Ban 'racist' Tintin, says watchdog

Ban 'racist' Tintin, says watchdog

Last updated at 16:06pm on 11th July 2007 Comments

'Offensive': A race watchdog has demanded Tintin in the Congo be pulled from book shelves

A high street chain was today criticised for stocking a Tintin book accused of having racist content.

The Commission for Racial Equality is calling on Borders to pull "Tintin in the Congo" from its shelves.

It says the illustrated book makes black people "look like monkeys and talk like imbeciles".

The book will offend many people and should be removed from sale, according to the CRE.

A spokeswoman said: "This book contains imagery and words of hideous racial prejudice, where the 'savage natives' look like monkeys and talk like imbeciles.

"How and why do Borders think that it's okay to peddle such racist material?

"Yes, it was written a long time ago, but this certainly does not make it acceptable. This is potentially highly offensive to a great number of people.

"It beggars belief that in this day and age Borders would think it acceptable to sell and display Tintin in the Congo. It's high time that they reconsidered their decision and removed this from their shelves."

The CRE were contacted by a Borders customer who saw the book in a London branch of the chain last month.

A spokesman for the chain said it was moving the Tintin book from the children's to the adult graphic novels section of its stores.

"Naturally, some of the thousands of books and music selections we carry could be considered controversial or objectionable depending on individual political views, tastes and interests," he said.

"However, Borders stands by its commitment to let customers make the choice. After consideration of this title, we have instructed all stores to move it to the adult graphic novels section."