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Boris says sorry over 'blacks have lower IQs' article in the Spectator
02.04.08
Boris Johnson apologised again over race issues today after he was accused of condoning an article that claimed black people have a lower IQ.
The Tory mayoral candidate came under fire from Ken Livingstone and a leading black lawyer over pieces published in the Spectator magazine when he was editor.
In one, columnist Taki wrote that "Orientals ... have larger brains and higher IQ scores. Blacks are at the other pole." In another, he described black American bastketball players as having "arms hanging below their knees and tongues sticking out".
When asked today if he had condoned the articles, unearthed by black newspaper-New Nation, Mr Johnson told the Standard: "I am sorry for what was previously written as it does not reflect what is in my heart.
"Ken Livingstone has nothing positive to say about the future of London, or the wave of criminal violence that has cost the lives of 11 young people killed on our streets this year, or yet another strike on our Tube which will disrupt millions of commuters next week, so he has again resorted to negative personal attacks."
But the Mayor seized on the articles as further proof of Mr Johnson's lack of commitment to a racially diverse city like London.
Mr Livingstone, who appeared alongside Martin Luther King's son yesterday to commemorate the 40th anniversary of his assassination, said: "Such statements are completely unacceptable and Boris Johnson as editor of the Spectator should never have let them appear. It shows that Boris Johnson has no adequate understanding of what it means to lead a great multicultural and multi-ethnic city.
"Taki is basically an unpleasant racist-bigot. You just don't give anyone like that a job. If you're happy for that sort of crap to come out in a magazine you're editing, you can't really claim to be fit to represent the most culturally and racially diverse city on earth."
The Tory candidate has apologised for articles he had written in which he referred to black children as "piccaninnies" and to the "watermelon smiles" of Africans greeting foreign visitors.
Mr Johnson insisted he "loathed and despised" racism and said his words, written more than five years ago, had been taken out of context. Aides suspect that the Livingstone camp will use the race claims in a desperate last bid to hold on to office.
He told New Nation last week that he had been on holiday when an article in the Spectator claimed that Caribbeans were "multiplying like flies".
Barrister Courtenay Griffiths, QC, said: 'It is surprising that a columnist in the UK could be displaying such Neanderthal attitudes, and you have to call into question Boris Johnson's judgment as editor of the Spectator."
Reader views (32)
I dont think i will ever forgive him no matter the spins by the,conservatives and the media
- Steve, london
Boris needs to be investigated. Racism is a crime. So is plotting to beat journalists up if they write articles about your friends. Seriously if the Chinese Olympics are anything to go by, London better be very, very, very careful about who to have as their Mayor.
For someone to step up to the plate and genuinely try to help unite Londoners, who have a hard time uniting themselves...is something to be appreciated and respected. Ken takes open responsibility for his actions and presents himself as a Mayor, who cares, acts and is willing to take the flack. This approach always seems to backfire which is why you end up getting sneaky, clueless, lying bigoted, slimy toads posing as politicians and city officials most of the time. Asking for the truth is about understanding that you are not always going to like what you hear, but at least you know where you stand and how to find solutions. London is not an easy city to manage. The rest of London they need to take seriously their responsibility as citizens. If you get a character like Boris as Mayor, we will witness a catastrophic London. The current demonstrations against China will look like an Eton tea party with lashings of ginger beer in comparison to what would happen to London if someone like Boris gets to represent the City on an international scale. I beg you, please don't let this happen. Let London move forward - not backward.
- Sobi, Northumberland, UK
Boris "Picaninnies, pangas, watermelon smiles" Johnson - the man to UNTIE London!
- Ml, London, United Kingdom
I can't believe anyone is still considering voting for Boris. Ken is hardly being 'below the belt' in pointing out that Boris as mayor would deeply offend a large proportion of the capital's inhabitants.
While Ken might not be the best mayor in an ideal world, sadly we don't always get the politics we deserve. Sometimes one has to do the right thing and vote for the lesser of two evils. In this case it has to be Ken. Boris would absolutely screw up London.
- Ferdi, London
A little late to apologise in a meaningful way now! It's more worrying however to observe that the majority of you think he was right to say it and wrong to apologise. Whilst I am a conservative voter, I find it impossible to identify with this level of perniciousness.
- Oliver P., NE London, UK
Ken is right about Boris. I just don't want to see London burning like Paris last year if Boris is going to come on top.
Of course he would say sorry, he is after the votes.
- Fred, London
Another problem with IQ testing is that there are so many variables which can influence the outcome. Eg it would be expected that people from poorer underprivileged backgrounds would score lower because their access to good education would necessarily be lower. It is nigh on impossible to produce a level playing field that would ensure all participants in these intellectually ambiguous tests are all at the same point when the start gun goes off. In addition, Johnson from Kingston Jamaica, some words have a different shade of meaning (excuse the pun) depending on who has spoken them. It is not common parlance in the UK to call children piccaninnies. Here it definitely has the slight hint of old fashioned colonialist racism. A man of Johnson's education,(perhaps not IQ?) running for public office needs to understand the subtleties of his own language. I think it is facile to say Ken is hitting below the belt V Tan. Unlike boxing which is vicious but honourable , politics is a dirty and personal game and politicians of all political complexions will seek to knock opponents out using fair means or foul. Ken Livingstone is not unique in this. Boris Johnson has scored an own goal to use another sporting analogy.
- B Williams, Friern Barnet, UK
It appears some labour lefties will never vote Tory but to vote for ken Livingstone is just plain stupid vote Paddick at least he will get the head of the met out if elected and Ian Blair can get a real taste of walking the streets at night.
- Diane Abbot, London
It's disturbing that so many people forget how corrupt labour are and they have made this country much worse but still you get labour supporters saying there doing a good job as for Ken where has all that money gone it's a disgrace that he just shrugs it off that it's 1 percent of the budget.
- Dave Angel, London
I think many people would like to live in a city which treated everyone equally. I don't think we will ever get that with Ken who seems hell-bent on making sure all minority groups, regardless of their deservedness, are placed at the head of any queue for handouts, with daylight then preceding the silent, needy majority. This inevitable creates the divisiveness so supposedly despised by Ken. It's time for a fairer London.
- St, London
Here we see the P.C. thought police squaring upto the racist bigots, free speech and objective debate crushed to oblivion between them.
Valid research basicly agreed with the claims of the "offending" article. The problems with this are:
1) That the relavence of IQ to actual intelligence is unproven, and indeed contradicted by anecdotal evidence in my life. i.e high IQ people who lack any notion of common sense.
2) The studies showed very small differences between the races and indeed reinforced the possibility that the cleverest person in the world could (for all practicle purposes) be just as likely to be a black African as an Asian.
3) If you are a either a racist bigot or a P.C. nutter you are likely to be in the dumber than dumb category regardless of race.
4) White English people (speaking as one)seem to lack the intelligence to have an objective open debate. If half your "thoughts" are dictated by someone else can you still claim to be intelligent?
- John B, Matlock UK
Nobody is perfect. Its a choice between someone who sometimes makes unpolitically correct statements (yeah welcome to the real world lefties) and someone who wastes our money on corrupt schemes and organisations and promotes a perverse version of Marxism. An easy choice.
- D, London
However opportunist Livingstone's criticism may be it doesn't alter the fact that Boris Johnson has made comments himself - and allowed comments to be published in a magazine he edited - which are undoubtedly, shockingly and blatantly, racist. How could he possibly be fit to run London? I can't be the only person who is appalled at the prospect of Johnson as mayor. He is an incompetent buffoon with deeply unpleasant opinions.
- Sue Sparks, London, UK
Ken might be desperate as some are saying above but the public needs to know what kind of man they are so seemingly inclined to vote for. Boris is a joke and its a shame that we may end up with him as mayor. And after that, we can expect a Tory government too. God have mercy on us.
With life already getting tougher in the UK for the ordinary man, it will only get worse. Look at the Americans who voted a for a schmuck like Bush and paid for it. We laughed at them but soon it will be our turn to be the laughing stock. I'm sorry but the Tories are a joke. Hug a hoodie? Don't make me laugh.
- Clive, London, UK
Isn't it refreshing that a politician can apologise to his constituents rather than waste £200,000 of taxpayers' money as well as valuable court time in high court appeals for a frivolous "freedom of speech" suit where the judge believed the Mayor should have just apologised to resolve the issue of his indefensible comments.
- Zo, London
A very large majority of the English hate multi-culti. Is that also racist? So do most immigrants who only come here for financial reasons.
- Frederick, London
Racism is hating people of another race or colour for the sake of hating them. Slimy opportunism is accusing people of racism when one doesn't even know what it is.
- Terence, Johannesburg
"The Tory candidate has apologised for articles he had written in which he referred to black children as "piccaninnies" and to the "watermelon smiles" of Africans greeting foreign visitors. "
The irony of this is that Jamaicans refer to their own children as "piccaninnies" themselves.
- Johnson, Kingston, Jamaica
Yet another smoke screen for Ken's own "Taki" Lee Jasper.
- Mike, London
If such comments as these can be allowed in magazines, its no wonder racce is still an issue in society today.
Blacks have low IQs...I laugh.....whoever made this comment should be the one checking his/hers because if he/she had half the sense of a chipmunk he wouldn't make such a comment and they claim to be academic aces...what a pity!
- Wicked People, London, UK
I wonder if Boris will stand down after this disgusting article, I notice that the BNP candidate has after yesterdays debarkle.
- Katie, Perth, Western Australia
Say hello to the Tory mayor candidate! just what London needs, is he Tory or BNP?
- Brian, wiltshire
It is interesting that the left insists there is no God, that man evolved, yet also insists that all men evolved to have identical intelligence. Only a creator could make it so. Left to evolution, it is a certainty that the different races would develop different mental abilities along with the physical differences. We all accept that different breeds of dogs have different IQ levels. Why would humans be different?
- Gary, Eleuthra, Bahamas
Boris' comments are totally unacceptable but against Ken, I would vote for him any day. Anyone or anything is better than Ken.
- Peter Aikins, UK London
Johnson's views on race are very suspect and ingrained. That would be enough to rule him out as Mayor of a cosmopolitan and diverse Capital.
- Dhanraj, basildon, essex
How can people vote for a man who has so often shown a complete lack of under standing of the real world, Boris is more remote from the man in the street than many of our royals.
- Mike Melbourne, Bedford, England
This is the second time Boris has had to apologise for racist gaff. ones is a mistake, twice....? A man who can say such things surely can not be reflective of our city. If he gets elected it will be demonstrating that this sort of behaviour is OK. He's sure lost my vote.
- Sean, Bromley
IQ scores just reflect aptitude for passing IQ tests and to small degree linguistic ability. Can the Mayor really sink this low because he has nothing more positive to say? People of minority backgrounds are actually sick at the way he has patronised us and taken our money for his pet causes over the past 8 years. Time for a change.
- Sanjay, Greenford
Please stop this Circus - London survived for hundreds of years without a Mayor. Spare the poor London tax payer. We can do without these Clowns, Baffoons and their supporting cast of thousands. Tow City Hall down to the Thames Barrier and use it to raise the flood gates by a foot. Now that would be something useful for Londoners.
- Colin Bond, London
If Boris has to keep changing his mind, what type of leader is he? If he used to think that black are that way, why has he changed his mind?
Can't vote for an inconsistent leader.
- Jeje, UK
What a "strange" candidate the Torys have put up against Ken Livingston. Certainly an "un-savory 'sarnie'"! All Londoners, including the well-to-do, should realise that a Labour Mayor is better for urban city-dwellers.
- Alaan Flacks, New York City, U.S.A.
Ken is obviously desperate, and is hitting below the belt. I suppose politicians do not play by the Queensbury Rules!
- V Tan, London
