“To see those, those monkeys from those African countries — damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!”
“To watch that thing on television, as I did, to see those, those monkeys from those African countries – damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!”
Tapes have been released proving that former US President Ronald Reagan once referred to Africans as “monkeys”, as the quote above shows, and “cannibals” during a telephone conversation while he was governor of California, with then-President Richard Nixon in 1971. Nixon can be heard on the recording braying with delight. He was livid after a UN General Asembly vote didn’t go America’s way and a number of African countries didn’t side with the US.
In his heyday – which is neverending according to which Republican you ask – Ronald Reagan was referred to as the Teflon President, because no accusation or criticism hirled at him would stick and cause him much damage. I mean I’m not saying he was bulletproof, but he was literally and figuratively bulletproof, failed assassination attempt-inspired pun intended.
Is anything going to stick now in 2019?
When you hear the words “cult of personality” you think Joseph Stalin, Chairman Mao or maybe even CM Punk according to your age and interests but it applies to Reagan as well. The Teflon President, of course, passed away years ago. That hasn’t stopped US conservatives from basking in every opportunity to sing his praises and kiss the ideological ring. As an interesting side note, this happens in the UK too, with the Church of Thatcher and the Holy Churchill Communion, more popularly known as the Conservative and Unionist Party.
Forget What Would Jesus Do; the real question is this:
It is doubtful whether Reaganites will let this tarnish the pristine and unassailable reputation of their Teflon POTUS in their eyes.
This is far from the first time black people have been slandered by monkey comparisons:
- In 1788, a British colonial official Charles Kingsley lamented that some white people conducted themselves like chimpanzees, whereas only blacks were expected to display such tendencies;
- In 1862, a British publication called Gentleman’s Magazine referred to black people as
Beasts possessed of passions not only strong but ungovernable; a mind dauntless, warlike and unmerciful; a temper extremely irascible; a disposition indolent, selfish and deceitful; fond of joyous socialty, riotous mirth and extravagant shew.
- In 1931 the Tintin in the Congo comic strip served up a nauseating cocktail of European paternalism, exoticism and ethnocentrism portraying the Congolese as slow witted, ape-like ogres barely endowed with the faculty of speech.
- During the 2012 UEFA Cup, an Italian newspaper depicted Mario Balitelli as King Kong;
- In 2013, Congolese-Italian government minister Cecile Kyenge was compared to an orangutan by a far right Parliamentarian.
- In 2014 a Belgian newspaper portrayed then POTUS Obama and FLOTUS as monkeys.
But many people’s approach to racism is like the evil monkey living in Chris Griffin’s closet on the Family Guy:
It may very well be a real phenomenon;
And you lay very well be able to pinpoint examples of it;
But many people just won’t see where you’re coming from and they’ll tell you that the monkey actually means well and you just take him out of context.
I mean, for that matter, their best friend is a monkey and he never hurt anyone:
So the late movie star-cum-politician may well “live” to be praised another day.
Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book.
Reagan is credited with the above quotation, and he actually has penned books. Maybe he’ll dictate another one now to Marco Rubio via a Ouija board. Then again, as we’ve seen above, disgrace is in the eyes of the beholder.
It’s just so interesting in this newly revealed context to look at this image of Nixon with the long standing despotic President Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) visiting him at the White House. I guess Nixon was giving him advice on shoes?
We’ll never know.
And, for the record, there is a way to make light hearted non-disparaging human-animal references / jokes, like this:
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Politics868 