When the Greens "go black"

Or why an insensitive election poster is giving the German left a bad case of the blues

IT SEEMED LIKE SUCH a clever idea. Why not poke fun at Germany’s traditional color-coded party spectrum and at the same time make a plea for cultural diversity and racial tolerance? Doesn't that sound like a very "Green" sort of thing to do? So when the local Green Party organization in the small town of Kaarst on the Lower Rhine unveiled its new campaign poster for the September 27 elections, it got a good laugh at party headquarters.

But now that it’s hanging on buildings and lampposts all across town, not everybody thinks it’s so funny.

"The only reason to choose black. Time for Green."

The poster shows a pair of white hands clutching a bare black booty, with the words “The only reason to choose black,” i.e. for the conservatives. In Germany, the color black is traditionally conservative, gold is liberal (e.g. business), red is Social Democratic, green is Green, dark red is Communist, and brown is the color of the extreme right.

Reactions to the poster came quick. Speaking for thousands of other immigrants and diversity activists, Gilbert Yimbou, an African-German city councilman and deputy chairman of the reform-communist “Left Party” organization in nearby Düsseldorf, stated on the group’s website that he was “outraged and stunned” by the poster. “The fact that dark-skinned people are being degraded into sex objects shows how far the Greens have distanced themselves from their original political goals. Using racism to pick up votes is something I previously only knew from far-right parties.”

Councilman Gilbert Yimbou: "Outraged and stunned"

The regional Green Party office in the state of North Rhine/Westphalia hastily issued a statement saying that the poster was merely meant to provoke voters in an amusing way. “The Greens more than anyone else have always stood for policies characterized by tolerance, cosmopolitanism, and equality. Issues such as integration and women’s politics stand at the center of the Greens’ political work. Accusations that this poster is racist or sexist are thus untenable.”

The trouble is, besides tolerance and equality, the Greens also stand for political correctness, and the party’s state youth organization is not amused. “By using a female, and naked, bottom, you are employing the proven principle of ‘sex sells’ that is also used by the advertising industry. The Green Youth of North Rhine/Westphalia reject this kind of advertising in the strongest terms because it is discriminatory and profoundly sexist. Your poster is also profoundly racist. In combination with the slogan, it shows a dark-skinned woman as a willing and constantly available sex object. Your sensitivity regarding these issues is shameful and disappoints us immensely.”

The storm that is rumbling through the Internet is threatening to spill over into the election itself. But so far, the controversy is unfolding only on the left of the political spectrum while more conservative parties are sitting back and enjoying the spectacle. In the meantime, the Kaarst Greens have removed the posters and are preparing a formal statement.

Now the poster may well be offensive to some, but it’s certainly much more eye-catching than the typical local campaign posters that litter the country at election time. Perhaps it’s time for a little more sensitivity – and a little more imagination – on the part of everyone.

http://open.salon.com/blog/lost_in_berlin/2009/08/13/when_the_greens_go_black