After receiving criticism for images that showed Christopher Columbus with ape-like men, a Chinese rock band pulled the music video for its innovative song” Columbus.”
Three traditional figures demonstrate numerous skills to the ape-like beings, such as riding on horses and playing music instruments.
The movie quickly caused a backlash after being released on Wednesday; it was eventually removed.
The group, Mrs Green Apple, apologised on Thursday, saying the movie” contains gestures that lack understanding of historical and social background”.
The singer’s three people are shown discovering an island inhabited by people who appear to be apes in costumes that depict Columbus, Beethoven, and other artists.
The film was criticized on social media for being racist, while others argued that it affirms slavery.
” Columbus is credited with creating slavery, and]there are ] controversial scenes such as educating apes to look like natives. Did n’t anyone notice that”, read one post on X.
” The music video shows the gentlemen dressed as colonisers and the native are portrayed as factual monkeys… that’s really insane”, another chimed in.
Others took issue with its portrayal of Columbus – the man has been credited for “discovering” America, but some claim he was a brutal governor who mistreated and enslaved the natives.
” Was n’t there anyone involved who had studied world history at all”?, wrote a comment on YouTube.
” I believe that the people who are defending this video do n’t know anything about North American history. Columbus is hated by some Americans, to the point where Columbus Day has disappeared]in several spots ]”, another said.
The group claimed in one of two explanation claims posted yesterday that they wanted to show “life forms of various ages having a home gathering.”
” We were concerned from the beginning that]the apes ] might be seen as discriminatory expression, but we had no intention of likening apes to humans.
We always intended to make the material offensive or to affirm tragic story, it said.
Coca- Cola had first included the movie as part of Coke Studio, its songs effort featuring celebrities.
The band is responsible for some songs in the well-known Japanese manga series One Piece and has 3.4 million YouTube subscribers.
Kyoko Mizukawa- Yamada provided extra monitoring in Tokyo.