Alright, let's start from the beginning...
So, there is a black performer named Franck Sylvestre in Montreal, Canada, who has a children's show named "L'incroyable secret de barbe noire" - which translates to "The Incredible Secret of Blackbeard."
He's a puppeteer, and his puppet, named Max, is also black.
He'd been putting on his award-winning play for over a decade until it was canceled last year during Black History Month after Sylvestre was accused of racism and using a "grotesque blackface puppet."
It was an anti-racism group called the Red Coalition that got him canceled.
Sylvestre is now suing the head of the Red Coalition's racial profiling department, Alain Babineau, for defamation.
Babineau labeled the play a "drop of systemic racism" and accused Sylvestre of being a "sellout," catering to the interests of white people. He attacked Sylvestre's reputation and aimed to "expose him to the hatred and contempt of the public in general and the Black community in particular."
Babineau asserted that Sylvestre's puppet exemplified anti-Black racism, drawing comparisons to historical blackface minstrel shows that were created to ridicule Black individuals and their cultural heritage.
"I hope that the artist knows that in North America, the climate that we are in now, a blackface puppet, is totally not acceptable," said another professional anti-racist. "It's not about being censored ... it's time for a change."
Allison Saunders, an organizer of BLM rallies and a school commissioner, expressed feeling "disrespected" upon seeing the puppet.
Sylvestre tried to explain that the puppet is actually him, "I have the face I have. I have big lips and a big nose. The puppet is bald, however ... It's a precedent in terms of freedom of speech and artistic liberty."
He's a black guy and HE made the puppet and modeled it, apparently, after himself! Is he supposed to be racist against himself?
And even if they do find it offensive, why do they care? Who's making them go to the show?
In the lawsuit, Sylverstre's lawyer, Guillaume Rousseau, also explains that the puppet's image is based on Sylvestre himself, and nothing is inherently racist about it. Rousseau stated that this is "someone who is clearly not racist, with a show that is clearly not racist."
It's an issue of freedom of artistic expression. If every representation of a Black person that doesn't please Mr. Babineau and others becomes blackface, becomes the subject of calls for censorship, that limits my client's freedom of artistic expression and, potentially, that of other artists.
Is the puppet creepy? Yes.
Is the puppet racist? No.
However, according to The Red Coalition, the puppet is still racist and could offend people. So, they felt like the right thing to do for Black History Month was to ruin a black man's life and career.
That affected him a lot. He's proud of being a Black artist, he's proud to talk about Martinique, about his origins and the puppet in question is a bit of a hero, so for him it's very positive, it's for living together, and to see it interpreted in an unreasonable manner, as if it was racist, that affected him in particular.
The lawsuit seeks $26,000 in damages and contends that Sylvestre's status as a children's performer is threatened. According to the lawsuit, he is unfairly perceived as "controversial" by many, and this perception is expected to impact his future bookings.
In a statement last week, The Red Coalition's legal team is "prepared to vigorously defend against the lawsuit, which they deem frivolous."
Anti-Black imageries have historically stereotyped Black people as grotesque, dim-witted, lazy, buffoonish, cowardly, superstitious, and overly cheerful.
In September of last year, Sylvester's attorney offered Babineau an opportunity to retract; a cease-and-desist letter was sent. However, Babineau replied, saying he would contest any legal action initiated against him.
I will continue to fight with determination for all causes that I think are just, including the fight against anti-Black racism in Canada.
Too bad they ruined this black man's life while they're out there fighting against "anti-Black racism."
P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇
