Blue Peter is praised for their ‘moving and simple’ explanation of racism
Blue Peter #BluePeter
Blue Peter has been praised for its ‘moving’ and ‘simple’ explanation of racism and the Black Lives Matter protests.
Presenters Lindsey Russell, Richie Driss and Mwaksy Mudenda yesterday delivered a two-minute address in which they defined racism in ‘powerfully’ simple terms for their young viewers, saying: ‘Racism is to have a bad opinion of someone because of something they can’t even help, which is the colour of their skin.’
They also opened up about their personal experiences with racism and spoke directly to viewers and their parents about what can be done to help.
Blue Peter has been praised for its ‘moving’ and ‘simple’ explanation of racism and the Black Lives Matter protests. Starting the segment, Richie Driss (pictured) said he had experienced it
Mwaksy Mudenda, who is a woman of colour, said she had also experienced racism and that it ‘really upset’ her that someone would judge her for her skin colour
The approach was widely praised on Twitter, where parents said it was the ‘best explanation’ they had seen for children
The approach was widely praised on Twitter, where parents said it was the ‘best explanation’ they had seen for children.
Starting the segment, Richie explained the protests and marches being covered by the news have been started ‘because of racism’.
He added that as a man of mixed heritage he had been the victim of racism ‘far too many times’.
Mwaksy said she had also experienced racism and that it ‘really upset’ her that someone would judge her for her skin colour.
Parents thanked the programme for addressing the issue in a way children can understand
She added: ‘People should not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.’
Presenter Lindsey Russell said she has never experienced racism first-hand but understood she needed to ‘do more’.
She said: ‘When upsetting, uncomfortable stuff like this is happening around us, it is important to remember we don’t need to have all the answers.
‘But it is really, really important that we educate ourselves, we speak out and use our voices, and we try to understand.’
Presenter Lindsey Russell said she has never experienced racism first-hand but understood she needed to ‘do more’
Parents thanked the presenters for their words on Twitter, with one writing: ‘From a very, very old school Blue Peter fan, this is beautiful done, amazingly well handled, and aired and talked about superbly. Thank you for reaching out to the most important minds – those that are still learning.’
Another wrote: ‘So beautiful and easily understood. It started a brief chat with my 2 boys, so we had to pause the show for a few minutes. My ethos is: Listen, Understand, Educate, Repeat.’
A third added: ‘Well done guys, it’s so important to highlight what’s happening in the world, even if we’re not personally on the receiving end. ESPECIALLY if we’re not at the receiving end. Very powerful message guys.’
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