The British National Gallery has changed the name of a 19th century painting by French impressionist Edgar Degas from ‘Russian Dancers’ to ‘Ukrainian Dancers’ due to the “current situation.”
Yes, really.
The original name of the painting was cancelled after Ukrainian artist and activist Mariam Naiem wrote letters to numerous western art museums that carried works from the series.
Naiem described her success in forcing the gallery to fold as a “micro victory.”
In a statement, the gallery admitted that the name change came as a result of the public pressure campaign and had nothing to do with any new information discovered about Degas’ work.
National Gallery in London renamed Degas Russian Dancers into Ukrainian Dancers.
— Nemo – Russian Amerikan (@Nemo70488915) April 3, 2022
“The title of this painting has been an ongoing point of discussion for many years and is covered in scholarly literature,” a spokesperson told the Guardian.
“However there has been increased focus on it over the past month due to the current situation so therefore we felt it was an appropriate moment to update the painting’s title to better reflect the subject of the painting.”
A description on the gallery’s official website says the dancers featured in the 1890s pastel and charcoal image “are almost certainly Ukrainian rather than Russian,” without offering any further explanation.
The rename is yet another example of how Russian cultural history that has absolutely nothing to do with the “current thing” is now being erased as part of a wave of Russophobia.
The University of Milano-Bicocca attempted to cancel a teaching course about the 19th century writer Fyodor Dostoevsky.
Russian prodigy pianist Alexander Malofee was also dropped from performing for the Montreal Symphony Orchestra after complaints by Ukrainians, while chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic Valery Gergiev faced similar cancellation after failing to pass an ideological purity test.
CNN Blasted After Lecturing People Not To Use ‘Digital Blackface’
Argues memes of black people are a “modern-day repackaging of minstrel shows.”
Published
4 days ago
on
27 March, 2023
Steve Watson
Screenshot
Mass backlash has ensued after a CNN report accused white people of using ‘digital blackface’ by posting memes of black people’s reactions as a way of expressing their feelings about situations.
In the piece, headlined What’s ‘digital blackface?’ And why is it wrong when White people use it, CNN writer John Blake states the following:
"If you're White and you've posted a GIF or meme of a Black person to express a strong emotion, you may be guilty of wearing 'digital blackface,'" writes John Blake | Analysis https://t.co/KlHkWWHq6x
Blake argues that such memes and gifs are “radicalized reactions,” and that while black people “get a pass” for using them, white people posting them have “inadvertently perpetuated one of the most insidious forms of contemporary racism.”
Blake goes on to declare that the use of the memes by whitey is a “modern-day repackaging of minstrel shows.”
The modern-day segregationists do everything possible to keep people divided by race, prevent them from having joyful and natural interactions, ban them from appreciating the culture and humor of others, and in general demand that they have as little in common as possible: https://t.co/pMXVCAf2Xr
I’d love to hear an explanation of how posting a gif or meme of a black person online is digital blackface, but a man dressing up like a woman in real life is heroic. Please explain @cnn. pic.twitter.com/fPYXF5ogDC