Posted on August 26, 2011 - by Kambale Musavuli

When Walmart Mocks the Suffering of Congolese

This week has been very engaging and busy for me. From earthquake in Manhattan to hurricane watch for the week-end. These natural disasters still do not top the action of Walmart who released on August 9 via the Walmart Youtube Channel a very disturbing commercial for their Back-To-School Campaign.

When I was made aware of this ad by a Congolese sister of mine who happened to have caught it on TV, I became very confused in trying to understand why Walmart would make such ad where they create the image of Congo that the world has been stuck with from Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness.”

The commercial implied that Congo is a country where there is a high risk of contracting leprosy as one travels there.

Walmart ad made by the Martin Agency

As a Congolese, I could not let this go and not do something. This is also true for many of my Congolese countrywomen and men who have taken this opportunity not only to let Walmart know that this type of stereotypical ad is unacceptable, but to also say that we as Congolese will not remain silent anymore about how the world is misinformed about the situation in the Congo.

My little contribution to the movement is a letter that was sent today to the Chief Executive Officer of Walmart, Mr Mike Duke, informing him about the Congolese people’s discontent of their ad. Thanks to the tireless advocates who helped in the research and writing of the letter.

Here is what was shared with the CEO of Walmart. You can track the letter by following this link.

August 26, 2011

Mike Duke
Chief Executive Officer
Walmart Home Office
702 SW 8th Street
Bentonville, Arkansas 72716-8611

RE: WALMART BACK-TO-SCHOOL AD “URGENT CARE” BY MARTIN AGENCY

Dear Mr. Mike Duke:

My name is Kambale Musavuli. I am a Congolese Human Rights Activist and Spokesperson of Friends of the Congo. I am writing to lodge a formal complaint against your “Urgent Care” advertisement released August 9th, 2011 on the web and on TV networks, as part of the Walmart Back-to-School campaign. This ad, created by the Martin Agency, constitutes a serious offense to Congolese people in particular and Africans in general.

The ad misinforms viewers and customers alike, encourages prejudicial attitudes toward Africans, and desensitizes its audience to the greatest humanitarian crisis at the dawn of the 21st century, which is grossly under-reported and widely misunderstood.

1. Misinformation: The ad depicts a student researching WebMD on his smart phone as a means to diagnose a friend’s skin condition. In the process, he suggests that the Congo is either a unique or high-risk source for leprosy, and that he has pulled this information from the WebMD website. Research reveals no mention of Congo on WebMD’s leprosy page. The World Health Organization’s site referenced by WebMD states that leprosy in the Congo reached a stage of elimination in 2007. The same page confirms that 100 cases of leprosy occur annually in the US, meaning that one would not have needed to leave the country for exposure. Viewers are wrongly encouraged to associate leprosy and the Congo without any logical basis for the connection.

2. Prejudice: The ad is only 30 seconds in length, making full characterization of any place or people logistically impossible. However, the Congo has long held a space in Western imagination as a symbol of fear and contagion. With this historical and cultural context, referring to the country as shorthand for disease further entrenches prejudicial stereotypes. The ad encourages us to laugh at the idea that a Caucasian, American, middle-class freshman would travel to the Congo. The joke hinges on the improbability of his visit, either because of the boy’s race, nationality, income, or age. Congo’s undesirability as a destination remains a strong overtone throughout. Viewers are encouraged to think of the Congo solely as a place to be avoided and feared.

3. Desensitization: The media has not adequately covered the conflict in the Congo, despite the fact that it has the most human casualties worldwide since World War II. Nearly six million people have died in the last fifteen years of Congo’s conflict, many from disease because of poor living conditions and displacement. Part of the reason why the conflict receives little coverage is the lack of interest by American viewers. By referring to disease in Congo as a joke, the ad encourages viewers to dismiss conditions of struggle and conflict in the country as “normal” and, therefore, unworthy of attention, intensifying an already serious case of inattention and mis-education about Congo in particular and Africa in general. In fact, it plays into the vilest stereotypes about Africa that desensitizes Americans about the place and the people.

While no one is meant to treat advertisements as public service announcements, they nevertheless function as strong public messages. Ads have power, and this one constitutes a particularly aggressive form of ignorance. It is questionable to benefit as a corporation from the sale of technological products like smart phones while suggesting publicly that the poor living conditions in Congo are an unrelated misfortune, especially when metals found in the phone may play a role in fueling the conflict in the Congo.

I am just one of thousands of supporters, Americans and Congolese, demanding that Walmart takes responsibility for its negative impact with this ad. At minimum Walmart should:

1. Remove the “Urgent Care” ad from all forms of media circulation (TV networks, web, etc.),
2. Issue a press release delivering a public apology to the Congolese people about the ad, and
3. Educate and sensitize a.) your staff (especially the Marketing Department who approved the release of this ad) and b.) your customers by providing teaching materials that explain the situation in the Congo and what Walmart is doing to practice responsible sourcing as it relates to the Congo’s mineral resources.

Through your reparative actions, I ask you to fulfill your 2010 statement that Walmart “will make the absolute most of our opportunity and capacity to lead as a retailer, as a company, and as people who truly care about serving and helping other people around the world.” Thousands of people eagerly await your response and evidence of this commitment.

Sincerely,

Kambale Musavuli

Spokesperson
Friends of the Congo

Note:

Link to learn more about the Congo
http://www.congojustice.org

Link to Walmart ad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUyxzgmoyuQ

Link to response from the Congolese community
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSejKW9OJjE

Link to Facebook Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/CongoAdProtest/