14.7%. That is racism. Ergo highlighting police brutality anywhere with regard to the black population is justified.

And whilst police may be attacked every seventeen minutes (haven’t checked your figures yet), I imagine that is an overall number and not just attacks by black people.

Main facts and figures (from the government website)

there were 675,461 arrests in 2017/18, a fall of 9% on the previous year
Black people were over 3 times as likely to be arrested as White people – there were 35 arrests for every 1,000 Black people, and 10 arrests for every 1,000 White people
overall, men were 6 times as likely to be arrested as women – there were 22 arrests for every 1,000 men, and 4 arrests for every 1,000 women
Black women were more than twice as likely to be arrested as White women – there were 7 arrests for every 1,000 Black women, and 3 arrests for every 1,000 White women

I wonder if if they work in their local communities, perhaps volunteering to 'raise awareness' about gang culture.

Why “gang culture” specifically?

I don't understand the complaints either. I didn't know about the dance until I read about it so I watched it, thought it was amazing and quite profound. I expect 'art' in the widest sense (thus including dance etc.) to be making a point or having some sort of meaning, so I cannot see why people say it 'wasn't the right platform' or whatever.

Dance is very expressive and this particular dance expressed very clearly all the issues in a moving and succinct way.

GetOffYourHighHorse
So now it's attention seeking for a BAME group of dancers to use their success to raise issues.
Good to know. I do hope you'll also be vocal about anyone using their platform for social issues.

Going to tell David Attenborugh off for talking about plastic polution are you? Is he attention seeking? Are you all riled up and ready to tell him to get back in his box and do something better for society like doing a local litter pick?

Probably not.

WanderingMilly
The issue is that a bunch of BAME young men should not use their platform to do anything that raises awareness of racism. If they do then the fact they have a platform means systemic racism doesn't exist and it's proof they are a bunch of attention seekers who should focus on gang crime in their community.

I thought it was a great and moving performance...People who have a problem with racism being highlighted/discussed/challenged are part of the problem.

I am white but I have no doubt that racism and xenophobia are still major issues in the UK.

Diversity are a great act and they also come across as talented and articulate people, so more power to them.

WanderingMilly
That was sarcasm by the way. Sometimes these things don't translate well and given some views on this thread it could be mistaken for being serious

'So now it's attention seeking for a BAME group of dancers to use their success to raise issues.'

I said I wonder if they do voluntary work in the community regarding gang culture but don't publicise it as they aren't attention seeking. You've come to your conclusion all by yourself.

'The black population in the U.K. is 2.7%, but stop and search is 14.7%.'

Yes that is shocking. I wonder why on earth they don't stop and search the exact same percentages of all ethnicities? It would seem common sense if nothing else to prevent this legitimate criticism. Then they could release figures of the percentages of different ethnicities actually carrying knives. It would be interesting.

You've come to your conclusion all by yourself.
It was obviously what you were implying.

I'm waiting to see how many other ways you're going to try and argue they need to get back in their box and not do anything to draw attention to systemic racism, which you claim doesn't exist.

Seriously, it's quite funny, like seeing people on Facebook talking about how they're 'not racist but...'

The figure for knife crime is 27% of self declared non white people. (MoJ figures) So, now you’ve finished clutching at straws @GetOffYourHighHorse, perhaps you could pack it in.

@UnRavellingFast

I think it’s time we stopped brushing things under the carpet. Hate actions happen all around us, all the time. I would also encourage and support showcasing the staggering scale of misogyny and violence against women- constant agressions against people of colour, women, refugees, and all who are so frequently and casually ‘othered’ Happens all the time - it needs to be put up big in people’s faces because being nice and tasteful has got us nowhere.

Completely agree. I clicked on this thread because I also was genuinely puzzled about what people could have been complaining about. I couldn’t imagine even close to that number of people could have an issue with racism being brought up when it’s clearly something that we need to deal with and we should be using many platforms to do that. I wondered if there was some other aspect to the performance, that I had missed and that was causing complaints. I clearly overestimated the British population. Very sadly.

I just watched it because of this post.

Without a shadow of a doubt Ashley Banjo is a genius choreographer. That performance and how it was curated was amazing. The conceptual ideas translated into imagery and dance vocabulary in 4 minutes is incredible and to be celebrated.

I am sat here shocked that people went out of their way to complain to Ofcom.......

I clearly overestimated the British population. Very sadly
I'm not surprised to be honest.

Just look at how many people seemed to do their best to argue that 'ALL lives matter' when they would never challenge a breast cancer fundraiser saying "ALL cancer matters actually", or criticise the "save our rainforests" campaigns by saying "I think you'll find we should save ALL habitats".

It's hardly surprising that their criticism of Diversity would be things like 'I'm not racist but...'
... They should focus on dancing
... It wasn't the time or the place
... That killing was in the US so not relevant to us
... The UK isn't as racist as the US
... It was wrong to depict the killing and totally disrespectful (even though the video of the killing is shared to raise awareness because otherwise the same people clutching their pearls about this dance would probably find a reason to excuse the police and blame the black guy)
... They should go do something else instead of hijacking my evening television
... Systemic racism doesn't exist because if it did they wouldn't have that platform
... They're probably just attention seeking

It translates to 'I don't want anyone to identify my racial prejudices but really I'd just rather a group of BAME men didn't say or do anything that forces me to think, so if they could just know their place and get back in their box that would be great'.

@GetOffYourHighHorse

'Your recent reply only highlights why it's needed to raise awareness.'

Oh I'm sorry, you misunderstood. They are of course free to raise awareness! Recreating a scene of police brutality in the US is not that though is it. It is just gratuitous.

I wonder if if they work in their local communities, perhaps volunteering to 'raise awareness' about gang culture. Now that would be of benefit surely. They must do, perhaps they don't publicise it as they aren't attention seekers.

Why would you assume their local communities need working raising awareness of gang culture?

I mean, no clue what the background of most of diversity is - but Ashley and Jordan Banjo went to a private school in Essex, their parents own a dance studio because their mum was a ballet dancer.

I’d kind of suspect that systemic racism is of more relevance to middle class dancers who are also black than gang culture...

I’d kind of suspect that systemic racism is of more relevance to middle class dancers who are also black than gang culture...
Shhh don't go saying that, that poster doesn't believe systemic racism is a thing because if it was the Diversity wouldn't be where they are, and Lewis Hamilton won F1.

I must be mistaken - apparently dance is just people flailing around on stage to music to entertain people on their sofas. It’s not an art form that is able to portray/tell a story and having a message is not really what people are looking for is it.

Diversity are largely BAME dancers, what would people like to ask them to perform - an interpretation of the 2020 toilet roll shortage. Would that be more palatable?

Well you see, all black people must be responsible for gang culture and knife crime even though it’s a tiny % and they’re not alone in doing it just as all Muslims must be responsible for the terrorists acts of a tiny number. But white people aren’t responsible for any atrocities ever committed.

I mean I googled diversity and charity associations and the first 3 results that came up were that they are heavily involved with a few children’s charities, some through dance. I think they put on free dance classes during lockdown too. I don’t think they are all just driving round in Bentley’s and dancing in BGT once a year

(That was sarcasm to be sure. Some of the comments on this thread are that bad that it probably fitted right in )

I can’t begin to express just how disgusted I am by @GetOffYourHighHorse’s comments.

You clearly think that the black = knife wielding gang member. Feel that it’s somehow Diversity’s responsibility to work to get “gangs” off the street instead of creating the moving, outstanding performance that they did about 2020 (because it wasn’t just about BLM, it was about Covid too). You clearly have ideas about what Black people can and can’t do. You clearly associate violence and gangs with Blackpool. You are clearly a deeply prejudiced individual.