Japanese rock band Mrs Green Apple has apologized and removed the video for the song “Columbus” in which one of the musicians is seen playing the role of Christopher Columbus with ape-like men. The announcement was made by the record company Universal Music Japan, after the outcry caused by this new clip.
In this contested clip, the three members appear in the roles of Christopher Columbus, Napoleon Bonaparte and the German composer Ludwig van Beethoven. The three famous characters discover an island inhabited by people who look like monkeys, whom they teach to ride horses and pull a rickshaw.
Lack of understanding
The group’s record company said Thursday, the day after the video was released, that its content revealed “a lack of understanding of historical and cultural contexts.” Band member Motoki Ohmori also apologized. “It was never our intention to create discriminatory content or promote a tragic story,” he said.
Upon its release, the Japanese group’s video sparked widespread criticism on social networks. Internet users denounced dubious allusions to slavery and discrimination. “A view of history according to which Christopher Columbus was a hero who discovered the new continent is outdated,” wrote one user on the social network indigenous peoples and slavery,” he added.
“Was there really no one” on the team involved in launching this new music video “who had studied world history?” » was offended by the author of a comment on YouTube.
