Is District 9 racist against Nigerians? The Nigerian government clearly believe so – They’ve stepped in to ask cinemas to stop screening the movie and are demanding an apology from Sony Pictures for the movie’s “unwarranted attack” on the country.
Allegations of racism against Neill Blomkamp’s movie have been flying since its release, but this new move from the Nigerian government raises the stakes significantly. Information Minister Dora Akunyili explained her problems with the movie:
https://gizmodo.com/is-district-9-racist-5340409
We feel very bad about this because the film clearly denigrated Nigeria’s image by portraying us as if we are cannibals, we are criminals… The name [of] our former president was clearly spelt out as the head of the criminal gang and our ladies shown like prostitutes sleeping with extra-terrestrial beings… I have also formally written to Sony Pictures Entertainment, the company that produced this film, demanding an unconditional apology for this unwarranted attack on Nigeria’s image.
The government has also asked the Nigerian film censors’ board to ban the movie within the country. Sony have so far declined to comment.
Nigeria ‘offended’ by sci-fi film [BBC News]
