Ligali | Media | Trident "Jafaican" ads investigated for anti-African content

Trident "Jafaican" ads investigated for anti-African content

Fri 2 March 2007

Cadburys Offensive Trident Spoof of Linton Kwesi Johnson

An offensive "Jafaican" marketing campaign for Cadbury’s new range of chewing gum is being investigated for racist anti-African content following a flurry of community complaints.

The anti-African TV advert, which was produced by advertising agency JWT, is to be investigated by the industries regulatory body, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Ligali and the ASA have collectively received over a hundred complaints about the ad in which many complainants describe it as racist, degrading to African people and perpetuating a 'negative' stereotypical portrayal of Africans, in particularly those with Caribbean heritage.

JWT the company who produced the ad has stated that the campaign was approved in test trails and designed to reflect "dub poetry performers".

The advert, a feeble and patronising spoof of the renowned revolutionary artist Linton Kwesi Johnson, is based around a minstrel-like "comedian" using an exaggerated Jamaican accent to promote the chewing gum brand. The advert concludes with his transformation into a revolutionary "poet" whose chant "mastication for the nation" is targeted at all who will listen.

In its belligerent attempt to mock African culture, the campaign makes no attempt at an authentic portrayal and offensively draws upon several derogatory caricatures of African people to market the product. Subsequent parts of the campaign have now been launched using european actors to adopt what the media has dubbed a 'Jafaikan' accent. However it is the first part with its inclusion of subtle one liners for cheap laughs such as "10 years hard labour" and “Listen as you wash your undercrackers” that is said to also be an inappropriate abuse of the history of the Maafa such as anti-slavery and pro human rights movements.

Revolutionary Artists: Best Kept Secret

Actor claims ad has no racist overtones

Mike McKenna is the JWT senior creative who helped produce the film. He responded to criticisms by claiming: "We would never have written anything we thought was going to upset people… I would never have set out to upset anybody. I have good friends who are non-white… the actor certainly never thought it had racist overtones".

Writing for the New Nation newspaper, Steve Pope commented: "It’s terrible enough when ‘others’ do dreadful impressions of a Jamaican or other Caribbean accents, but when it comes from the mouth of [an African] person it’s even more embarrassing".

Cadbury's chief executive Todd Stitzer told the Sun newspaper the UK launch of the Trident chewing gum brand — under the slogan “Mastication for the nation” — had gone well.

Bamboozled - Spike Lees powerful critique on modern day minstrel media

LIGALI Comment

Not content with subverting Hip Hop as a force for political good to create a populist vehicle of irresponsible social values, some media 'creatives' now seek to subvert and commercially exploit the revolutionary genius of the spoken word movement as an object for ridicule and a tool of commerce.

How dare they attack an African cultural icon of the standing of the Linton Kwesi Johnson and his seminal publication 'Mi Revalueshanary Fren'. African artists in Britain such as Linton, Best Kept Secret, Ty, shaka, David J and Beyonder preserve and maintain the essence of the African griot whilst an unknown actor willingly desecrates it for his financial and professional gain.

Buffoonery of the ilk carried out by the African actor participating in this campaign is a disgrace which shames not only himself but also all those who were responsible for commissioning, creating, approving and promoting this very un-satirical approach to ethnicity based humour, such as that perfectly illustrated by Spike Lee’s ground breaking film, Bamboozled.

Spread the word, boycott Cadbury's Trident gum and buy Mi Revalueshanary Fren by Linton Kwesi Johnson instead.

Inglan is a Bitch
Linton Kwesi Johnson

w´en mi jus´ come to Landan toun
mi use to work pan di andahgroun
but workin´ pan di andahgroun
y´u don´t get fi know your way around

Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no runnin´ whey fram it

mi get a lickle jab in a bih ´otell
an´ awftah a while, mi woz doin´ quite well
dem staat mi aaf as a dish-washah
but w´en mi tek a stack, mi noh tun clack-watchah

Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a b**ch
no baddah try fi hide fram it

w´en dem gi´ you di lickle wage packit
fus dem rab it wid dem big tax rackit
y´u haffi struggle fi mek en´s meet
an´ w´en y´u goh a y´u bed y´u jus´ can´t sleep

Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a b**ch
a noh lie mi a tell, a true

mi use to work dig ditch w´en it cowl noh b**ch
mi did strang like a mule, but bwoy, mi did fool
den awftah a while mi jus´ stap dhu ovahtime
den awftah a while mi jus´ phu dung mi tool

Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a b**ch
y´u haffi know how fi survive in it
well mi dhu day wok an´ mi dhu nite wok
mi dhu clean wok an´ mi dhu dutty wok
dem seh dat black man is very lazy
but if y´u si how mi wok y´u woulda sey mi crazy

Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a b**ch
y´u bettah face up to it

dem a have a lickle facktri up inna Brackly
inna disya facktri all dem dhu is pack crackry
fi di laas fifteen years dem get mi laybah
now awftah fifteen years mi fall out a fayvah

Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a b**ch
dere´s no runnin´ whey fram it

Resources

Mistrel Trident Ad

Trident Minstrel Ad - Part Two

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