Golliwogs - love 'em or hate 'em?

[Eater Sundae]

I've still got a gollywog in my mums attic and read the E Blyton books as a child, however it never occoured to me that they were rasicst as I was too young to even contemplate that rasicsm existed , surely its just a depiction of a guy, if thats all you want it to be.

I understand your point Martin and kinda agree with it, but if I buy one for my child he will no doubt treat it just like his other doll (which has pink 'skin' and hair made from brown wool) isn't it surely a good thing that something with negative connotations (for those who remember them) is then used in a er, normal way?

iirc the swasticker was a peace symbol until it came to represent the nazi party, surely you would rather both became something other/better than what there commonly remembered for?

hope that was coherent.

 

as an aside, you say that golliwogs were based on a gross caricture of black people, as far as I remember; it was a round black head, black hair made from wool, big red smile and two buttons for eyes. you can only create so much with odds n sods from yer sewing bag, the Tomme Teepee doll my kids got is just the same but with white guy features and that came from waitrose.

 

We are unlikely to see the swastika rehabilitated into common use. Similarly, Adolf does not top the list of popular boy's names

 

Although clearly not in the same league as those, the Golliwog has a history. I quite like the doll, purely because it is cute and different, but we can manage without it in mainstream life, so it wouldn't be a great loss if most people avoid it.

[boyfriday]

I cannot understand any teacher ever allowing children to say things like that, but then again I also cannot understand how they seem to miss so many instances of bullying in general.

The teachers were ambivalent about it really, it was probably just viewed as a heavy handed 'joke'

Mine was a more subtle one- I wore glasses and was a bit porky as a child and my surname rhymed with 'diet'.

You're not Gladys Pyatt from 1A are you??

Some kids are just nasty. I hope you have succeeded in putting it all behind you now

I don't want to overstate it Medusa, it gave me a slightly harder skin that's all and I don't twitch at night any more , but by the same token I've never bought any Robertson's products either!

[Suffragette1]

The teachers were ambivalent about it really, it was probably just viewed as a heavy handed 'joke'

You're not Gladys Pyatt from 1A are you??

I don't want to overstate it Medusa, it gave me a slightly harder skin that's all and I don't twitch at night any more , but by the same token I've never bought any Robertson's products either!

 

I hope that you got the bed wetting sorted.

 

I used to get gangs of lads walking behind me chanting 'Roots'. I managed to get my own back on them a few years back when I ran into them all in a bar in town and reminded them of it, very publicly, in front of their wives and partners. Needless to say, they were mortified beyond belief and actually changed colour themselves.

[rubydazzler]

They were less enlightened times ruby.

It's funny you should say that because I'm an earlier vintage than you, and really we never had serious bullying or name calling due to personal appearance. A bit of 'tormenting' went on sometimes, but as soon as the 'grown-ups' noticed there was anything going on, it was soon put a stop to. In no uncertain terms!! It's all very different now, people seem to be getting nastier and nastier which is strange because life is so much better today, materially anyway.

 

On the other hand, although there were black and asian men around, there didn't seem to be many women or children. Being told you looked like a golliwog, was a reference to the fact that your hair needed a good brushing because it was standing on end like the doll, and not meant as an insulting reference to you as a person.

 

I don't know, now. It's all so long ago. I've done a lot of living since then!

[Ms Macbeth]

We are unlikely to see the swastica rehabilitated into common use. Similarly, Adolf does not top the list of popular boy's names

 

Although clearly not in the same league as those, the Golliwog has a history. I quite like the doll, purely because it is cute and different, but we can manage without it in mainstream life, so it wouldn't be a great loss if most people avoid it.

 

Its the history that made it more (or less) than a cute doll. I completely agree with your last phrase as I've seen the hurt it can cause when used as an insult. There are so many dolls for children to choose from, do we really need this one?

[boyfriday]

It's funny you should say that because I'm an earlier vintage than you, and really we never had serious bullying or name calling due to personal appearance. A bit of 'tormenting' went on sometimes, but as soon as the 'grown-ups' noticed there was anything going on, it was soon put a stop to. In no uncertain terms!! It's all very different now, people seem to be getting nastier and nastier which is strange because life is so much better today, materially anyway.

 

On the other hand, although there were black and asian men around, there didn't seem to be many women or children. Being told you looked like a golliwog, was a reference to the fact that your hair needed a good brushing because it was standing on end like the doll, and not meant as an insulting reference to you as a person.

Sorry ruby, what I meant by 'less enlightened', was some of the prejudice could be understandable as the indigenous people had little experience of others that didn't look like them.

 

As you say, the term golliwog may have had fairly innocent connotations, but black folks didn't know that and it certainly came to take on more sinister usage when I was in early years at school. I was once told that because all black people 'looked the same', they all looked like golliwogs..that's a failure to appreciate the nuances in physical appearance that comes from getting to know people, ironically when my mother arrived here in the early 50's she thought all white people looked the same..so I guess it cuts both ways!

 

I don't know, now. It's all so long ago. I've done a lot of living since then!

You and me both sister!

[boyfriday]

I hope that you got the bed wetting sorted.

Has Treatment been discussing my delinquent prostate again?!

I used to get gangs of lads walking behind me chanting 'Roots'.

LOL, you got that too?! I used to feign illness on Monday mornings, because from experience I was likely to receive some unimaginative abuse throughout the day based on the previous evenings episode!

[taxman]

As a child my Mum dressed me up as a Golliwog to take part in Salford University's rag parade. The float I was on had a Robinsons Jam theme and I dressed up and sang "Mammy" as we drove slowly around the streets of Moss Side.

 

Surprised I'm here today.

[boyfriday]

As a child my Mum dressed me up as a Golliwog to take part in Salford University's rag parade. The float I was on had a Robinsons Jam theme and I dressed up and sang "Mammy" as we drove slowly around the streets of Moss Side.

 

Surprised I'm here today.

 

 

...you might be, but is she?!

[jordanjlb]

Me and the kids won a little golly on the slot machines at Skeggy yesterday, and I used to collect the tokens on the back of jam jars to get the little pin badges they all had different uniforms on nurse, policeman, etc they were lovely and cute.