Chris Lilley admits to how limited his knowledge into Tongan culture was before making the show. I know a lot people who have been to Tonga... However claimed to have to done extensive research on previous occasions. In an interview with Splitsider promoting “Jonah” this week, Lilley (who declined an interview with Salon) showed remarkably little insight into the racial boundaries he supposedly wants to push: “A lot of Pacific Islander kids are in prison in Australia for some reason, I don’t know why, but it’s a problem so I thought it would be cool to explore that idea that he was probably going to end up going to jail. And it seems extreme, the mentality, but it’s how it is in a lot of prisons in Australia with a lot of Pacific Islanders.” “I try to make my shows really accurate. I’ve always been interested in that part of the culture in Australia. I know a lot of people that have been to Tonga … I get to know the families and I think if they watch it and see how accurate it is, then it’s going to be funny for everyone.” It’s a step back for this community, as the only thing worse than not being represented on the screen is being represented by a person who thinks he can speak for you. salon/2014/08/08/hbo_debuts_jonah_from_tonga_despite_use_of_brownface/
Posted on: Sat, 09 Aug 2014 13:37:42 +0000
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