Gone With The Wind, Cops, And Little Britain: Shows Removed Amid Black Lives Matter Movement

10 June 2020, 12:32

A number of films and TV shows, including Gone with the Wind and Little Britain, are beginning to be banned from TV channels and streaming platforms amid the Black Lives Matter movement.

Gone with the Wind has been temporarily removed by streaming service HBO Max due to the “racist depictions” in the film, while Cops will no longer air on Paramount, and Little Britain has been permanently removed from its steaming sites.

TV platforms are beginning to re-consider the prejudices within old programmes available to watch today and are taking action in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement.

HBO Max, which launched in the US in May, confirmed the American Civil War movie has been removed from its service as its racist portrayal of some of the characters were “wrong then and are wrong today.”

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The 1939 film will eventually be re-added to the site with a discussion of its historical context.

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An HBO Max spokesperson told Variety: “’Gone With The Wind’ is a product of its time and depicts some of the ethnic and racial prejudices that have, unfortunately, been commonplace in American society. These racist depictions were wrong then and are wrong today, and we felt that to keep this title up without an explanation and a denouncement of those depictions would be irresponsible.”

They added: “If we are to create a more just, equitable and inclusive future, we must first acknowledge and understand our history.”

Meanwhile, Paramount will no longer air Cops, which started in 1989, on the network.

The reality show followed men and women who work in law enforcement, capturing their daily duties and had a total of 32 seasons.

The programme faced criticism over time from people feeling it glorified police aggression.

Additionally, Little Britain and Come Fly With Me from production duo Matt Lucas and David Walliams has been removed from BBC iPlayer, Netflix, and BritBox following re-surfaced objections of the sketch show’s characters.

Both series contain scenes where the actors portray characters from different ethic backgrounds.

A BBC representative said: "Times have changed since Little Britain first aired so it is not currently available on BBC iPlayer."

The Black Lives Matter movement is spurring TV and film companies to re-think old content which contains depictions of racism and Amazon Prime Video have added a warning to cartoon Tom and Jerry as part of their re-evaluation.

Its description now reads: “Tom & Jerry shorts may depict some ethic and racial prejudice that were once commonplace in American society. Such depictions were wrong then and are wrong today. While not representing the Warner Bros.”

Some Tom and Jerry episodes were made more than 70 years ago.

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