Michael Jackson scarecrow prompts Police action in Hull, England

ChrisC

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https://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/new...hael-jackson-scarecrow-offensive-hull-4166132

'Offensive' Michael Jackson scarecrow prompts police visit to Hull estate
Stephen and Teresa have since removed the figure from their front garden

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Residents of a north Hull estate say “the world’s gone mad” after police received a complaint regarding a Michael Jackson scarecrow outside their house.

Stephen and Teresa Sayner, of Compass Road, put the effigy of the controversial pop star, outside their house last week as part of a community “scarecrow walk”.

However, days later officers from Humberside Police knocked on their door following a complaint prompting them to remove it.

Mr Sayner said: “I can’t believe it, the world has gone mad.

“What’s annoying is the police can find the time to knock on the door about a scarecrow and they’ve got all this crime going on.

“Have they got nothing better to do?”

The scarecrow was dressed in a bright red PVC suit and a dark curly wig.


Stephen Sayner with the scarecrows displayed outside his house (Image: HullLive)
Mrs Sayner said when the police showed up she was initially confused. She claims the officer explained the issue was the figure they had chosen to depict.

She said: “The police came and I asked if everything was okay they said 'yeah, we just want to have a chat with you'.

"They asked about the scarecrow walk and I said ‘is there a problem with our scarecrow?’ and she said ‘oh yeah – somebody has complained'.

“I said I could change the colour of the face if that would make it better?

“She said ‘no, it’s not that, it’s the whole Michael Jackson thing and the red PVC suit'.

“I explained it’s the actual Thriller suit. There was a sign underneath that said 'thriller'.


Mr Sayner has replaced the Michael Jackson scarecrow with figures of Village People (Image: HullLive)
“She said, ‘no, we need it removing.’

“We were annoyed because everyone in the area had been laughing and joking about it. We took time and effort to do it for the kids.”

Having taken the Michael Jackson figure down the couple have since created a tableau of Village People performing legendary hit YMCA.

Mr Sayner said: "I thought, 'they're not beating me'. At the moment, when everyone's feeling fed up and a bit down - it’s a bit of fun isn’t it.

The scarecrow walk had been set up by local community group Ghost Estate Compass.

The group’s organiser Mark Robinson has backed the couple and said: “I started a scarecrow walk off last week. I presented it to the community and this couple took the idea on board and it has snowballed.

“Somebody has just got offended and called the police just to stir something which has really got the community sticking together even more.


The scarecrows outside the Sayner's house in Compass Street doing the "YMCA" (Image: HullLive)
“We’d like them to come forward and have a chat with us and tell us why they found it offensive and we can talk it through because there might be situations in the future where this could happen again and we don’t want that.

“We want to bring the community together not to cause friction.”

Humberside Police statement
A Humberside Police spokesperson said: "We understand that, especially at this time, people are coming together and are wanting to bring light-hearted relief to their communities.

"On Saturday May 23 we did receive a complaint from a local resident who reported they had been offended by a scarecrow on display in a front garden on Compass Road in Hull.

"As with all reports of this nature we want to make sure we talk to everyone involved to look at a way to resolve any situation amicably.

"PCSOs discussed the concerns of the person reporting it to us with the householder displaying the scarecrow, who decided to remove it from their garden.

"There is no further involvement or action that will be taken by police."
 
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People are plain dumb. Can’t believe this shit
 
They knew what they was doing. that's blackface. if they want it to do a scarecrow of Michael it could of been the wiz or just made the skin dark brown. idiots. goes to show you racism still exist.
 
^In fairness the Police said it was the figure that they had chosen to depict that was the reason for the complaint, not that it was racially offensive.
 
They knew what they was doing. that's blackface. if they want it to do a scarecrow of Michael it could of been the wiz or just made the skin dark brown. idiots. goes to show you racism still exist.

That city and all the rural towns and villages around it do 'scarecrow walks' in summer. It's been a local tradition for years (at least 30+).
They run competitions for the best one, and competitions for kids to find them- they are often hidden or in unexpected places eg high up above shop windows. All the scarecrows are made to look as much like the actual person portrayed as possible (with least amount of money spent on it - it's not a wealthy area).

I'm really glad that the scarecrow artist a) chose to make a 'Thriller Michael' for the neighbourhood and b) defended it.
Britain is supposed to be a free country and this image was not offensive in any way. I wonder if the complainant watched and believed LN? Sad if so.

It's particularly ridiculous since MJ played an ACTUAL scarecrow (made up to look like one) in The Wiz.

Also - All the scarecrows are made 'as' scarecrows, so they mostly have round faces and button eyes...

jWYfX8c.jpg
 
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It's nice what they was trying to do but that's racist and blackface. it was good they took it down.
 
I wonder if the complainant watched and believed LN? Sad if so.

I doubt that a lot of people ever actually watched that thing. They picked up their daily tabloid, read the headline and took that at face value.
 
It's nice what they was trying to do but that's racist and blackface. it was good they took it down.

MJ wanted Thriller to be entertaining for adults and kids.
(You could argue the zombies are disrepectful to the dead.... Michael added a disclaimer to the video saying that it didn't reflect his personal convictions.)

I guess kids shouldn't enjoy these representations of Thriller MJ either... If anyone makes a model of 'Thriller MJ' for a kid's enjoyment, I presume they have to give it a white face now.

GChJvCk.jpg
 
Nite Line;4291633 said:
Is it racist if a black person impersonates a white person and wears white powder on his/her face to look white?

The problematic aspect is not the make-up per se, but the fact that blackface performances were a tool of systemic racism. White people were never subject to systemic racism.

I don’t think that this was the reason for the complaint about the scarecrow, though. Probably more to do with the “controversial pop star” angle, as mentioned in the article.
 
Yep, we've lost it. We've lost it indeed. Can someone buy me a one-way ticket to the alternate universe? Should be better than the crazy world we live in now.
 
I think they were just trying to represent the early 80s Michael with the recycling stuff they had at home... No need to spend too much money or time for this stuff, even if the scarecrow's skin was white, red, purple or green.
 
Black Sambo dressed in a Thiller outfit is racist. Google the image of you are not familiar with the Black Sambo cartoons.
 
Racist and sickening, making fun of his death too.
With George Floyd and Trump - is it any wonder Black people are angry.

This world is so sick and so evil.
Typical English chavs who think its all a big joke and funny.

If it helps, Hull is one of the biggest holes in Britain - poor and broken down.
 
If it was the way the scarecrow was represented that was indeed the source of the offense - and for whatever reason the cop who attended the call failed to grasp that and in turn relayed the wrong reason to the homeowner - then it would make a lot more sense.

But the article does state that it is not the face that was the issue - just that it was "the whole Michael Jackson thing". Presumably in reference to Leaving Neverland.
 
ChrisC;4291719 said:
If it was the way the scarecrow was represented that was indeed the source of the offense - and for whatever reason the cop who attended the call failed to grasp that and in turn relayed the wrong reason to the homeowner - then it would make a lot more sense.

But the article does state that it is not the face that was the issue - just that it was "the whole Michael Jackson thing". Presumably in reference to Leaving Neverland.

This. While people would have had all the reasons to complain about this stereotypical, borderline racist depiction of a black artist, they apparently chose to be outraged over a fictional movie they probably haven’t even watched.
 
Yep I think this too. As the quote says "the whole michael jackson thing". I don't believe the skin colour/race was the issue. It was purely the fact it was MJ. That's the reason they complained. So it seems the police saw fit to remove the scarecrow simply because it was MJ. It's obvious it's in reference to LN.
Unbelievable. People just don't want MJ to exist anymore and want to completely erase/forget him.
 
Unbelievable. People just don't want MJ to exist anymore and want to completely erase/forget him.

Well that's not gonna happen. they can kiss that goodbye while their at it they need a history (no pun) lesson on black history and Michael.
 
ScreenOrigami;4291727 said:
This. While people would have had all the reasons to complain about this stereotypical, borderline racist depiction of a black artist, they apparently chose to be outraged over a fictional movie they probably haven’t even watched.

I'll try to explain.

This is an MJ Fan, who is currently on lockdown (like most of the UK).
His community wanted to do something nice for children, and a scarecrow trail is long tradition in the area.
Scarecrows have a long literary tradition (especially in children's literature) too. eg 'The Wizard of Oz includes a scarecrow as a main character.
Scarecrows (as Michael knew) are constructed of throw-away items (rubbish) essentially. Hence MJ's odd clothes and sweet-wrapper nose in 'The Wiz'.
This fan created an MJ scarecrow to entertain himself, his kids and the neighbourhood, out of scrap items he had in the house and garage.
Scarecrows have a traditional 'look' whether they are black or white. Button eyes and red smiles are common.
Most 'entertainment' (as opposed to 'field') scarecrows depict white characters eg from books or films, or local people in the area
This fan wanted his scarecrow to look like MJ, so he made the face out of something like a black plastic bin bag.
He added a sign saying 'RIP'. he also added a zombie emerging from the ground, and a sign saying 'Ghosts'.

In making this display, the fan was supporting and promoting MJ. He was also risking a brick being thrown through his window, because of the allegations in 'LN.
The complainant (who seemingly complained because of 'LN') was also likely racist.
So.... we accuse the fan of being racist.

I attach some more photos of scarecrows from this region of the country, and illustrations from some of the many, many children's books about scarecrows.

Frankly, I'm not sure if we are saying that 'MJ scarecrows are banned', or that the fan should not have given his scarecrow a black face with button eyes.

For those who are unsure about one of the photos, I should add that 'Superman' was not being lynched here. I suppose if Superman had ever been played by a black actor, it would be assumed that this *did* represent a lynching. (He's meant to be flying).

(There are days when I wonder why I spend every waking minute defending MJ. Maybe I should spend my time defending innocent fans instead :( .)

Actually, this whole misperception is very analogous to MJ's situation. MJ enjoyed the company of children therefore he is guilty. This fan made a black MJ scarecrow so he's racist.

L82Lpqu.jpg
 
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Well that's not gonna happen. they can kiss that goodbye while their at it they need a history (no pun) lesson on black history and Michael.

exactly. madonna's latest tweet proves that. even though it's madonna i'm glad she posted that tweet.
 
There so many ways they could of made this scarecrow. i'm offend by the dark skin and red lips. I understand they use stuff around their house but they really could done a better job on this.

i'm sorry but i can't not said I like it. and once again i'm am from an african descent.
 
While i'm not a fan of Madonna and Michael didn't like her either. i'm glad she defending him. it really goes to show you don't have to like someone to defend them. shoutout to her.
 
myosotis;4291743 said:
This fan made a black MJ scarecrow so he's racist.

There’s a misunderstanding here. Maybe I haven’t expressed my point clearly. I’m not saying the MJ fan who made the scarecrow is a racist. I just think that the result they ended up with is a bit unfortunate, considering the history of stereotypical and racist depictions of black people. In that light, I would have understood complaints over the appearance of the scarecrow, but that’s not what the complaints were about.
 
I do not like the black face it has. It does look like a mockery. As for them not liking it because it is MJ, Ii am curious how many complaints they received. I bet it only one or two. I do not trust nothing the media say. Look how some of the same old media types/haters trying to make it look like madonna is getting a backlash and trying to word the headline like it is because of MJ. That's a lie. When you read the comments, it is clearly not because he was doing MJ; in fact, it say the song fits this moment. It had nothing to do with not wanting him to do MJ. First, it is just 3 to 4 people and they just do not like that he is dancing during this serious time-clearly those few people do not know the meaning behind the song. 2-the post received over 1 million likes and still getting likes. And 3-some people post just because the are clearly Madonna haters and want drama no matter who her son was dancing to. Again we have to stop thinking everyone is against mj. Not true. It is just a hand full of idiots who have nothing else to do and looking for drama no matter who it is as well.
 
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There so many ways they could of made this scarecrow. i'm offend by the dark skin and red lips. I understand they use stuff around their house but they really could done a better job on this.

i'm sorry but i can't not said I like it. and once again i'm am from an african descent.

I understand where you are coming from in your comments. This fan is clearly no Michelangelo and the scarecrow is basic.

I do believe he thought he was doing the right thing in creating an MJ with a black face. The problem with black (as an art colour) is that black, blue or brown don't show up against it. So he could have used yellow or green or white for the lips. But the neighbours might have laughed. And white would have looked worse. So he used a red colour for the lips. Because it shows up against the colour black, and so his MJ had a mouth - he is after all a singer and 'needs' a mouth.

Please don't think unkindly of white allies who are doing their best. They may not be perfect but they are defending and promoting Michael. Maybe not in your way, but in the best way they can and with no offence in their minds.

I was struck by this image on Twitter today- women lining up to protect protestors behind them (in Louisville Kentucky, where Breonna Taylor was killed by white police in March.) One might see this as women (including white women) 'taking over' the protest, or even as protecting the police from being 'harassed by protestors'. But they're not, they are trying to protect the people behind them, so that they can protest safely. Sometimes a viewpoint is all about where you stand.

APLkVr3.jpg
 
Cod heads?

To be fair to the place its not that poor and broken down. Alot has been spent there over the years. Of course you have bransholme. But most/all cities have rough council estates.

Id have been more bothered if they showed him with a white face. At least it was a fan trying to support mj.
 
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