Man in blackface poses with Florida mayor at ‘African safari-themed’ police fashion show
A Florida police department held an African safari-themed senior fashion show — where a man in blackface posed with a local mayor.
Medley Mayor Roberto Martell is seen smiling in a photograph with two women and a man in a tribal-like costume who was holding a spear at the annual event hosted by the town’s police department for nearly the past 20 years, WPLG reports.
Photos posted on social media of the Sept. 20 soiree show the unidentified man gleefully dancing with other revelers — and even being recognized with an award at the fashion show, the station reports.
“If you know the history of blackface, since the 1800s it was used as a minstrel show, a way to depict black people in a derogatory way,” Miami-Dade County NAACP president Ruban Roberts told WPLG. “In 2019, the mayor [and] police department should be aware of what those images conjure up in people of color.”
The photo is a clear example of not only “ignorance” but racial insensitivity, Roberts said.
Martell, who was elected in the Miami-Dade County town in 2012, said he was “very sorry” for the photo when reached by The Post early Friday.
“This is a senior event that the police have been doing for the past nineteen years,” Martell wrote. “We are sorry if we hurt anyone’s feelings and it will not happen again.”
In a statement issued later in the day, Martell said he was “genuinely sorry.”
“I’m upset with myself for not realizing at the time the photo was being taken how serious and hurtful this image would be to people of color. I was insensitive.”
Martell told the Miami Herald he plans to meet with NAACP staffers to discuss the incident, a plan that Roberts welcomes.
“We need to spread a message of awareness and prevent this from happening again,” the NAACP official told the newspaper.
Medley’s police chief, meanwhile, initially agreed to answer questions on camera, but later acknowledged the incident in a statement, WPLG reports.
“This event brings our senior citizen together to promote community and have a good time,” Chief Jeanette Said-Jinete said in a statement. “This year’s theme was African Safari, and unfortunately, a 78-year-old participant dressed inappropriately and clearly did not understand how others might be offended. For this, we apologize and regret the incident.”
Photo Credit: Local 10