Despite threats, Afro Peruvian activists pledge to continue fighting for equality and respect for civil rights
Afro Peruvian leaders of the organization LUNDU, the Center for Afro Peruvian Studies and Advancement, have denounced what they consider is an alarming escalation of verbal attacks and threats of violence against members of their organization.
The attacks have increased since LUNDU protests forced the Lima-based television station Frecuencia Latina, to pull off a racist TV character called “Negro Mama”, which represents a Black man as a mentally retarded thief, a dingy individual with exaggerated facial features and nappy hair, reinforcing stereotypes against African descendants. This was part of a popular comedy show.
The character “Negro Mama” was taken off air by April 8th, 2010, after protests led by LUNDU against racist characters in Peruvian TV, including also “La Paisana Jacinta” which portrays Indigenous women as dirty, stupid, toothless and silly. “Jacinta” is still part of a popular comedy show.
LUNDU says that its offices are flooded with threatening messages recieved by telephone, mail, email, and especially through social media websites like Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. Even local popular newspapers are allowing hate messages in their comment boards.
This situation has worsened since April 21th, when Frecuencia Latina announced that “Negro Mama” will be back on air. That same day, LUNDU was celebrating the Day Against Racism by denouncing on 1,104 racist news reports posted in the Peruvian media, including 203 contents attacking Afro Peruvians with slurs such as “monkeys, gorrilas, baby maker stallions.”
Monica Carrillo, the founder and leader of LUNDU, said via email that she is very concerned after several Facebook pages have been opened in the past weeks to promote racism in TV and violence against the LUNDU organization.
“Most of these websites have messages that are extremely violent and racist, there is even a Facebook page with my name on it, and my feeling is that I might be exposed to situations of physical violence.”
LUNDU has tracked at least five hateful Facebook pages, some of which include up to 9,000 members [Please consider reporting these pages as “racist/hate speech”]: