White people should stop trying to be Africa’s Saviour

In today’s episode we are looking at the issue of 'white saviour complex' and the way the developing world and particularly Africa has been portrayed in popular Western culture.

We are joined by Sabrina Richmond, an actor and playwright whose new play An African in the Snow is at the Pleasance Theatre Islington tomorrow. We talked about how she felt as a young girl growing up in Africa with this kind of imagery, how controversy flared again this year with Strictly Come Dancing star Stacey Dooley, and how caricatures of people of colour go beyond humanitarian imagery to popular culture.

Presented by: Dr. Glenda Cooper and Dr. Lindsey Blumell

Produced by: Atina Dimitrova

The controversy over white saviour complex reignited in the UK earlier this year when Stacey Dooley travelled to Uganda for Comic Relief. While out there she posted a picture of her on Instagram holding a young boy and talking about how gorgeous he was. British MP David Lammy was outraged.

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