Black Show Ponies

I can tell you the bed time story of black show ponies.


“Once upon a time there were black show ponies. Feted for their skills since they were but foals, they won medals and awards for leaps and jumps ahead of their class and category because they had to prove themselves to get ahead of the competition. They were often made to ride with those that were bigger, stronger and tougher, and if they first balked at the challenge, with tenacity, it was they who challenged the others. Their gaits were fluid, their confidence child-like and they soon realised that their pace was unmatched. They continued jumping and won plaudits for their skills. They perhaps felt that they had proven their worth. Soon, what became a celebration of their feats became a cartoon- they were used as the feature stories for examples of inclusion, progressiveness and diversity. Little by little, these show ponies became nothing more than parodies of themselves. There was no happily ever after. The end.”

Black show ponies can be found all around in Britain. They are often found in elite educational establishments. They accept only a small number of minorities but these numbers are used excessively and overbearingly to drive the point of inclusiveness home. They are plastered on prospectuses, they are called upon to do interviews for their respective subject areas which might be particularly underrepresented (veterinary science) : they smile at the camera and tell the world that their college/university is a wonderful inclusive place. Then they can also be found in large organisations and companies- they are often trotted out at the appropriate time when there is a need to ensure that that entity represents the EMEA regions, when there is some initiative about Africa and when special mentoring programs involving minority applicants swing by. Black show ponies are minorities who are voted in as partners in law firms with no actual power and with special responsibility for “People Training” and “Diversity”. They are often found as lone writers for papers like the Daily Mail tortuously passing off a tale of inclusion.

Diane Abbott MP is a black show pony. She has allowed herself into a leadership election for the Labour Party, not to win, but to “broaden the debate” (her own words). Her ambition was crippled by the lack of party support to the extent that she has had to receive a benevolent “helping hand” from the party elite favourite to be able to stand. I fail to see how the fact that a black woman candidate could not meritoriously gain the vote needed to stand for the election broadens the debate, in fact, it kills the debate before it has even started and drives an enormous point home, but it appears that I might be the only one who thinks in this way. Many have supported her and in fact, have suggested that it is a strategic move for her as she would be assured of a Cabinet position were Labour to be voted back into power but it says much more to me that in 2010 a woman candidate has to posture, to gain a voice.

In spite of all her groundbreaking achievements in her constituency, she was reverted to the ever existing black stereotype of lazy by her constituents when she tried to juggle motherhood with her role as a parliamentarian. I am not saying that she has not made some silly mistakes- sending her son to private school when she adamantly spoke against the private school system was, in her own words, indefensible but I find it shocking that in spite of her achievements and her Cambridge degree, a lot of people, including her colleagues and her Labour contemporaries think she is stupid. After all, black people are obviously less intelligent according to recent studies. I am annoyed with Diane because I believe that she has succumbed to showponyism on a level that is simply unacceptable in today’s society. Political parties, educational establishments, firms and companies who love to place that one black or female face in their publications, prospectuses and on their websites and publicity material must be immediately called to account. By championing the cause of the token, Ms Abbot has seemingly accepted the status quo. The illusion of inclusion is worse than non inclusion because it is based on a lie. It is misleading and proffers a false impression that we live in a society that is more integrated and diverse than it actually is. By failing to see the “in-joke” that she has been artificially nominated and yet unanimously feted, Diane is feeding the hypocrisy of the nu-Labour machine, and she appears to be taking pleasure in revelling in her celebrity status at the expense of her dignity.

Cath Elliot of The Guardian actually has the nerve to say “so what” to the question of whether Diane’s nomination is a token one. She adds that it is not insulting because what’s actually insulting is “being presented with the same lack of choice time after time after time... and despite years of hard work aimed at opening politics up to those from less privileged backgrounds, in 2010 we're still being presented with the same old same old”. Is it just me, or isn’t it more insulting to stamp a black face onto the ballot with no intention of having him/her win? The old childhood mantra of “it’s the taking part that counts” was always a lie to make us feel better about getting a consolation prize- we all know what is really important.

There is a deeper problem however with black show ponyism apart from the fact that it tells a bare faced lie. The effect on the token black person is deep. He/she becomes an apparent authority on everything that affects the black race. Gun crime, rap songs, appeals for Africa, the whole lot- he or she is thought to represent all aspects of black culture, and at the same time, to be better than it. The show pony is at the same time considered part of the monolith but at the same time, beyond it. What a burden. Take for instance, Senator Biden’s description of Senator Obama back in 2007 as “the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.” Take for instance the cases I call corrective show ponyism- the case of producing a brochure or corporate report with black or female models on the cover, even though there are none within the organisation, or in extreme cases, photoshopping a black face within the corporate picture. Take for instance the condition the Americans call the “one nigga syndrome”- the net result that the one black person monopolises all opportunities and is deeply suspicious of other black persons in the organisation. Did someone say field v house? Something about it all is reminiscent of the South African black empowerment rules. Designed to promote equality, they were instead used as an insurance policy- thousands of black board managers were employed but were only later told they were not required to actually run the organisation or to provide any input.

In my opinion, black show ponyism is the flipside of oppression, and if Diane is not astute enough to recognise it for what it is, it is indeed a missed opportunity. It wasn’t me, it was Martin Luther King Junior who said that lukewarm acceptance is more bewildering than outright rejection.


(Photo from http://www.guardian.co.uk/- all rights attributed to Stephen Bell).