UK’s royal honour image branded as ‘offensive’
The Order of St Michael and St George is traditionally awarded to ambassadors and diplomats and senior Foreign Office officials who have served abroad. It has three ranks, the highest of which is Knight Grand Cross (GCMG), followed by Knight Commander (KCMG) and Companion (CMG).
Image ‘offensive’
According to British newspaper, The Guardian, campaigners are calling for the redesign of the award because they say its badge resembles a depiction of a white angel standing on the neck of a chained black man.
The imagery on the award’s badge portrays St Michael trampling on Satan, but campaigners, according to The Guardian, say the image is reminiscent of the killing of George P. Floyd Jr by white police officers in the US that led to worldwide protests.
It said a petition calling for the medal to be redesigned has attracted more than 2,000 signatures on change.org.
According to The Guardian, the petition, started by Tracy Reeve, says: “This is a highly offensive image, it is also reminiscent of the recent murder of George Floyd by the white policeman in the same manner presented here in this medal. We the undersigned are calling for this medal to completely redesigned in a more appropriate way and for an official apology to be given for the offence it has given.”
Is image racist?
It added Bumi Thomas, a Nigerian British singer, activist and specialist in visual communications, said the imagery on the badge was clear. “It is not a demon; it is a black man in chains with a white, blue-eyed figure standing on his neck. It is literally what happened to George Floyd and what has been happening to black people for centuries under the guise of diplomatic missions: active, subliminal messaging that reinforces the conquest, subjugation and dehumanisation of people of colour.
“It is a depiction on a supposed honour of the subjugation of the black and brown people of the world and the superiority of the white, a construct born in the 16th century. It is the definition of institutional racism that this image is not only permitted but celebrated on one of the country’s highest honours. Whilst statues are being pulled down and relocated, emblems and symbols of this nature also need to be redesigned to reflect a more progressive, holistic relationship between Britain and the Commonwealth nations.”
‘Shocking depiction’
Sir Simon Woolley, the director and one of the founders of Operation Black Vote, which campaigns for greater representation of ethnic minorities in politics and public life, said he was appalled by the badge.
“The original image may have been of St Michael slaying Satan, but the figure has no horns or tail and is clearly a black man. It is a shocking depiction, and it is even more shocking that that image could be presented to ambassadors representing this country abroad,” he said, according to The Guardian.
“This is the past that informs the present, and that’s why it symbolises everything that Black Lives Matter are campaigning for. It provides a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is to acknowledge it and own it, but the opportunity is to put it right. It is easy to get rid of an image, but I would like root-and-branch restructuring, because most of the institutions created by the empire are still there.
“For most black and brown people, there is nothing good about the empire. Most people will see this as an image of George Floyd on a global scale and a symbol of white supremacy.”
The Order was founded in 1818 under King George III. It was originally created to honour service in the Mediterranean during the Napoleonic wars. The motto that surrounds the image is Auspicium melioris ævi, Latin for “Omen of a better age”.
According to The Guardian, Buckingham Palace has been approached for comment.
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41 Responses to “UK’s royal honour image branded as ‘offensive’”
* Ephesians 6:5, “Slaves obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart, just as you would show to Christ.”
1 Timothy 6:1, “All who are under the yoke of slavery should regard their masters as fully worthy of honour, so that God’s name and our teaching will not be discredited.”
Exodus 21:20, “If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property.”
I could go on but I think YOU MIGHT get the point...
Colossian 4 v1 " Masters provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven"
Colossians 5v 1 " It is for freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourself be burdened again by a yoke of slavery"
Luke 4 v 18 " The spirit of the Lord is upon me , because he has anointed me to to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim FREEDOM for the prisoners recovery of sight for the blind and set the oppressed [slaves] free. Christ abolished Slavery in the bible. Man continued in the trade.
Even after 1834 the slave trade continued. When quoting any document Sir, please produce it in its entirety not parts that favors you. The slave owners were careful not to mention the scriptures I did. They would have probably use the one you did.
Slavery was wrong. It should never have happened.
When black people proclaimed that they were enslaved by the bible, it was dismissed as a petty grievance but recently, it has been revealed that there was in fact a black slave bible and it was heavily redacted to only include those scriptures which favoured the continued oppression of the black race as slaves! and that is why when the black man said he was enslaved by the bible, that is the one he is referring to because he was not given the whole book! Only the parts that kept him a prisoner.
Do your research properly.
LOL
That was good.
To far east is always west.
Some things are truly ridiculous
The bible did not give a skin color of Jesus. Man imagined how he looked and produced the images we see. The bible forbid the making curving, or painting of images depicting God for the simple reasons you noted. An artist will depict him [God] according to the color of his skin.
Our flags depicted the Union jack (read the history) and the picture of St Ursula who is a caucasian are we going to remove them to?
The evil in them white kkk ...in HIGH PLACES....
That should old u all think there love u ....eye opener mf
Truth be told!
WE NOTICED THAT GUS IS IN HIDING OVER THIS ONE, IT SAYS A LOT...
They better get rid of that picture soon. Any Black person wearing this pin is nothing but a BUFFOON and should NOT feel proud to have it given to you! Even in your face with eyes wide open, you think this medal is an honor. They are laughing their a$$e# off because you were too dumb to notice it!
U represents a evil force ....let the people here wat u got to say about this dam picture or hall ur @#$ back where u come from and to who send u..god dam ...we going to let the world know about his ...this is 2020..not no plantation. Our children dont need this we come to dam far for this .....
Get a grip and stop making trouble
Gus will be silent on this unless it’s a cartoon of him? Does he care about what’s right? Just his own PR. He has to go.
Blacks hating whites , whites hating blacks is the Evil. Looting, fighting and killing over WHAT!!?? A word or symbol or historical statues??? What in the HELL????! That IS SAITAN . Its so OBVIOUS. WORKING TO DROP THIS RIDICULOUS NONSENSE IS STEP 1 TO BEING GOOD AND LOVING TO ANYONE. by the way... What RACE ARE ALBINOS???? AND WHY WOULD WE CARE?? For all we know Jesus was an albino