The Story of Little Black Sambo

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The Story of Little Black Sambo 1899 First Edition Cover

The Story of Little Black Sambo is a children's book written and illustrated by Scottish author Helen Bannerman and published first by Grant Richards in England in October 1899 and then in the United States the following year. Bannerman wrote and illustrated this book as a gift for her two little girls.

The book's distribution in 1899 acquired Bannerman  recognition as an innovator in picture books. By the time, crude illustrations, tedious sentences,  suspenseful narrative, and rhythmic, were viewed unique. Due to the little size of the book, which additionally considered as another element, made it simple for children to hold the book. [1]

However, it turned into an object of bigotry during the twentieth century, because of the names of the characters consists racial slurs for dark-skinned people, and the illustrations were in the pickaninny style, storybook which was destructive to Black kids. Slowly the book vanished from list of suggested stories for children.

Plot

The Story of Little Black Sambo is a story of a little boy who are surrounded by four tigers. In return to be freed, they ask the little boy to give his umbrella and his clothes to the tigers. Soon after he gives all his belongings, the four tigers being to fight among themselves. They are running around chasing each other around the tree until they blur into butter. In the end, he gets all his belonging backs and takes the butter home to his mother, Black Mumbo, who makes pancakes for the entire family using the butter. In the French-language edition of Bannerman’s book, Sambo Le Petit Négre (1948), the story narrates that the little boy eats tiger-striped pancakes[2]

Controversy

Story of Little Black Sambo Cover First US Publication

Even though this book was popular among children by the time it was released, it came under attack in the United States during the 1960's for what many people claimed were racist illustrations and generally negative portrayals of black people. In late 1964 a Nebraska school director eliminated Little Black Sambo from the libraries in his educational system, because it was characteristically bigoted. After the book on reserve and made accessible just as discretionary material, it faded from circulation.

In 1972, soon after Bannerman's book was republished in England, The London Times distributed an essay talking about ccensorship of children’s books that were accused of cultivating unwanted perspectives. The Central Committee of Teachers Against Racism complained that Sambo portrayed a cliché picture of African American greed due to a scene where Sambo eats 169 pancakes. Right-wing activists said that the book didn't belittle or degrade black people regardless of cliché representations of garish flashy multicolored clothing, bare feet, and terribly exaggerated physical features.

By the 1970’s Bannerman’s book had disappeared from public and school library shelves. Large numbers of arguments for and against Little Black Sambo shaped the premise rules for deciding prejudice and sexism in children’s books. These rules commonly included examination of the illustrations, storyline, lifestyles portrayed, relationship described, and racial or ethnic personality of the heroes and heroines.[3]

Also, the expression "Sambo" had effectively acquired cash in America as a dark paradigm, especially, a dark worker who was loyal and contented”(Pilgrim). This was in no way, shape or form restricted to the United States. In 1974, a West Indian laborer in Britain accused of attacking his co-worker for calling him "Sambo"  was informed by the presiding judge that "Sambo" was simply a joke among coworkers and scarcely justified assault.[4]

References

  1. Helen Bannerman On The Train To Kodaikanal. Retrieved on December 22, 2020
  2. Jeyathurai, Dashini (2012). The complicated racial politics of Little Black Sambo. Retrieved on December 22, 2020.
  3. eNotes Editorial (2018). Little Black Sambo. Retrieved on December 22, 2020
  4. Jeyathurai, Dashini (2012). The complicated racial politics of Little Black Sambo. Retrieved on December 23, 2020.