The BBC is catching flack for a U.K .Black History Month video posted on Monday which asks whether it’s a “myth or reality” that black people like chicken more than others.
But the real question here is: What in the world were they thinking?
BBC Newsbeat tweeted the clip which features black and white British people debating the topic. “Apparently chicken makes your bum bigger,” one white participant says. “A lot of black girls that I know say that’s why they eat it.”
Meanwhile, a black participant declares plainly, “It’s not the only food that we eat.”
The one-minute segment ends with a white interviewee concluding that, “Loads of black people I know love chicken...There’s a stereotype but it’s true.”
The online response to the segment has been less than enthusiastic, with people arguing that the clip simply perpetuates the chicken stereotype rather than challenging it:
The BBC has yet to make a comment on the backlash to the chicken segment, or on a similar segment also published Monday asking whether white people should be allowed to use the n-word (several white people in the clip say that they should).
The tone-deaf chicken video is yet another example how not to tackle content seeking to explore race and racism in 2016. When it comes to stereotypes about black people, it’s probably best to listen to how black people feel about them.
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