Alexandre Dumas: An Original Writer of Colour

Posted in Articles, Communications/Media Studies, Media Archive, United Kingdom on 2014-02-02 21:51Z by Steven

Alexandre Dumas: An Original Writer of Colour

Media Diversified: Tackling the Lack of Diversity in UK Media and the Ubiquity of Whiteness
2014-02-02

Glen Chisholm, Councilor (Labor Party)
Ipswich, England

A new generation of viewers are being introduced to the swashbuckling adventures of D’Artagnan and his friends and brothers in arms Athos, Porthos and Aramis. Many will know their motto,

“All for one, One for all”

as their adventures are played out in the BBC’s new Sunday night family drama series. The Three Musketeers has been produced on screen in film and TV numerous times. even in the form of a cartoon, “Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds” in the early 80′s.

For me it’s great that once again these works are getting exposure as I’ve felt a love for stories of adventure ever since I was a child. I remember my father had a collection of classic books, bound in faux leather with gold leaf print. This of course caught my attention and when I started reading them they captured my imagination. As I got older I wanted to learn more about who had created such wonderful tales and when I looked I was inspired by what I saw. Alexandre Dumas a man who like me was mixed race, a man who was black and went on to be one of the most widely read French authors in history…

Read the entire article here.

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Being Mixed Race: Am I A Human Rorschach Test?

Posted in Autobiography, Media Archive, United Kingdom on 2013-09-04 01:11Z by Steven

Being Mixed Race: Am I A Human Rorschach Test?

Media Diversity UK: Tackling the lack of diversity in UK media and the ubiquity of whiteness
2013-09-03

Glen Chisholm

Just last week I was standing at a bus stop when a gentleman; a complete stranger came and joined me. Nothing unusual about that, we then politely nodded at each other and a conversation started up.

Me: “Evening”

Stranger: “Evening”

Me: “it’s still quite warm isn’t it”

Stranger: “yes it is”; pause; “excuse me mate, but were do you come from?”

Me: “Ipswich”

Stranger: “no, you know, were do you originate from”

Me: “I originate from Ipswich, my mum is English and my dad is Jamaican”

Stranger, sounding surprised: “Really I wouldn’t have thought you were Black, I’d have thought you were Italian or Spanish or something”

Me, politely smiles: “yeah, I sometimes get that”

Now I wasn’t offended by this and this wasn’t the first time or probably won’t be the last time that I’ll have this conversation. I am a light skinned mixed race person with loose curly hair. I have spent most of my life with people questioning my racial identity and for a while I was left questioning it myself…

Read the entire article here.

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