L’etichetta ‘One Little Indian’ cambia nome. Il fondatore: «Era razzista»

Il fondatore della One Little Indian Records, Derek Birkett, ha cambiato il nome della sua etichetta. La casa discografica di artisti come Björk, Sugarcubes e Cody Chesnutt – per citarne alcuni – d’ora in avanti si chiamerà One Little Independent Records. La decisione, spiega Birkett, «arriva in seguito a una lettera che mi ha aperto gli occhi»

«Da adolescente che viveva a Londra alla fine degli anni Settanta, io e i miei amici eravamo profondamente ispirati dalle filosofie degli Indigeni delle Americhe, della pace e dell’amore per l’altro e per la natura. Pensavo che il nome e il logo riflettessero il mio rispetto e il mio apprezzamento per la cultura. Sono consapevole che il mio white privilege mi ha protetto e ha favorito l’ignoranza su questi temi. Mi rendo conto che il nome e il logo dell’etichetta perpetuavano invece un dannoso stereotipo e sfruttamento della cultura dei popoli indigeni. È l’esatto opposto di ciò che volevamo fare. Voglio scusarmi senza riserve con chiunque sia stato offeso dal nome e dal logo. Riconosco ora che entrambi contribuiscono al razzismo e che avrebbero dovuto essere affrontati molto, molto tempo fa». Il testo completo:

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ONE LITTLE INDIAN RECORDS NAME CHANGE OF IMMEDIATE EFFECT TO ONE LITTLE INDEPENDENT RECORDS I have immediately started making arrangements to stop using the One Little Indian Records name and logo, with our digital properties in the process of this change right now. From today the label will be called One Little Independent Records. The last few weeks have been a monumental learning curve. Following the receipt of an eye-opening letter from a Crass fan that detailed precisely why the logo and label name are offensive, as well as the violent history of the terminology, I felt equally appalled and grateful to them for making me understand what must be changed. As a teenager living in London in the late 1970s, my friends and I were deeply inspired when we learned about some of the philosophies of the Indigenous People of the Americas, of peace and love for each other and for nature and the planet, and in turn they were of huge influence in our anarchist punk movement. I was naive enough at the time of founding my label to think that the name and logo was reflective of my respect and appreciation of the culture. I’m aware that my white privilege has sheltered me and fostered my ignorance on these issues. I realise now that the label name and logo instead perpetuated a harmful stereotyping and exploitation of Indigenous Peoples’ culture. This is the exact opposite of what was intended. However, I know that it is not the intentions but the impact that is important. I want to apologise unreservedly to anyone that has been offended by the name and the logo. I recognise now that both contribute to racism and should have been addressed a long, long time ago. It is my responsibility to take ownership of my mistakes and I still have so much more work and learning to do. I have begun by immediately implementing the label’s change of name and logo. Furthermore, I have on behalf of One Little Independent, made, and will continue to make, donations to a number of organisations including the Honouring Indigenous Peoples Charitable Corporation and The Association on American Indian Affairs. Sincerely, Derek

Un post condiviso da One Little Independent Records (@onelittleindierecords) in data: 10 Giu 2020 alle ore 11:06 PDT