Querying the extent of coverage regarding conflict often makes the headlines. In the case of news media, these questions are categorised as ‘Whataboutery’.
Gestures of goodwill and messages of support are virtuous until the same are not afforded to those of a different skin colour. Ukraine is a testament to the will of change provided you fall within range of the appropriate race.
White westerners are afforded more news coverage than anyone else
There is no getting past or any excuse for acts for remembrance, charity and compassion that Ukraine has been privy to which appear exclusive to only them. Afghani, Syrian, Tigrayan and Yemeni people have not been at the helm of any special treatment, so why is it the West continues to bode messages of support for a European nation caught in a conflict they had no choice in? Just like the aforesaid peoples who have not received the same, the answer is rather obvious. Many forget the unwilling involved in wars catalysed and brooded by the West for years. Perhaps we should spell it out in plain English with a list of Western double standards following the invasion of Ukraine:
- The England football team held up a Ukrainian flag with the words ‘Peace’ when playing them in a UEFA European Qualifying match
- Almost all teams wore a Ukrainian armband during and after the World Cup
- Downing Street held a one minute silence for Ukraine’s people in solidarity with the country. Iraq did not receive the same despite the the 20th anniversary of the war
- Russia has been removed from the majority of sports competitions, including the Olympic Games. However, members of the ‘coalition of the willing’ in Iraq have not. The UK & US were welcomed with open arms at the Berlin games
- Refugees were taken in without question by the British government, while people from elsewhere were offered a more hostile treatment in the shape of Rwanda
- Bear Grylls made a visit to Ukraine to show his solidarity. But nowhere else
- In a tweet, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmvtro Kuleba thanked France for their recognition of the Holodomor (a man made famine in Ukraine perpetrated by the Soviet government). However, the same is not afforded to the Indian ‘Bengal famine’ which essentially happened under the same circumstances
- Poland presented the Ukrainian President with the highest award
These examples and more are but a taste of what Ukraine has been afforded, despite circumstances perpetrated by the West in foreign nations and by civil wars. The absurdity of the aforesaid is justified, but the same should be extended to anyone, anywhere in the world.
War induced famine has increased since the start of the last decade, most notably in Syria and Yemen. This catastrophe has been hastened through the supply of weapons to Saudi Arabia by the United States and the United Kingdom to counter the nation’s civil unrest, increasing Yemen’s death toll, and restricting imports for medical care and food.
The situation in Sudan, Afghanistan and beyond show us that white westerners will always matter more
Afghanistan’s situation was downgraded following the unnecessary removal of the very troops that caused its plight. National communications to the public were lacking, leaving people in a state of disarray and panic. Not only did this cause social disruption, but difficulties for both its women and those who assisted the West in its operations.
Following a bloody and monstrous war in Tigray, where approximately 600,000 people died, the Tigrayan people were ignored by the world. In Sudan, a new war has broken out and though coverage is at the forefront for the moment, it is led by sympathies towards British immigrants and workers and not the Sudanese.
Whataboutery is a complex yet obvious phenomena that has divided us throughout the world. When Ukraine’s conflict hit the headlines, there were few mentions of Western migrants and diplomats in need of evacuation. Instead, the attention fell to the struggle of everyday Ukrainians (white). Whereas, Sudan’s (not white) needs have been usurped by attention afforded to mostly white western immigrants.
So, you ask why do many cry whataboutery? The proof is in the pudding.
Image: RawPixel
Stanisland Magazine 