Swedish minister of culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth has been accused of participation in a "racist spectacle" where she is seen (above picture) carving up a cake depicting a naked black golliwog caricature has sparked outrage and prompted calls for the minister's dismissal.
"In our view, this simply adds to the mockery of racism in Sweden," Kitimbwa Sabuni, spokesperson for the National Afro-Swedish Association (Afrosvenskarnas riksförbund) told The Local.
"This was a racist spectacle."
Sabuni's comments came following Adelsohn Liljeroth's participation in an alleged "art" installation at Stockholm's Moderna Museet.
As part of the installation, which has retroactively explained as being meant to highlight the issue of female circumcision, the culture minister began cutting a large cake shaped like a black female caricature, symbolically starting at the clitoris.
The artist whom I will not give the satisfaction of publicity by naming & is also strangely enough of mixed origin, created the installation and whose head is part of the cake cut by the minister, allegedly wrote about the 'genital mutilation cake' on a Facebook page bearing his name saying..
"Before cutting me up she whispered, 'Your life will be better after this' in my ear," in a caption next to the partially eaten cake.
"According to the Moderna Museet, the 'cake party' was meant to problematize female circumcision but how that is accomplished through a cake representing a racist caricature of a black woman complete with 'black face' is unclear," Sabuni said in a statement.
According to Sabuni, the mere fact that the minister particiapted in the event, which he argued was also marked by "cannibalistic" overtones, betrays her "incompetence and lack of judgement".
"Her participation, as she laughs, drinks, and eats cake, merely adds to the insult against people who suffer from racist taunts and against women affected by circumcision," he said.
"We have no confidence in her any longer."
Speaking with the TT news agency, Adelsohn Liljeroth addressed the association's reaction, but nevertheless defended her actions.
"I understand quite well that this is provocative and that it was a rather bizarre situation," she said.
"I was invited to speak at World Art Day about art's freedom and the right to provoke. And then they wanted me to cut the cake."
However, Adelsohn Liljeroth said the National Afro-Swedish Association's anger should be directed at the artist, not at her, claiming the situation was "misinterpreted".
"He claims that it challenges a romanticized and exoticized view from the west about something that is really about violence and racism," she said.
"Art needs to be provocative."
But the minster's defence of her actions rang hollow for Sabuni.
"It's extremely insulting for the minister to claim that we've somehow 'misunderstood' racism," he said.
According to Sabuni, the incident is "strange" but "not unexpected" in the Swedish context.
"Sweden thinks of itself as a place where racism is not a problem," he said.
"That just provides cover for not discussing the issue which leads to incidents like this."
While a museum is certainly allowed to do what it wants as long as the laws are followed, Sabuni argued that a minister needs to be held to "higher standards".
"To participate in a racist manifestation masquerading as art is totally over the line and can only be interpreted as the culture minister supporting the Moderna Museet's racist prank," he said.
Ok, since this came out theres been alot of talk about artistic merit &freedom of expression etc many going as far as to say they dont even see the big deal!
I had quite a few very strong words about this issue, over seven paragraghs worth, I erased them.
All I will say in their place is this, IMAGINE for a moment that instead of a Golliwog cake it had been a jewish internment camp cake or perhaps a cake of a little boy in striped pajamas... What would your reaction then be? What would the mainstream reaction to the so called "art" be like THEN?
Im sure we'd be hearing a completely different tune from this ever-growing new species of pseudo-intellectual "Unaffecteditus-Hypocritus" who use increasingly sophisticated artistic media driven agendas to mask growing globally commercialised stealth-racism.
But then as I guess is the norm with most racist hypocrites out there, it will always be a case of having their cake.. & eating it too.
Eyes. Open. Wide. Awake.
